Question

read the excerpt from act 4, scene 3 of the tragedy of macbeth. malcolm is speaking with macduff about the king of england and those he has helped. the word ulcerous means a break in the skin that does not heal naturally.

malcolm. ’tis call’d the evil:
a most miraculous work in this good king;
which often, since my here-remain in england,
i have seen him do. how he solicits heaven,
himself best knows: but strangely-visited people,
all swoln and ulcerous, pitiful to the eye,
the mere despair of surgery, he cures,
hanging a golden stamp about their necks,
put on with holy prayers: and ’tis spoken,
to the succeeding royalty he leaves
the healing benediction.

malcolm states the king has healed \strangely-visited people, / all swoln and ulcerous, pitiful to the eye.\ how does this phrasing create pathos?
○ it suggests that malcolm is disgusted by the suffering people who travel to england to be healed.
○ it gives malcolm credibility by citing evidence from an expert on the subject of using healing powers.
○ it appeals to a sense of logic by showing reasons that king edward has healing powers.
○ it stirs emotions by describing how sickly the people were before king edward healed them.

Explanation:

To determine how the phrasing creates pathos, we analyze each option:

• Option 1: The quote focuses on the king's healing, not Malcolm's disgust. Eliminate.
• Option 2: Pathos is about emotion, not credibility (ethos). Eliminate.
• Option 3: Pathos is emotional appeal, not logical (logos). Eliminate.
• Option 4: Describing the people as "swoln and ulcerous, pitiful to the eye" stirs empathy by showing their suffering before healing, which is pathos (emotional appeal).

Answer:

D. It stirs emotions by describing how sickly the people were before King Edward healed them.