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Irony
Definition of Logos
Logos, along with ethos and pathos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Logos is an argument that appeals to... read full definition
Logos, along with ethos and pathos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective speaking or writing). Logos is... read full definition
Logos, along with ethos and pathos, is one of the three "modes of persuasion" in rhetoric (the art of effective... read full definition
Key Examples in The Magic Mountain
Part 3, Chapter 5: Clarity of Mind
Explanation and Analysis—Time:
Hans and Joachim both use logos in an argument about the nature of time. After Joachim claims that using a thermometer helps him to better understand how long a minute “actually” is, Hans objects to his understanding of how time works:
“You said ‘actually.’ But ‘actually’ doesn’t apply,” Hans Castorp responded [...] “There is nothing ‘actual’ about time. If it seems long to you, then it is long, and if it seems to pass quickly, then it’s short. But how long or how short it is in actuality, no one knows.”
He was not at all used to philosophizing, and yet felt some urge to do so. Joachim contested this. “Why is that? No. We do measure it. We have clocks and calendars, and when a month has passed, then it’s passed—for you and me and everyone.”
Related Themes:
Part 4, Chapter 1: A Necessary Purchase
Explanation and Analysis—The Battle:
After Hans casually expresses his belief that sickness is ennobling and leads to wisdom, Settembrini strongly objects. In making his argument that illness is “not venerable,” he uses both metaphor and logos:
Unlock with LitCharts A+Illness is definitely not elegant, and certainly not venerable—such a view is itself a sickness, or leads to it [...] It comes from an era of superstitious contrition, when the idea of humanity was demeaned and distorted into a caricature, a fearful era, when harmony and health were considered suspicious and devilish, whereas infirmity in those days was as good as a passport to heaven. Reason and enlightenment, however, have banished those shadows, which once lay encamped in the human soul—not entirely, however, for even today the battle is still being waged. That battle, however, is called work, sir, earthly labor, work for the earth, for the honor and interests of humankind.
Related Themes:
