Forms of appeal

Emmeline Pankhurst’s “Freedom or Death” speech is dominated by ethos and logos, but there are also a few instances when the speaker’s address relies on patho…

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Logos

The speaker appeals to the audience’s reason by using logical arguments and facts to support her case.

For example, some of the analogies Pankhurst uses in her speech are based on a logical line of reasoning that is meant to illustrate why women need to use aggressive methods to advance their cause. The most relevant example is when the speaker asks men how they would act if they were not able to vote: “But le…

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Ethos

Pankhurst appeals to trust and authority in several ways in the speech.

First, she borrows from the authority and legitimacy of the American Revolution and Civil War to justify the way suffragettes are using aggressive methods to advance their cause: “You won your freedom in America when you had the revolution,…

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Pathos

The speaker appeals to the audience’s emotions whenever she asks them to relate to women’s situation and suffering.

This is most visible when she talks about the women being imprisoned, force-fed, and willing to die fighting for their cause: “You can kill that wo…