The Language of Persuasion

Persuasion or Propaganda?

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“Propaganda is to a democracy what the bludgeon is to a totalitarian state.”

Noam Chomsky, philosopher and political critic
It’s very common for people to assume that propaganda doesn’t really exist in ‘our’ society. Sure, other countries brainwash their citizens, but not us! This Second Thought video essay explores the idea of propaganda, and how exactly it functions in modern societies.

Propaganda can be dangerous when it is used on an uninformed public: people are easily persuaded because they do not have counter-arguments to the information they are being given. You may think you are immune to propaganda – but living in a digital age does not always make it easier to detect the techniques involved. It requires a conscious effort to be critical, work on your media literacy, and to stay alert for argumentative fallacies. 

The line between persuasion and propaganda is thin and easily crossed. Propaganda is the conscious effort of a language producer to shape public opinion towards a certain ideological position. You will probably be familiar with propaganda from the first and second world wars which persuaded people to fight fascism. What many students (and people in day-to-day society) find harder to appreciate is that propaganda can be spread more covertly outside of wartime contexts using a range of insidious techniques. However, propaganda can be used for all kinds of purposes: from the promotion of certain industries, to championing capitalism, to selling consumer products. Read a selection of the following articles to find out more about the covert use of propaganda in persuasive texts:

Reading Challenge

This is a longer and more challenging text, but spending time on this piece, and discussing it with your teacher, will help you master this topic:

Area of Exploration Conceptual Guiding Question

The word ‘diversity’ has a Latin root (diversitas) meaning ‘different’ and, when used to describe texts in the Lang and Lit course, can mean works from different countries, continents, time periods, genres of writing, written in different languages, and by different authors operating under different cultural conditions. This resource will help you learn to make connections in various ways between texts that are seemingly diverse (an important element of your skills for Paper 2). Moreover, a large part of this handout involves propaganda posters, and learning to read symbols and allusions in this text type will help you in your Paper 1 preparations as well.

Discussion Points

After you’ve got your head around the material in this section, pair up, pick a question, spend five minutes thinking and noting down your thoughts – then discuss your ideas with a friend and report back to the class:

  1. Do you think use of propaganda is only confined to wartime, or do you recognise any of these techniques in ordinary or daily life? Do you think, for example, that propaganda and advertising overlap?
  2. Given many people have the ability to access reliable, scientific and factual information for themselves, why do you think propaganda remains effective?

1. War Propaganda

“The first casualty when war comes is the truth.”

US Senator Hiram Johnson, 1917

Propaganda is often associated with war, as during times of war countries and states crank up their output of propaganda, appealing to the patriotism of ordinary people in ensuring their support for costly war efforts and necessary human sacrifice. In a sense, every war is fought in two spaces: the physical battleground against an enemy army; simultaneously, an imaginary space in the minds one’s own people. It’s this second space that we’re going to explore, and discover how governments mobilise propaganda machines to mislead their own citizens with distortions, exaggerations, and even outright fabrications. Two brilliant online resources for learning in-depth about this topic are War Propaganda and the Media and Propaganda Critic both of which were used to create this lesson. Spending time on either of these sites is certainly not time wasted!

Activity: The Tricks of the Trade

Language is one of the most powerful tools in propaganda. In 1937, the Institute for Propaganda Analysis was established in the United States to help the public recognise manipulative techniques in political messaging. Composed of journalists and social scientists, the institute identified seven basic propaganda devices—an approach still widely taught today, despite criticisms of oversimplification. You can use the following PPT to learn more about how language appearing in propaganda bypasses logic and appeals directly to the emotions of the viewer, putting your newfound knowledge to the test in a quick propaganda design activity on the final slide. And you may even recognise some of these techniques employed in everyday contexts in advertising and on social media, as companies use ever more subtle techniques to connect with audiences:

2. Logical Fallacies

“You are trying to pretend that unlike things are like.”

C.S. Lewis, Alice in Wonderland
Learning about Logical Fallacies can be fun and, for some people, finding out certain logical fallacies creates that ‘lightbulb moment’ – you knew something was wrong, but couldn’t quite put your finger on it. Watch this short explainer to introduce yourself to some of the major logical fallacies.

We have, arguably, never before lived in a time when logical fallacies are so prevalent. Entire political campaigns are built on them, in all countries of the world: see Brexit and the utterances of Donald Trump for campaigns in which you’ll find – literally – hundreds of logical fallacies. 

Activity: Fallacy Flashcards

When you first start reading about logical fallacies, you’ll soon discover that there are more than you might have imagined. One leads to another, and leads to another – and before you know it you can’t tell your ‘ad hominem’ from your ‘straw man’ from your ‘red herring’.

