Persuasion and Ethics

            Persuasion can be a hot topic for some people, especially those that are more susceptible to persuasion attempts. In fact, some people would go so far as to believe that all persuasive attempts are bad. Of course there are going to be some negative persuasion attempts, but it really comes down to the ethics of the persuader. If the persuader is behaving ethically and attempting to persuade the audience for a good reason or a good outcome, than it would be a positive example of persuasion. The purpose of this essay is to examine two different theories about ethics and the effect they have on persuasion.

            Why are ethics important when discussing persuasion? In general, people do not like to think about someone else (especially companies) altering their thoughts or behavior. So when discussing a persuasion attempt, it needs to be clear what the purpose or intention of the persuasion is in order to determine if it is ethical and appropriate. “Persuasion is unethical if it is for personal gain at the