Rhetorical Analysis of JFK’s Inaugural Address John F. Kennedy was exceptionally talented in his ability of using tropes and schemes. This skillset is always imperative in any literature related work. The rhetorical strategies Kennedy uses in his inaugural address help him to achieve success with his ethos, pathos, and logos. Kennedy’s purpose in his speech is to reach out to America and raise their morale. He is also trying to show that he has true concern for the people, instead of simply having his own personal agenda of becoming president.
His inauguration speech was so effective that it captured the entire nation’s attention by the use of rhetorical devises such as antithesis, anaphora and imperative sentences to help him strengthen his purpose of unity and reassure American’s that their freedom would be upheld. John F. Kennedy begins his inaugural speech by using antithesis to emphasize the importance of his success in the presidential race. Kennedy describes his victory as “symbolizing an end, as well as a beginning -- signifying renewal, as well as change.” This helps him create his purpose that he is going to take action but still hold onto the beliefs of our founding fathers. Kennedy Is reassuring America that even though they are going through tough times with the cold war, that they have to refer back to their roots for guidance. By describing these responsibilities passed on to the new generation, Kennedy invokes the need for the people to continue to support the ideas of freedom that have made the country so successful.
Another example is “With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deed,” this goes back to president Lincoln second inaugural speech. Kennedy uses this to help the people grow and open their eyes to “the land we love.” The president uses these historical allusions for trust and to make the citizens realize they made the correct choice. President John F. Kennedy in his inaugural address’ purpose is to induce a sense of protection and security to the American citizens. He effectively does this by conducting an optimistic tone throughout his speech in order to receive trust from the
Political views aside, most can agree that Barack Obama is an influential and very effective speaker. He is able to inspire masses of people with his simple, yet articulate use of words. He always speaks with a sense of smooth confidence, yet never near the spectrum of arrogance. Most importantly, he is so effective because he accurately knows his audience before performing the speech. Obama is truly talented in his ability to make people identify with him, because the audience feels as if he walked a mile in their shoes.
Barrack Addresses The Congress As most of us can already tell, President Barrack Obama is an excellent speaker. He has a variety of speeches that can be considered historic. Rather it be his inaugural speech, or his democratic nomination speech, Barrack always has his way with the audience. This is mainly do in part by his unique and prestigious mannerisms. Personally, I feel that Obama picked up on every responsibility of the speaker.
John F. Kennedy’s purpose to his inauguration is to inspire the citizens of the United States, and to persuade his audience to merely participate in transferring his several goals into reality. It is clearly stated in Kennedy’s inauguration speech that help will be needed by the world if these goals will ever be achieved. In the act of persuading his audience Kennedy uses many rhetoric strategies to achieve the support from his audience that he is hoping for. In my analysis I can assert that Kennedy establishes his purpose in a persuasive way through his distinctive syntax and diction. Kennedy uses many complex formations of syntax and diction to persuade his audience.
Kennedy used in his address was Ethos. Ethos his simply, how you appeal to your audience. Many things stood out to me in his speech that connected him to the people of the United States. His most famous quote that comes from the address in the Ethos section is: “ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” I personally liked this quote because we often find ourselves looking for what someone else can do for us and we hardly ever give back. I think this quote opened the eyes of the people and made them realize they needed to help the country out and do their part in society.
It was a great speech because of all the writing techniques that he used and ethos, pathos, and logos, used in the speech. This speech does not only bring us emotion, but authority and reasoning also it brings us face-to-face with the problems that our country had. This speech woke many people and urged them to change their ways. Of course, the problem continued and really still has not been solved completely, but we seem to have taken a big step since the last “March on Washington”. Martin Luther King is watching to see if we succeed his
During his Inaugural Address he states he is ready to assist and defend any nations in need and won’t back down from any threats that may face the nation. Kennedy also suggest at the same time he is ready to negotiate and come to terms with those opposing nations. His main points of his speech were to restore American Prestige and to show dominance worldwide. My opinions on this speech are mixed, Kennedy did a great job and undoubtedly one of the greatest Inaugural Addresses of US history, but he set the bar high, he talked about big ticket items that made it seem like he wasn’t afraid to police the globe. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address was strong and had many strong views.
Wiesel shows a great display of logos in his speech as well. He uses specific examples and event throughout the speech that support his stance on indifference. Also most people know that the information he refers to is reliable because of how well the events are recorded and communicated in the world. I don’t believe there is any better way to have justified and supported his speech than how he did. In addition Wiesel’s pathos was spot on.