 Pathos is one of Aristotle's three appeals, and it is a technique that is used to play with a person's emotions. A writer may refer to many topics such as, death, disaster, injustice, or other topics that arouse pity, fear or other emotions. One using the appeal of pathos, is also trying to persuade their audience. The film, "The Hunting Ground" depicts the emotions of several females discussing their experiences with sexual assault and how they were mistreated by their universities. Likewise, this film is trying to get the audience to be more aware of sexual assault on college campuses. In particular, "Erica's Story" uses the appeal of pathos in order to provoke the audience that is watching the film. Erica's way of doing this is by telling an anecdote, so the audience can personally connect with her. The purpose of her interview is for the audience to question Florida State's sexual assault prevention efforts as well as sympathizing with her story rather than the football star, Jameis Winston. 

At the beginning of "Erica's Story", the first thing that the audience views is the text "here's what the Florida State University (FSU) Administration doesn't want you to see" (Ziering). This initial statement allows the audience to feel they are being betrayed by a well known university, which allows them to question their authority. The tone of the music begins, and it is very low and dramatic, until it crescendo's into a tone that seems to be happier. The music provides an entryway for Erica to introduce her story without already having the audience at an emotional high. Erica appears, to share her story with the audience, and she has a blank expression on her face. Her facial expressions continue to be motionless, while she is recalling her life prior to the assault. The audience is meant to feel that an event has destroyed her personality, that her father states he has always been fond of. Furthermore, the stillness of the camera in the opening scene represents the stillness of Erica's life before she was assaulted. Also, the camera alternates between photos of Erica's past to she and her father introducing the story. Pictures of her past, gives the audience a reason to sympathize with her because her personality appears to be happy and bubbly. This is pathos because already the audience is connecting with Erica on a personal level, and she has not yet described the assault. 

When Erica recalls her experience, the film is trying to persuade the audience to be empathetic towards her. Erica's memories are told while, in the background, the music gets high pitched has a dark and ominous undertone. Additionally, when Erica is recalling her memories, the images are blurry because she did not know where she was. At this point, the audience feels bad for Erica because she was too intoxicated to try and defend herself. Likewise, the audience is made aware that being too drunk is not Erica's typical personality. Also, her voice gets choked up as if it is too hard to retell her story. This is an example of pathos because even though the people watching do not know Erica personally, they still take pity on her. 

Erica is effective with her appeal, throughout the scenes of her assault, because she is not crying out for help or verbally attacking the perpetrator. Rather, she allows herself to be vulnerable in front of the camera and she trusts that the people watching will be able to comprehend the story. There is also a shock factor, which makes the audience feel guilty and sorry for her. On the other hand, when the Florida State Police Department becomes involved, the audience is meant to get angry because the authorities do not handle the situation in her favor. This appeals to those who normally trust authority figure, however, now are questioning their credibility. When the text appears on the screen, the audience has to take the time to read it. However, the time allows the information to sink in and play with their emotions.

Unlike most people seen in the interview, Erica and her family are advocating for her justice. Erica is a credible source that should be trusted because her emotion behind her story is pure, since she was the one being taken advantage of. However, more people were concerned with the status of the perpetrator, Jameis Winston. Even ESPN reporters, people who are supposed to be a reliable source, feel sorry for Winston because of how big his hype is. When the  clips of the reporters stating how sorry they feel for Winston appear, it is meant to infuriate those watching. The audience should be angry that the victim is being blamed for Winston's actions. The appeal of  logic is also used when the rape kit results conclude that Winston is the perpetrator. Yet, authority figures still attempt to deny the hard factual evidence.

Pathos is used in all of Jameis Winston's footage in the interview. The audience is meant to feel hatred and anger towards Erica's situation and the people that are denying the assault. For example, the administration that solely cares about bringing in revenue from athletic teams. There is also injustice because as stated in the film, Winston was supposed to be treated like any other perpetrator however, he was not due to his status. Winston was also able to win the national championships as well as the Heisman trophy without any repercussions. Erica continues to receive hate from FSU fans in person and online, and anyone watching her interview feels sorry for her.

"Erica's Story" uses the appeal of pathos in order to provoke the audience watching the film. The viewers are supposed to feel a sense of guilt, anger, pity, and sadness throughout Erica's story. She uses a personal anecdote as well as her unfair treatment from the Tallahassee Police Department in order to play with the emotions of those listening to her. As well as pathos, ethos is often used so the audience questions the credibility of the police officers and FSU administration. The interview is an effective way for Erica to get her argument across and use emotion to personally connect with the audience. 

