Running head: RHETORICAL ANALYSIS 1

Rhetorical Analysis:

Directing for Film and Television

by Christopher Lukas

Esmirna De La Cruz

The University of Texas at El Paso

RWS 1301

Dr. Vierra

October 5, 2019
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Abstract

This paper sets out to find on whether Christopher Lukas is a credible author. It will go into

some of the rhetorical appeals of the book showing the effectiveness of ethos, logos, and pathos.

This book was written for anyone with the desire to become a future film director or be part of

the film industry. The paper will explain how Lukas could have used slightly more emotion in

how he writes certain aspects of the book, and how the evidence is shown to be effective to the

thesis. The results suggest how the rhetorical appeals in this book help readers have a better

understanding of what a director is and does.

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Rhetorical Analysis:

Directing for Film and Television

by Christopher Lukas

It’s five am and you have stayed up all night looking for research on rhetorical analysis

on Google but fail to find any because of many searches that come up. Then you started to bang

your head on a table and were on the verge of throwing your computer away. Students

sometimes have a hard time researching rhetorical analysis which can lead to a stress filled

paper. The rhetorical appeals that are in this book help future directors and filmmakers

understand what a director is and what a director does. Lukas’s monograph helps the

understanding of genres through the rhetorical appeals like ethos, pathos and logos.

Directing for Film and Television is aided for future directors and filmmakers who want

to be in the industry. Directing is a complex art that needs a certain level of patience, knowledge

and maturity on the director’s part. According to Lukas (1985), one cannot teach someone else’s

vision (p. vii). As a director’s vision is personal, one cannot teach what one envisions in

directing (Lukas, 1985, p. vii). A movie comes from a vison, and it requires a lot of knowledge

to be able to put an idea into a film. Another aspect is that directing needs a strong amount of

understanding (introduction xiii). This also falls into the aspect that directing needs knowledge.

A director needs to be able to identify if something in the movie needs to be changed or

rewritten. They need to be capable to understand others and know that while they are in charge,

it would be helpful to get creative ideas on how to make your film better from others. Based on

this evidence, directing can be a very complicated job when looking at the different aspects.
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Discussion

Appeals improve the effectiveness of communication. When it comes to appeals, ethos,

pathos, and logos are one of the most used rhetorical tools. According to Killingsworth (2005),

ethos, pathos, and logos are modes of persuasion (p. 3). These modes can be used to

communicate a point across using different methods, whether it is emotional through character or

logic. Appeals are also used a lot in advertisements, as they appeal to the viewer to want to buy

that product (p. 13). The author appeals to the audience by telling them the product they are

purchasing will help them. Using the rhetorical appeals in work can help make a point across

whether it is through a film or a commercial.

Audience

Christopher Lukas wrote this book for anyone who is thinking of becoming a director in

the future. He states that although one cannot really learn directing from reading, the book has

some insight on directing is (p. vii). According to Wardle and Downs (2017), the author tries to

find some common ground that he has with his intended audience and some values that they

might share (p. 2) In this case, Lukas’s intended audience is future directors. Killingsworth

(2005) argued that the author characterizes his ideal audience (p. 5). And Covino and Jolliffe

(1995) state that the audience is not the person who reads the text, but the person who has a

concern about the topic and is able to act on it (p. 8). Thus, meaning that when the author writes

a book it is meant for a particular audience.

Ethos

Lukas is a credible author on the film directing topic. He has both been nominated and

won Emmy awards (back cover). He is also a chairman at the department of communications,

film and video in the college of New York City (back cover). Adding to this Lukas has filmed,
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produced, directed and written for many television shows (back cover). According to Downs

(2017), Aristotle acknowledged the fact that people listen to rhetors only if they find them

credible and classified rhetorical appeals to credibility. (p. 10). Killingsworth (2005) also states

that ethos mainly focuses on the author and authority the author influences. Therefore, Lukas is a

credible author because of his experiences he has had in the film industry.

Pathos

Christopher Lukas used pathos in a clinical way. In this book, he explains about how the

director and the producer do the budgets and how they work. He explains that the producers will

not let anyone see their budgets (Lukas, 1985, p. 19). What would make this book more effective

is if the author gave an instance of a director getting mad or telling someone that they cannot see

their budget or explain into detail as to why others cannot see their budget. People that want to

be a director will have an insight in what they are getting into if that were to be included.

According to Covino and Joliffe (1995), pathos will bring up the emotion and sympathy of the

readers which causes them to accept the idea or call to action (p. 14). However, Downs (2017)

explained that emotions are people’s way of communicating their beliefs and values (p. 13).

Overall, Lukas could have used some sort of pathos in his book, so that more incoming directors

could relate to him.

Logos

The argument that Lukas makes is that directing requires a certain level of maturity,

patience, and knowledge. Throughout the book, he shows some evidence of what directing is and

how one can become a director (table of contents). According to Killingsworth (2005), one is not

supposed to make up proofs when in an argument (p. 3). This implies that the author should have

a credible source and should not make up evidence. As Downs (2017) stated, most western
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cultures use informal reasoning because of how fast and honest it is (p. 9). In brief, logos is an

effective way an author might give his logic or evidence of his argument.

Conclusion

Lukas’s monograph helped my research on directing movies and filmmaking. Using

logos, he provides plenty of examples and evidence on how the movie industry works, and what

to expect when in the film industry. The rhetorical appeals in this book help future directors and

filmmakers get an inside look of what directing a movie is like. Lukas’s monograph aided my

research because he has won several Emmy Awards, and is currently chairman at Department of

Communications Film and Video. He is a reliable source due to the fact not just anyone can win

Emmy Awards and be a chairman in the film industry. A rhetorical analysis can sometimes be a

difficult topic but with the right resources like Lukas’s book it can help expand anyone’s

understanding.
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References

Covino, W. A., & Jolliffe, D. A. (1995). Rhetoric: Concepts, Definitions, Boundaries. Boston,

MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Downs, D. (2017). Rhetoric. In E. Wardle, & D. Downs (Eds.), Writing about writing: A college

reader (pp. 457-81). Boston: Bedford/St. Martins.

Killingsworth, M.J. (2005). Rhetorical Appeals: A revision. Rhetoric Review, 24(3), 249.

Retrieved from http://0-

search.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsjsr&AN=edsjsr.201766

60&site=eds-live&scope=site

Lukas, C. (1985). Directing for film and television. New York: Allworth Press.

Wardle, E.A., & Downs, D. (2017). Writing about writing: A college reader (3rd ed.) Boston:

Bedford /St Martins. 447-456