Use the articles and embedded videos in this section, and do your own wider reading and research as well if you like. Choose a good number of logical fallacies that you have discovered (anywhere from ten – twenty would work well for this exercise). For each fallacy, create a flashcard. On one side design a simple icon; on the other name the fallacy and provide an example. Bring your flashcards to the next class and compete against your classmates for ‘most fallacious’ bragging rights!

3. Greenwashing

“BP was misleading consumers into thinking they were a renewables company, when they were spending 96% on oil and gas.”

Greenpeace
This satirical cartoon by Timo Elliott is just one of dozens of fantastic images that you can find on his blog Innovation Evangelism. He cartoons about sustainability, technology, marketing, social media, politics and more.

Greenwashing is a deceptive marketing practice where companies (and other corporate or national bodies) exaggerate or falsely claim environmental benefits to appear more sustainable than they truly are. As consumer demand for eco-friendly products grows, brands often use greenwashing to gain trust and boost sales without making meaningful changes to their operations. This tactic can take many forms: vague language like ‘all-natural,’ imagery of lush forests or clean water, or highlighting one minor ‘green’ feature while ignoring larger environmental impacts. Misleading messages create the illusion of responsibility, but they often mask continued pollution, resource depletion, or unethical practices.

Greenwashing is harmful because it undermines genuine sustainability efforts and slows progress toward environmental goals. When companies spend more on marketing their image than on actual improvements, it erodes trust and makes it harder for people to make informed choices. This lesson is designed to help you learn how to combat greenwashing and question vague or overly-positive claims:

Activity: Cows Driving Trucks or a Load of Old Bull?

Use your newfound Greenwashing knowledge to evaluate Shell’s video advertising. More short films can be found at Shell’s youtube channel, constituting a Body of Work should you wish to pursue this topic further.

As one of the world’s richest companies, Shell spends a fortune every year on marketing (estimated at between USD1.5 and USD3 billion dollars) meaning it makes video ads with extremely high production values. These short films are sharp, funny, slick, and emotionally resonant. But – are they convincing? Using your newfound knowledge of greenwashing tactics, watch the film embedded below with a critical eye. Which of the six greenwashing tactics (vague language, hidden trade-offs, imagery cues, no proof, irrelevance, lesser of two evils) appear in the ad? How do these tactics influence your perception of Shell’s environmental responsibility? After watching, prepare a short report to give to the class.

Learner Portfolio: Become a Greenwashing Activist

Now that you’ve mastered propaganda, logical fallacies, and/or greenwashing tactics, take your learning a step further by exploring other companies that make sustainability claims. Many global brands such as H&M, Coca-Cola, Nestlé, BP, Volkswagen, and Starbucks, have faced criticism for marketing themselves as environmentally responsible while continuing to harm the planet.

Choose one company, review its official sustainability statements or advertising campaigns, and identify examples of greenwashing, propaganda, or logical inconsistency in the claims that they make. Report back your findings by answering these questions in the form of a class presentation, or a hard-hitting expose article. Alternatively, use one of the company webpages to practice your IO by analysing visual and textual features in a short (4 – 5 minute) talk:

  • What sustainability claims does the company make?
  • Which tactics are most evident?
  • How do these claims compare to the company’s actual environmental impact?

Body of Work: Essays and Articles by George Monbiot

“They’re cooking us alive in the global cauldron they’re turning the planet into”

George Monbiot
George Monbiot is a regular contributor to Double Down News, a UK-based alternative media outlet known for its focus on challenging mainstream narratives.

George Monbiot is a British writer, environmental activist, and journalist whose work has shaped global conversations on climate change and ecological restoration. Born on January 27, 1963, in Kensington, London, Monbiot grew up in Oxfordshire in a politically engaged family. He studied zoology at Brasenose College, Oxford, an experience that deepened his understanding of ecosystems and later informed his environmental advocacy. After graduating, he joined the BBC Natural History Unit as a radio producer, creating wildlife programs before moving to the World Service as a current affairs producer. His passion for investigative reporting led him away from broadcasting and into the field, where he documented human rights abuses and environmental destruction in places like West Papua and Brazil, often at great personal risk.

In this Body of Work, you will find eight essays curated from Monbiot’s extensive reading list. I strongly encourage you to visit his website (monbiot.com) where all his published essays and articles are posted and browse more freely for yourself. Reading Monbiot is challenging, but his essays and articles can be transformative in terms of how you see the world and think about the interconnectedness of our political, industrial, social, and environmental systems. A major theme of this small collection is his critique of wealth and inequality. Monbiot highlights how the richest individuals and corporations drive environmental destruction through luxury consumption and political influence. He challenges capitalist and neoliberal systems, arguing that endless economic growth and corporate power are incompatible with ecological survival. His writing frequently exposes how political structures and corporate lobbying obstruct meaningful climate action, framing these issues as questions of justice and democracy.

