 Pathos is one of Aristotle's three appeals, and it is a technique that is used to influence 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 often 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 to feel upset or even angry. Erica's way of connecting with the audience on an emotional level 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 sympathize with her story rather than the football star, Jameis Winston. 

At the beginning of "Erica's Story," the first thing 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 the university's authority. The tone of the music is very somber and dramatic until it crescendos into a seemingly happier tone. 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, a trait her father states he has always enjoyed. 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 give the audience a reason to sympathize with her, because her personality appears to be happy and bubbly. The opening scenes of her interview demonstrate the appeal of pathos, because already the audience quickly connects 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 with 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. Erica's ability to become vulnerable in front of the camera 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. The lack of action taken by the police department, to find Erica's rapist, appeals to those who normally trust authority figures because, they are now questioning the credibility of those officials. When the text appears on the screen, the audience has to take the time to read it. However, the information presented is meant to make the audience feel unsettled as well as uncomfortable with relying on the FSU police department to handle sexual assault cases.   

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 reliable sources, feel sorry for Winston because of all his achievements thus far. Winston is the youngest player to receive the Heisman Trophy, and he was able to lead his team to win a national championship, therefore, he was idolized by fans of FSU football. The clips of reporters stating how sorry they feel for Winston are meant to infuriate those watching. The audience should be angry that the victim is being blamed for Winston's actions. The appeal of logos is also used when the rape kit results conclude that Winston is the perpetrator. Yet, authority figures still attempt to deny factual evidence.

However, pathos is continually 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 who are denying the assault. For example, the administrations only concern throughout this sexual assault case, was being able to maintain the revenue brought in by the football team. There is also injustice, because as stated in the film, Winston was supposed to be treated like any other perpetrator; however, he was not treated that way due to his status. Winston was also able to win the national championship as well as the Heisman trophy without any repercussions. Erica continues to receive hate from FSU fans in person and online, and people trash the reputation of her sorority as well. 

"Erica's Story" uses the appeal of pathos in order to provoke the audience watching the film. Her interview allows the audience to understand the corruption that occurs within universities when handling cases of sexual assault. Erica's personal experience with Florida State University gets the audience to question other universities abilities to handle cases of sexual assault on their campuses. This is important because when people begin to question a university's credibility, they start to lose the trust they had with that university. "Erica's Story" demonstrates how the inability of a school to properly handle sexual assault can be emotionally draining as well as frustrating for students. Likewise, her interview shows that universities across the nation need to do a significantly better job at preventing sexual assaults on their campuses.

