Writer/Ethos:
- What authority do you possess in relation to the topic?
- What is your credibility?
- What is your personal experience?
- What is your motivation?
- Do you have statistics or facts? (This would demonstrate that you’re knowledgeable)
- Do you have credentials?
- How do you communicate these things?
- How will readers see you? Why?
Audience:
- Who is the reader?
- Who will read it?
- Who is it intended for?
- Who is the imaginary audience?
- How do you know your audience?
- What are the audience’s values?
- Is the audience sympathetic / neutral / resistant?
- How does your audience affect your use of ethos?
Purpose:
- What is your motivation?
- What do you plan to accomplish?
- What vocabulary will you use? (Ethos)
- What reaction do you solicit from your audience?
- Which audience do you hope to satisfy (resistant, neutral, sympathetic)?
- How do you consider unintended audiences?
Genre:
- What’s expected / appropriate?
- What type of format will be used?
- How did lack of space affect your arguments?
- What information was left out?
- What were the reasons for choosing to include some information and not other information?
Occasion:
- What is the emotion that you get from reading the article, and how is that carried into your own letter?
- What language or tone will you use to reflect the motivating impulse?
- What emotions do you want your audience to feel?
- Is there personal experience that motivates you to write this letter?
- Why did this particular article motivate you to read it and write about it?
- How motivated are you to get a good grade?
- How motivated are you about the article?
- Is it useful to tell your readers about the occasion?
Context:
- What current events are related to this issue?
- What public figures are related to this issue?
- What history has led up to the current state of this issue?
- Who was the original author trying to reach in his or her article?
Logos:
- Would the logic appeal to your specific audience?
- Do you use facts to support claims?
- Do you use statistics?
- Do you use rational thought?
- How is logos related to genre?
Pathos:
- What do you hope readers will feel after reading your letter?
- Do you use specific language to generate emotion in your readers?
- Do you use personal experience to generate emotion in your readers?
- Would the emotional appeal work, given your audience?
