One thing that
Matchar does to appeal to Ethos, as it pertains to her credibility, is that she
mentions the comment thread that she saw on one of the blogs that reveals that she
is not the only “closet non-Mormon reader of Mormon mommy blogs.” What this
does for her ethos is show that her experience is more the norm than the
exception. This makes her audience realize that what she is saying is
applicable to a more general audience, to them.
She also says that she reads more than one of these blogs. This
helps establish her credibility because it shows that she is extremely familiar
with her subject. She knows a good representative sample of these blogs, which
makes her a good judge.
Another thing Matchar does is add a rebuttal, bringing up
the point that maybe this is just a front and these women’s lives really aren’t
as happy as they make it seem on their blogs. What this shows her audience that
she has thought about this issue from all perspectives and is a critical,
unbiased judge of the situation.
I like how you pointed out that she was not the only one reading Mormon blogs. I didn't think of that before as ethos, but I understand how it could be now!
ReplyDeleteLiked how you talked about how she used her removed perspective to make her seem credible.
ReplyDeleteI liked how you brought up her apparent history of reading blogs as something to bring credit to her writing. It helps to show that she knows what she's talking about when she compares the Mormon blogs to other ones on the web.
ReplyDelete