Logos, ethos, and pathos

In his TED Talk “How to fix a broken heart”, Guy Winch engages his audience through a mix of logos, ethos, and pathos.

Logos

Winch appeals to logos when he refers to studies and statistics about the psychology of heartbreak. For example, he explains: “we know from studies of heartbroken people that having a clear understand of why the relationship ended is really important for our ability to move on”. Referencing psychological studies in his talk makes Winch’s arguments more compelling and helps him engage his audience by providing them with factual information about a topic that deals with emotions instead of reason.

Another example is when he says: “Brain studies have shown that the withdrawal of romantic love activates the same mechanisms in our brain that get activated when addicts are withdrawing from substances like cocaine or opioids”. This appeal to logos also supports Winch’s arguments that though it may seem to others that people have an irrationally hard time getting over heartbreak, the emotional impact is indeed very powerful. 

Lastly, Winch refers to facts and statistics when he discusses the effects of heartbreak. He says that the emotional pain caused by hear...