Forms of appeal

The dominant forms of appeal in Marlon Peterson's TED talk “Am I not human? A call for criminal justice reform” are ethos and pathos.

Ethos

In the speech, Marlon Peterson appeals to ethos by depicting himself and the people he mentions as credible, caring, and understanding.

First of all, Peterson builds ethos around himself by being honest about serving time in prison: “I eventually served 10 years, two months and seven days of a prison sentence” (ll. 22-23). His honesty makes him credible. At the same time, it suggests that he knows the prison system from the inside and, thus, has enough knowledge to argue for his views.

Peterson also creates ethos by showing the audience that some people view him as a hero despite him being a convicted criminal: “She wrote: ‘When I become famous, I will tell everyone that I know a hero named Marlon Peterson.’ ” (l. 1)

In various parts of the ...