Logos

Logos is all about logic, or arguing in a such a way that the reader things, "Okay, yeah, I can see that makes sense."

The Homestead Act doesn’t have much of an emotional appeal—it's pretty dry n' dusty in its language—but it's all about the rational.

While the propaganda involved in promoting the Homestead Act definitely played on the adventurous American spirit (cowboys! mountains! sod huts!) the actual text is straight-up legal "if this, then that."

It makes for stuffy, sometimes confusing reading, but lawmakers like to cover all their bets and set limits. Try to stay awake. (We recommend listening to the Lone Ranger theme while you read it.)