"The Ethos of Mark Driscoll: A Summary of an Undergraduate Thesis"
Benjamin SherickBenjamin Sherick graduated from the University of Calgary in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts - Honours First Class in Communication Studies and a minor in Religious Studies. His academic interests include rhetoric, pop culture, music, and religion. He currently resides in Alberta with his wife. Contents |
Ethos Cont.Extrinsic EthosWhile intrinsic ethos is limited to the speaker’s presentation of character in the speech, extrinsic ethos widens the scope to include prior knowledge of the speaker. This concept appears in the works of many classical scholars, but I focused on Isocrates. Like Aristotle, Isocrates placed a high value on a speaker’s ethos. The main difference between Aristotle and Isocrates’ conception of ethos dealt with the rhetor’s reputation. For Isocrates, ethos was closely related to a speaker’s moral character and reputation. Rummel (1979) asserts, “Isocrates’ idea of rhetorical perfection is closely related to his concept of moral excellence” (p. 26). Leff (2009) agrees, stating that Isocratean ethos “incorporates the reputation of the speaker based upon things said and done before beginning the speech” (p. 307). Benoit (1990) takes this one step further: “For Isocrates, ethos is the speaker’s prior reputation, developed during life. It is the most important mode of persuasion because it lends weight to all of the words of the speaker” (p.258). In other words, extrinsic ethos is synonymous with reputation. Isocrates presented two important ideas relating to extrinsic ethos in his work Antidosis. First, Isocrates demonstrated that the goal of a speaker should be to achieve good repute with potential audiences. Isocrates stated, “Anyone who wishes to persuade others will not neglect virtue but will devote even more attention to ensuring that he achieves a most honourable reputation among his fellow citizens” (as cited in Too, 2008, p. 77), and later, “The more ardently someone wants to persuade his audience, the more he will strive… to have a good reputation among his citizens” (as cited in Too, 2008, p. 77). Persuasion is thus directly tied to reputation. A disreputable speaker will not be persuasive, no matter how true the speech. Isocrates suggested that ethos, particularly extrinsic ethos, has the ability to supersede logos in the minds of the audience. Poor reputation can overshadow persuasion. Second, Isocrates explained that reputation has a direct effect on the credibility of the speaker and the audience’s willingness to be persuaded. In Antidosis, he posed the question, “Who could fail to know that speeches seem truer when spoken by those of good name than by the disreputable, and that arguments acquire more authority when they come from one’s life than from mere words” (as cited in Too, 2008, p. 77). Audiences are more likely to trust, and therefore be persuaded by, a reputable and honourable rhetor. Conversely, a rhetor of shady moral character is likely to draw distrust, or at the very least cautious skepticism, from the audience. If a speaker is well thought of, that reputation lends credibility to the speech itself. Isocrates’ suggestion that “arguments acquire more authority when they come from one’s life than from mere words” (as cited in Too, 2008, p. 77) has strong implications for Christian preachers. In the New Testament, the apostle Paul writes to Timothy, his young protégé, and explains the qualifications necessary for church leadership (1 Timothy 3:2-7). Among the listed qualifications, Paul explains that a church leader “must be above reproach,” “respectable,” and “well thought of by outsiders." They must exhibit strong character through marital fidelity, self-control, sobriety, hospitality, and gentleness. These attributes are so important that a similar list is found in Titus 1:5-9, a letter written by Paul to another young protégé. In this passage again, Paul explains that church elders and overseers, those tasked with leading the church, must be “above reproach” and exhibit strong moral character such as hospitality, self-control, uprightness, holiness, discipline, and goodness. These two passages demonstrate that Paul believed honor and good repute to be of the utmost importance for those tasked with leading the church and teaching the doctrines of Christianity. We are given some insight into why by turning to the church father Augustine. In his handbook on preaching, On Christian Doctrine, Augustine (426/1958) writes, “The life of the speaker has greater weight in determining whether he is obediently heard than any grandness of eloquence” (p. 164). Here, Augustine echoes Isocrates’s comment, “arguments acquire more authority when they come from one’s life than from mere words” (Too, 2008, p. 77). Although Augustine acknowledges that true words spoken by a person of poor character or poor standing may still be persuasive, he insists that speakers will be more effective when, to use a cliché, they practice what they preach. Isocrates, Paul, and Augustine show the importance of speakers (preachers or otherwise) living lives that reflect the convictions of their rhetoric. This lends credibility to the speaker and authority to the speech. It aids in the persuasion of the audience. Mark Driscoll is a controversial figure. While he may be effective at constructing intrinsic ethos, his extrinsic ethos has the potential to overshadow a single sermon. I used the concept of extrinsic ethos to understand how reputation factored into the audience’s response to Driscoll’s message. |