Ethos is an appeal to character. An ethos artifact would therefore enhance or degrade someone's credibility thereby affecting the way people listen to their argument. I brought, as my ethos artifact, a picture of my wife playing a Steinway & Sons grand piano. By seeing this picture you instantly assume things about her character. You assume she plays the piano. You assume she's pretty good when you see that it's a grand piano and then you assume she's really good because it's not just any grand piano it's a Steinway.
My wife is truly a great piano player, but she's also a piano teacher and she would use a picture such as this one in any sort of advertising she did so that her students (or their parents) would know that she is a really great pianist and those looking for their children to be great pianists would hire her. My wife eventually wants two grand pianos in her studio because she says that's when you are seen as more than just an average neighborhood teacher and people realize you're serious.
Axel,
ReplyDeleteFirst off I had no idea you were married, that's great.
I think that your appeal to ethos is spot on. It definitely helps to set the character of your wife, and like you said, one can draw many conclusions from the picture.