Abstract
The chapter argues that Neil Kinnock’s ethos, as Labour leader in the early 1980s, gave him the authority to take on the left of the party. Yet, the same ethos that Kinnock possessed—derived from his Welsh, working class background—contributed to his failure to convince the electorate of his suitability to become Prime Minister. Indeed, perceptions of a speaker’s ethos can be filtered by factors outside their control, as was the case with Kinnock and the media. Responding to this negative portrayal, Kinnock’s later rhetoric drew less on his own ethos and more on other rhetorical modes: a transformation that created a degree of mistrust. The chapter concludes with some wider comments on the importance of ethos, broadly understood, in rhetoric.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Aristotle. (2014). Complete works of Aristotle, Volume 2: The revised Oxford translation. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
BBC. (2009, April 5). Yes we can! The Lost Art of Oratory.
British Political Speech. (n.d.). Leader’s speech, Bournemouth 1985, Neil Kinnock (Labour). http://www.britishpoliticalspeech.org/speech-archive.htm?speech=191.
Garner, R.‚ & Kelly, R. (1998). British political parties today. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Harris, R. (1984). The making of Neil Kinnock. London: Faber and Faber.
Heffernan, R., & Marqusee, M. (1992). Defeat from the jaws of victory: Inside Kinnock’s Labour Party. London: Verso.
Isocrates. (1982). Antidosis (G. Norlin, Trans.). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Jefferys, K. (1993). The Labour Party since 1945. London: Macmillan.
Jones, E. (1994). Neil Kinnock. London: Hale.
Kellner, P. (Ed.). (1992). Thorns and Roses: Neil Kinnock, Speeches 1983–1991. London: Hutchinson.
Kinnock, N. (2011, February 28). Interview with author, Houses of Parliament, Westminster.
Koelble, T. (1991). The Left unravelled, social democracy and the New Left challenge in Britain and West Germany. London: Duke University Press.
Leapman, M. (1987). Kinnock. London: Unwin Hyman.
Marquand, D. (1991). The progressive dilemma: From Lloyd George to Kinnock. London: Heinemann.
Moon, D. (2015). The oratory of Neil Kinnock. In A. S. Crines & R. Hayton (Eds.), Labour orators from Bevan to Miliband. Manchester: Manchester University Press.
Morgan, K. (1992). Labour people: Hardie to Kinnock. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Pettitt, R. (2012). Me, myself and I: ‘Self-referencing’ in Labour Party conference leaders’ speeches. British Politics, 7(2), 111–134.
Seyd, P. (1987). The rise and fall of the Labour Left. London: Macmillan.
Thomas, J. (1997). ‘Taffy was a Welshman Taffy was a Thief’: Anti-Welshness, the Press and Neil Kinnock. Llafur: Journal of Welsh Labour History/Cylchgrawn Hanes Llafur Cymru, 7(2), 95–108.
Thomas, J. (1998). Labour, the tabloids, and the 1992 general election. Contemporary British History, 12(2), 80–104.
Thomas-Symonds, N. (2006). Oratory, rhetoric and politics: Neil Kinnock’s ‘Thousand Generations’ speech and the General Election of 1987. Llafur: Journal of Welsh Labour History/Cylchgrawn Hanes Llafur Cymru, 9(3), 65–80.
Toye, R. (2013). Rhetoric: A very short introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Westlake, M. (2001). Kinnock: The biography. London: Little, Brown.
Whiteley, P. (1983). The Labour Party in crisis. London: Methuen.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Griffiths, S. (2017). ‘I’m Telling You, and You’ll Listen’: Ethos in the Rhetoric of Neil Kinnock. In: Atkins, J., Gaffney, J. (eds) Voices of the UK Left. Rhetoric, Politics and Society. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51902-9_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51902-9_2
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-51901-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-51902-9
eBook Packages: Political Science and International StudiesPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)