Readings about Rhetorical Foundations
21 Logos is Synonymous With Logic
Nancy Fox
In this brief essay, Nancy Fox complicates the “bad idea” that “Logos is Synonymous With Logic.” Instead, in this selection from Bad Ideas About Writing, Fox draws on ancient texts and contemporary understandings of rhetoric to demonstrate the complexity of argumentation. She suggests that a nuanced view of logos is actually more useful for our understanding of how arguments function.
Read Nancy Fox’s “Logos is Synonymous With Logic.”
Keywords from this chapter in Bad Ideas about Writing
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Author Bio from Bad Ideas about Writing
Nancy Fox is a faculty member in the English department at the University of West Florida and a doctoral candidate in English language and rhetoric at the University of Washington, Seattle. She has published poetry, essays, and a children’s book, as well as work in feminist studies, multimedia, and writing. Her subjects have ranged from analysis of the film The Kids Are All Right and Andy Warhol’s Dream America to a new discovery in “The Mouse’s Tale” from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. She lives on the Gulf Coast with her spouse and two children.
the reason or evidence for an argument
data or evidence for an argument; rhetorical logical appeals rely on reason, rationality, and often quantitative data
language or writing that is likely to convince the reader or listener to adopt an idea, attitude, or action
the study of the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality, and existence, especially when considered as an academic discipline
both the study and use of strategic communication, or talk and text in social interaction; the way that rhetors/authors/writers/composers use language in order to communicate with an audience; the art of using language effectively so as to communicate with, persuade, or influence others
thoughts and assertation that have been made about rhetoric in a formal fashion