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Paradox
Definition of Pathos
Pathos, along with logos and ethos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Pathos is an argument that appeals to... read full definition
Pathos, along with logos and ethos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Pathos is... read full definition
Pathos, along with logos and ethos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective... read full definition
Part 2: The Postman: Chapter 3
Explanation and Analysis—Changed Minds:
Jude’s memory of the Learys affects the reader with pathos in Part 2, Chapter 3. After spending a smooth weekend with couple, he anxiously awaits the good news. In the most heartbreaking ways, though, that never arrives:
"They changed their minds," said Boyd, and although he wasn’t known, by the counselors or the boys, for his gentleness, he was almost gentle then. "It’s over, St. Francis. It’s not going to happen." He reached out a hand toward him, but he ducked, and Boyd shook his head and began walking off.
Related Themes:
Part 6: Dear Comrade: Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—Willem’s Death:
Just when Jude has started experiencing the “happy years,” tragedy rears its ugly head again—Malcolm, Sophie, and Willem die in a car collision during a weekend in Garrison. Part 6, Chapter 1 presents another instance of pathos as Jude mourns the loss of his lover:
Unlock with LitCharts A+That night he had laid in bed in a shirt gone sugary with sandalwood, a scent so strong that it had overwhelmed every other odor, that it had destroyed what had remained of Willem entirely. That night he had cried, for the first time in a long time, and the next day he had retired that shirt, folding it and packing it into a box in the corner of the closet so it wouldn't contaminate Willem's other clothes.
Related Themes:
Part 6: Dear Comrade: Chapter 3
Explanation and Analysis—My Sweetheart:
A Little Life summons tender emotion even in moments of anger. When a self-starved, dying Jude resists Harold’s efforts to feed him in Part 6, Chapter 3 and snaps back instead, he expects disownment or—at the very least—punishment. What actually follows startles him:
Unlock with LitCharts A+"My sweetheart," Harold says again, and he wants him to stop; he wants him to never stop. "My baby." And he cries and cries, cries for everything he has been, for everything he might have been, for every old hurt, for every old happiness, cries for the shame and joy of finally getting to be a child, with all of a child’s whims and wants and insecurities, for the privilege of behaving badly and being forgiven, for the luxury of tendernesses, of fondnesses, of being served a meal and being made to eat it, for the ability, at last, at last, of believing a parent's reassurances, of believing that to someone he is special despite all his mistakes and hatefulness, because of all his mistakes and hatefulness.
Related Themes:
