Truman Doctrine

Truman uses the Aristotelian Triangle of pathos (emotional appeal), ethos (character-based appeal), and logos (logical appeal) to create a convincing argument for American intervention in his speech.

First, Truman uses pathos most notably at two central moments in his speech: the description of the Greek Civil War and his comparison between totalitarian and democratic systems. In describing the situation in Greece, Truman frequently uses emotive language and phrases: For example, Greece has “suffered invasion, four years of cruel occupation, and bitter internal strife” (5). The comparison of political systems hinges on the depiction of totalitarian regimes as reliant “upon terror and oppression […] and the suppression of personal freedoms” (33). In centering the human cost of civil war and regime change, Truman aims to provoke empathy and concern from the American people, convincing them of the need for immediate action.

Second, Truman uses ethos to present the American character as one that has opposed coercion and political oppression in the recent past and must continue to do so. He argues that the US concern with personal and political freedom was “a fundamental issue in the war with Germany and Japan,” a war which was “won over countries which sought to impose their will, and their way of life, upon other nations” (28).