“The Ethos of Mark Driscoll: A Summary of an Undergraduate Thesis”

by Benjamin Sherick | Xchanges 11.2

Ethos

Ethos, as described by Aristotle in Rhetoric, is one of three modes of persuasion. Aristotle (c. 335/1984) stated, “[A speaker’s] character may almost be called the most effective means of persuasion he possesses” (p. 25). Aristotle explained that ethos compels persuasion so strongly by indicating credibility: “Persuasion is achieved by the speaker’s personal character when the speech is so spoken as to make us think him credible. We believe good men more fully and more readily than others” (Aristotle, c. 335/1984, p. 25).

Intrinsic Ethos

Intrinsic ethos is the ethos presented by the speaker within the bounds of the rhetorical act. For Aristotle, “ethos… should be achieved by what the speaker says, not by what people think of his character before he begins to speak” (Aristotle, c. 335/1984, p. 25). The concept of intrinsic ethos allowed me to objectively analyze Driscoll’s character within the sermon by examining Driscoll as he presents himself.

To evaluate intrinsic ethos, I focused on Driscoll’s presentation of the three components of ethos described by Aristotle: virtue, wisdom, and goodwill. Braet (1992) argues that “True credibility results when the audience attributes three qualities to the speaker because of what is said; these virtues are good sense, virtue and goodwill” (p. 311).

Virtue is the ability to produce and preserve the good and to make moral choices that lead to the greatest happiness (Smith, 2004, p. 7). Since the audience interprets the message, the speaker must demonstrate behavior that the audience deems honorable.

Wisdom (or knowledge) deals with the demonstration of what the speaker knows. Smith (2004) writes, “Aristotle describes five ‘chief’ intellectual virtues: scientific knowledge, art, practical wisdom, intuitive reason, and philosophic wisdom” (p. 10), covering a wide range of knowledge available to the speaker to demonstrate ethos.

Goodwill is an attitude of the speaker towards others. Speakers that demonstrate goodwill show they have the audience’s best interests at heart. Smith (2004) writes, “Goodwill is wishing good for others for their sake; it is the beginning of friendship” (p. 12).

In answering questions about Driscoll’s virtue, knowledge, and goodwill, it was extremely important that I remained objective — I had to temporarily suspend knowledge of the controversies of the summer of 2014 so as not to let his reputation interfere with my analysis.