The three parts of the rhetorical triangle are the following:
1. ETHOS - this is a rhetorical strategy that relates to the speaker's credibility. This means that in order for an audience to believe what the speaker is saying/writing, they have to see some proof. This is where ethos comes into play - ethos is actually evidence, quotes, references, proof that a speaker/writer is using to convince an audience to believe him/her.
2. LOGOS - this rhetorical strategy deals with the message itself, rather than the audience or the speaker. Logos, as the name itself says, refers to the logic of the message - does the message itself make sense? Is it logical? If it's not logical, the audience will probably not believe it, and therefore, the speaker's/writer's claims are useless.
3. PATHOS - the final rhetorical strategy has to do with the audience, and more specifically, its feelings. Speakers and writers use pathos to elicit a particular emotion in their audience - that of happiness, sadness, pity, etc. in order to persuade the audience to believe them.
All three rhetorical strategies are important for writers and speakers when they are making their claim. Most times, the purpose of speeches and texts is to persuade, and this can be done by employing rhetorical strategies such as these three. If they fail to be successful with all three of them, chances are the audience will not be impressed and their goal will be lost. All three strategies are connected and relevant in order to make a successful persuasion.
