“A Different Kind of War Film: The Ethos of the Individual Soldier in The Hurt Locker”

by Mikal Lambdin | Xchanges 11.2

The Role of Ethos

The web resource Silva Rhetoricae defines ethos as “the persuasive appeal of one’s character” and as a way to “establish one’s credibility” (Burton). According to this simple definition, the term is incredibly broad, and establishing ethos can take countless different shapes and achieve many different purposes. Ethos is usually associated with a speaker delivering an argument, and there exist several traditional methods that are commonly used to establish ethos. The Ad Hominem argument, for example, is an argument “against the man,” which aims to undermine the ethos of whoever opposes the speaker (Literary Devices). Other ways of gaining ethos include aligning oneself with trustworthy individuals, referencing past experience or knowledge, and strategic choice of words.

At its core, ethos is what gives integrity to a thought, message, speaker, argument, or, as in this case, a character. The character of James is meant to be honest, individualistic, and in-depth — meant to be real. One can imagine meeting James on the subway or in a coffee shop. His ethos is what convinces audiences that he is honest, individualistic, and in-depth — that he is real. This ethos is gained through the three rhetorical hallmarks previously mentioned: anonymity, detachment, and vulnerability. His anonymity makes him ordinary and believable, his detachment reinforces his addiction making him unique, and his vulnerability emphasizes that James is relatable as a human being. James’s strong ethos as a singular entity is what ultimately determined The Hurt Locker‘s singularity and success. Instead of asking, what is war really like? it asks, what is war like for one person?