He states, “Mr. President and Directors, … I say that in no way have the value and manhood of the American Negro been more fittingly and generously recognized than by the managers of this magnificent Exposition.” This statement shows that Washington wants to begin civilized discourse about race and makes the audience feel that they are making the effort to create social progress. He continues by arguing that this social progress will bring “a new era of industrial progress,” which is exactly what wealthy landowners would want for the future. In addition to this, Washington shows that he is educated by speaking “proper” English, rather than a vernacular. These two factors combine to set the stage for Washington to make an argument that the audience will listen to.!
Blanche and Stanley are deeply contrasted characters and many critics have pointed out that Stanley is part of a new America. An America comprised of immigrants of all races with equal opportunity for all, and he a symbol of the American dream. Blanche, however, is left clinging to a dying social system of “aristocrats” and “working class” that is no longer applicable in the 1940s. The Modern reader would likely warm to the more liberal idea that hard work, and not ancestry, is the key to success. Blanche is likely disliked for being prejudiced, and Stanley garners some favour for being the classic hard-working American.
However, Kennedy effectively uses emotional language to make his audience feel involved in his goals as President. Kennedy makes the task of bringing peace and prosperity to the world not only a personal objective, but also one of the American people. By telling the audience to "Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for country," the audience feels personally responsible for making the world a better place in which to live. Aside from instilling a feeling of responsibility in his audience, the most notable aspect of Kennedy's address is his ability to use language for the purpose of stirring a sense of pride in the American people. During his address the President constantly uses images of freedom and liberty as he reminds his listeners that they are, "The heirs of that first revolution."
Common sense by Thomas Paine Paine says that there has never been a better time to fight for independence, as the colonies have never been more united and are full of soldiers who have fought in the recent French and Indian war. But Paine's most powerful argument against reconciliation deals with the toll this conflict is taking on the colonies. Moreover, this clever man then labels people of America “sufferers” and “grievously oppressed,” immediately assuring all common citizens that he was sympathetic toward their collective plight. Paine expresses his focus on ideas, not men, and thus establishes his relative intent to focus objectively. The world is your destiny.
Vonnegut not only satirizes the mistaken of equality in the American culture but rather he may also be satirizing the misunderstanding of what leveling and equality could ultimately entail. More specifically, this text could be thought of as a parody to America’s Cold War misconception of not just communism but socialism as well. The story begins with this definition of the narrator’s twisted yet addled utopian view on equality. “The year was 2081, and everybody was finally equal. They weren’t only equal before God and the law.
A nation built from the ground up. A land tamed from the wild. The poor rising to riches. Prosperity followed America. A land where all were welcome and anyone, from any nation, any social status had every right in pride to be called American and achieve ‘The American Dream’.
America has always been a nation of free thinkers and pioneers, the poet Walt Whitman is an excellent example of this. Whitman’s poem “Song of Myself”, the most famous poem from the self published book Leaves of Grass, is a remarkable personification of American individualism. He applied his intellect and distinctiveness to his literary work, earning him the title “the father of free verse”. Walt Whitman set out to write a book of poetry that was specifically American, without the influence from European authors that dominated early American literature. He achieves his goal with Leaves of grass, by focusing on the connectedness of the world and the natural desires of a human being.
Craig Storti in his book “Americans at Work” describes about American individualism and its consequences in chapter sixth, “On Your Own”. He explains his reader how much Americans love individualism and how much they dislike collectivism by giving various examples of cowboy and Americans at workplace. He also uses survey conducted by researchers to support his argument. He emphasizes on Americans attitude related with individualism and gives it the credit for success of the American economy in the modern world. When author talks about individualism and being independent to complete a task, it reminds me of my own experience.
The rhetorical devices used in Brutus’s great speech offer tricks that we find in many great political speeches. For example, “believe me for mine honour, and have respect to mine honour”. Brutus repeatedly refers to himself, wanting to persuade the crowd that because he is an honorable man, what he did was right. He also praises Caesar, which makes it okay in the eyes of the audience. We see this now when a politician will amend his opponent, even though he has devastated him just previously, this is ethos.
Comparison I Have a Dream, Gettysburg Address, & Declaration of Independence Some of the best American speeches of all time include Martin Luther King’s, “I Have a Dream Speech” and Abraham Lincoln’s, “Gettysburg Address”. Both speeches seem to greatly affect American history. These speeches also include references from the Declaration of Independence. They both quote, “all men are created equal” and King quotes, “unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Even though Lincoln does not directly talk about slavery in the Gettysburg Address, he discusses how so many people died for such a big cause and how people need to pursue the fight in their honor. Again, although Lincoln never actually says it he talks about the Civil War referring to it as the main pathway towards equality.