The contemporary view of ethical communication has come full circle, returning to the approach of Aristotle. Almost every public speaking textbook includes discussion of the basic concepts of what Aristotle called ethos, pathos, and logos. Of particular significance is Aristotle's conception of ethos, as elaborated in his work, "The Rhetoric." Ethos was understood by Aristotle as being composed of sincerity/trustworthiness, expertise/knowledge, identification/empathy, and charisma/power. Aristotle's notion of "prohairesis," translated by Charles Chamberlain as "commitment," is important to the analysis of what constitutes an ethical advocate. Many modern theorists agree with Aristotle that the fundamental basis of any communication ethic must be the advocate's ongoing commitment to messages whose outcome the person can affect. Like Aristotle, many of today's scholars believe that an individual's ethical system, at its highest level of development, is based upon internalized convictions rather than external consequences. (Eighteen references are attached.) (SG)