Logos is a term used in Western philosophy, psychology, and rhetoric that connotes an appeal to rational discourse that relies on inductive and deductive reasoning. It is one of the modes of persuasion, alongside ethos and pathos, introduced by the philosopher Aristotle. Logos refers to the use of logic and reasoning in crafting a piece of persuasive writing or rhetoric. It is often referred to as "the appeal to reason" and involves providing facts, figures, data, and other credible evidence to support an argument.
In Christology, the Logos is a name or title of Jesus Christ, seen as the pre-existent second person of the Trinity. The concept derives from John 1:1, which describes the Logos as the Word of God.
Logos is used in various industries, such as law, politics, technology, marketing, news reporting, and business. For example, political campaigns might appeal to their target audiences pathos and logos by citing a heartwarming story and then sharing a relevant statistic to support their position. In business writing, logos is commonly used for industry white papers demonstrating a trend based on historical data or pitching a new product based on user-submitted feedback that's used as evidence for the new.