Towards Assessment: Individual Oral

Supported by an extract from one non-literary text and one from a literary work, students will offer a prepared response of 10 minutes, followed by 5 minutes of questions by the teacher, to the following prompt: Examine the ways in which the global issue of your choice is presented through the content and form of two of the texts that you have studied. (40 marks)

An extract from one of Monbiot’s essays and articles would make a fantastic text around which to build your Individual Oral. His core ideas (the urgency of climate action, the interconnectedness of social and ecological systems, and the belief that bold, structural solutions are both necessary and achievable) translate easily into strong Global Issues. His work often carries a strong ethical dimension, making it an ideal study in many Field of Inquiry: Beliefs, Values and Education, Politics, Power, and Justice, as well as Science, Technology, and the Environment. Below are one or two ways you might combine Monbiot’s essays with a literary work you may have studied. However, you should always be mindful of your own ideas and class discussions and follow the direction of your own thoughts, discussions and programme of study when devising your assessment tasks:

  • Field of Inquiry: Politics, Power, and Justice
  • Global Issue: Political Paralysis is Intentional
  • Rationale:

A core idea of these essays is how vested interests who control the means of disseminating information use their power and influence to stymie political change. We don’t need to wait for solutions to climate breakdown; we already possess the knowledge and technological capacity to reduce global heating. But, captured by vested interests and lobby groups, political power remains paralysed. Many literary works explore similar themes. For example, Broken April by Ismail Kadare reveals how only one or two men who hold disproportionate political power can prevent anachronistic social practices from reform. Or, in Death and the Maiden by Ariel Dorfman, a country’s truth commission is paralysed and limited by fear of the military in a country only just returned to democracy.

  • Field of Inquiry: Science, Technology, and the Environment
  • Global Issue: the interconnectedness of human and natural systems
  • Rationale:

Another of George’s major themes is the interconnectedness of human systems of power and knowledge (such as our economic systems) with earth’s natural systems. For example, he argues that a sole-minded focus on economic growth is incompatible with sustaining a living biosphere. Literary works also reveal the interconnectedness of seemingly unrelated systems: For example, in Waiting for the Barbarians J.M. Coetzee reveals how war on other peoples is also a war on the natural world. And in Nothing to Envy, Barbara Demick reveals how extreme social systems lead to famine when ecologies are ruined for political profit.

Towards Assessment: Higher Level Essay

Students submit an essay on one non-literary text or a collection of non-literary texts by one same author, or a literary text or work studied during the course. The essay must be 1,200-1,500 words in length. (20 marks).

If you are an HL student, you might consider writing your HL Essay about George Monbiot’s writing. Here are one or two examples of lines of inquiry suitable for this text – but remember to follow your own interests and the direction of your own class discussion to generate your own line of inquiry. It is not appropriate for students to submit responses to an essay question that has been assigned:

  • How does George Monbiot blend factual and narrative elements to persuade the reader that structural change is both necessary and achievable in his published essays and articles?
  • How does Geroge Monbiot use provocative and polemical language to hold power to account in his essays and articles?

Paper 1 Text Type Focus: satirical texts

At the end of your course you will be asked to analyze unseen texts (1 at Standard Level and 2 at Higher Level) in an examination. You will be given a guiding question that will focus your attention on formal or stylistic elements of the text(s), and help you decode the text(s)’ purpose(s). One of the hardest text types to approach unless you’ve had some prior exposure might be the political, editorial or satirical text. This type of text is fantastic at lampooning some of the more blatant and outrageous logical fallacies that some people – overeager politicians, climate-change deniers, pseudo-intellectuals, wannabe populists – propagate in the mass media. Use these practice texts to familiarise yourself with the different features of satire and add them to your Learner Portfolio; you will want to revise text types thoroughly before your Paper 1 exam. You can find more information – including text type features and sample Paper 1 analysis – by visiting 20/20. Read through one or two of the exemplars, then choose a new paper and have a go at writing your own Paper 1 analysis response:

Key features of satirical texts
  • Purpose: satirical or political cartoons aim to satirise, meaning to ridicule, lampoon or criticise a specific target.
  • Topical: satirical cartons are up to date and relevant.
  • Caricature: people are simplified and exaggerated in ways that draw attention to the writer’s subject matter.
  • Symbolism: people, items of clothing and other objects signify wider concepts.
  • Irony: a satirical writer might write the exact opposite of what they really think!
  • Labelling: often names or captions are superimposed over images to make the target of the satire clear.
  • Artistic style: cartoons are drawn purposefully and with intention. Are the pictures crisp, heavy, weighty, light, cartoony, realistic, bright, dark? Can you tell whether the artist used pencil, pen and ink, or brush? Words that describe mood and tone can be useful when analysing style.
  • Bias: satire is often one sided and subjective, representing the opinion of the cartoonist.

Further Reading

Categories:The Language of Persuasion

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