When Life Imitates video

The text “When Life Imitates Film” by John Leo discusses the emerging challenge of video games causing their victims to become aggressive as a result of exposure to shooting scenes. It also draws attention to the fact that video games often produce forums on which the innocent are equally slaughtered, making people much more lethal. However, based on the review of the text, it is clear that the speaker maintains that the listener is engaged by using different concepts of appeal to help the reader appreciate the perspective they affirm. Through making use of the concept of pathos, logos, kairos, and ethos, the author enables the utilization of elements of appeal in assisting the audience conceptualize the negative impact of violent video games in the society.

The first criterion that is used in the article is the consideration of logos, which is the aspect of appeal that involves the use of reason to convince the reader into trusting that the information is logical. Logos, a Greek statement for word, primarily focuses on the message of the paper to relate the authenticity of the arguments made. It is apparent that the author employs various statistics to justify the theme of the paper and enable the reader to understand the criticality of the subject of video games. It is stated that “a widely cited survey of 900 fourth-through eighth-grade students found that almost half of the children said their favorite electronic games involve violence” (Leo 66). The statement underscores that fact that the prevalence of the problem is widespread among teenagers and the reader is able to relate the concept to the broader perspective. It is outlined that the aspect of logos points out the role of internal consistency and demonstrates clarity in the statement made. The use of statistics thus serves to enable the reader to understand the relevance of the message of the paper, and from the appeal, the audience conceptualizes the impact of video game addiction to the society.

It is also important to highlight the importance of pathos as a criterion for persuasion is the writing of the article. ‘Pathos’ is a Greek word that means suffering and experience and its inclusion brings the impression of the element of a focus on the values of the intended audience to capture their feelings (University Writing Center 2). It is mostly associated with the use of empathy that enables the imaginable story to relate to the capacity of logic by demonstrating how people are suffering as a result of the problem being argued. The article by Leo similarly utilizes the aspect of suffering from the consideration of the number of people who end up being affected by the trends in the use of video games. The author poses a rhetorical question that creates a feeling of suffering when he asks,” did the sensibilities created by the modern, video games play a role in the Littleton massacre” (University Writing Center 75). The use of this feature of rhetorical appeal is that it grasps the reader’s imagination and feelings and gets them to relate the significance of the need to reduce the addiction to video games as it is causing harm to the tangible world and the society. From the paper, it is apparent that the author succeeds in the use of pathos to convince the reader to understand the relevance of the argument.

Ethos, a concept of rhetorical analysis that focuses on the trustworthiness and credibility of the speaker’s statement is also included as an appeal strategy in the article. From the assessment of the ethos feature, it is apparent that the appeal to ethos is depicted through making sure that the argument made is honest (University Writing Center 2). The utilization of the feature of a counterargument is a clear illustration that warrants the use of ethos. An example of this appeal is the statement, “more realistic touches in video games help blur the boundary between fantasy and reality- guns carefully modeled on real ones, accurate-looking wounds, screams and other sound effects. Even the recoil the heavy rifle” (Leo 66). The statement makes it appear that the author is relating the positive features that can be obtained from the use of video games for entertainment. The counterargument, however, follows as Leo describes that the effect is that people get accustomed to killing in the real life ad may relate the experience to create mortal harm. The consideration of an opposing viewpoint ensures that the author engages the reader in the positive effects of video games but then by presenting an opposing viewpoint, he succeeds in warranting the trustworthiness of the argument (Kirszner and Mandell 187).

The last important feature that is manifested as a feature of appeal in the element of Kairos, which is a Greek term that stands for “season”, opportunity” or the “right time.” It is the aspect of appeal that ensures that the timeliness of the argument remains a key feature to engage the audience in the discussion (University Writing Center 2). The subject of video games is a current issue that is presenting a challenge to educational stakeholders from the realization that children and teenagers are increasingly becoming addicted the media sources. By presenting the issue as a challenge that is facing the current generation, the author ensures that the audience is updated with the current challenges in the world. The author states, we are now a society in which the chief form of play for millions of youngsters is making large numbers of people die” (Leo 66). He, therefore, makes it appear that the article forms the foundation for understanding the menace in the society and the basis upon which any intervention can be instituted that will save the millions from getting impacted on by the adverse outcomes. The reader is thus likely to get convinced into believing that video games and harmful to the society and that they should be shunned for better coexistence.

In summary, it is noted that the author of the article makes use of various forms of appeal to engage the reader into appreciating the subject of video games having adverse outcomes on the society based on the impact the have on youngsters. It is noted that the four phases of rhetorical appeal that are included entail the feature of logos, ethos, pathos, and kairos. While logos measure the audience’s message, the ethos typifies the speaker’s trustworthiness. Meanwhile, the pathos concept involves the appeal through creating a scenario of suffering while the Kairos rhetoric entails making the article an opportune piece n address the challenge of video games in the present generation. However, overall, it is imperative to underscore the fact that the use of various forms of appeal in the document makes the author successful in informing the audience about the significance of the topic of violent video games.



























Works Cited

Kirszner, Laurie G., and Stephen R. Mandell. Practical Argument. Arlington Street: Library of Congress Cataloguing-In-Publication, 2011. Print.

Leo, John. “When Life Immitates Video.” U.S. News and World (1999): n. pag. Print.

University Writing Center. “What Are Logos, Ethos, Pathos, and Kairos?” A Rhetoric with Readings (2010): n. pag. Web.