For this rhetorical analysis paper I chose one of my favorite, and most famous, sports speeches of all time, Lou Gehrig’s farewell to baseball address. Lou Gehrig was a famous baseball player in the 1920’s and 30’s. Lou didn’t really need to use a attention getting introduction, he was well known and loved by so many that people piled into Yankee Stadium to watch and listen to him give this speech. Although he didn’t need an attention getter, he began his speech with one of the greatest baseball quotes of all time, “Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about a bad break I got. Yet today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.” (Gehrig, 1939) Every single time I hear or read that opening line it sends chills down my spine and stops me for a moment to reflect on everything that is going on in my own life. …show more content…
The reason for this speech is truly heart breaking, Lou Gehrig was being forced to retire from baseball due to illness. In 1938, Gehrig’s batting average fell below .300 for the first time since 1925. After this it was clear that something was not right with Lou. He began to act sluggish on and off the field and during one game when he struggled to get to first to catch a simple throw from the pitcher, he knew that it was time for him to go. On May 2nd, 1939, he removed himself from the starting lineup, breaking his streak of 2,130 games played. Soon after, the doctors at the Mayo Clinic diagnosed Lou Gehrig with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also referred to as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease) and was told that he would never be able to play baseball again; According to the official Lou Gehrig
Babe Ruth is still a very well-known person in history today, even almost one-hundred years later. He did not only change the way people viewed negro baseball leagues, but he also gained a large reputation for his ability to play baseball, obviously due to his amazing abilities. Ruth’s ability to play was almost impossibly good, in fact, he was even titled “athlete of the century” for his ability. With that ability and power that he had once he won, he would become a
The speech I chose was Cal Ripken Jr.’s it was given at the Orioles home ball park, Camden Yards at his last home game before retiring. It is a special occasion speech and was given in front of over 48,000 fans. He used a tried and true opening sentence that although a little altered had a very familiar ring. He opened with “As a kid, I had this dream” a very loose but familiar take on MLK’s “I have a dream”. This was a great attention getter and probably had people on their feet immediately. This audience was already motivate to hear his speech so that was not an issue. Most of the fans were there for the purpose of hearing his retirement speech. He did not preview his points in the introduction he addressed those in the body of his speech one at a time. He did not try to establish credibility as he was speaking about himself so who knows more about him than himself.
Jackie Robinson wrote this letter to President Lyndon B. Johnson during the Vietnam War, employing rhetoric techniques to sway President Johnson. Robinson chooses the purpose, speaker, audience, and subject of this text with care. He also appeals to ethos, logos, and pathos to persuade the President and other readers to his view.
The use of rhetorical devices in Lou Gehrig’s Farewell to Baseball Address helps the author get the appropriate feelings conveyed throughout the speech. During the speech, a common rhetorical device used is a rhetorical question. This device is a question being asked that isn’t meant to have an answer. Lou Gehrig is looking on the positive side by saying, “Which of you wouldn’t consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them for even one day?” (par. 2). Gehrig is downplaying the whole situation at this moment and is trying to show his gratitude towards everyone who has helped him out during his career. Another rhetorical device he uses in his speech is anaphora.
Alfred M. Green uses persuasive techniques that are based solely on the emotions of the audience. Due to the fact that this was a speech, it is more influential to listeners that he chose using emotions of the audience to persuade the audience instead of using other persuasive techniques. The emotions of the audience is more commonly known as Pathos, within the Ethos, Pathos, Logos persuasive techniques that the greek philosopher and scientist, Aristotle created. Green was presenting an inspirational speech and speeches are different than regular persuasive texts because they have to appeal to their audience more and if they do not, the audience would lose interest and not pay attention to the speech. Green can perfectly craft his words into appealing with the emotions of the
In today’s society, one of the most natural human traits is selfishness. David Foster Wallace incorporated this idea in his commencement speech at Kenyon College in 2005. Wallace aims to persuade his audience that, “the most obvious, ubiquitous, important realities are often the ones that are the hardest to see and talk about.” Although the intended audience of his speech is the graduates and staff, along with their friends and family, the piece has become quite popular since its delivery. Wallace offers, “nothing less than the truth” and captivates the listeners with his complete honestly. His personal tone lets the audience feel like they are a part of the conversation, rather than just receiving it. Wallace successfully conveys his message that society is blind to the world around them through the use of logic, humility and emotional appeals.
The first fact that he mentioned was that he played baseball for seventeen years. Next, Gehrig mentions that he “never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans.” Gehrig was able to concede that yes, he was diagnosed with ALS, and yes he received a bad break, but on the bright side, he refuted by mentioning that he still has an awful a lot to live for. Gehrig also begins to use emotional diction to augment his words to make it more powerful; he first mentions, “Which of you wouldn’t consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them [the grand men] for even one day?” This questions allows your personal feelings and thoughts to think about the question, and then you start to agree. Next, he continues the speech by mentioning famous people, “Who wouldn’t consider it an honor to have Known Jacob Ruppert? Also, the builder of baseball’s greatest empire, Ed Barrow.” Each question presented, influenced the reader’s thought to agree, to rationalize that yes, it is amazing that you were able to meet people that are reputable, in high areas. Gehrig was able to express his pathos
His period of trials and triumphs were significant to changing American perception for the Civil Rights revolution. By becoming the first African-American baseball player to play in the major leagues he brought down an old misconception that black athletes were inferior to white athletes. Successively his example would inspire those advocating for their civil rights, he lived out a message of nonviolence similar to the one Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. lived out. Despite the constant prejudice he faced in his sport, he was able to keep himself composed and never retaliate. Instead of fighting hate with hate, Robinson was able to gain the respect of his white peers for his calmness and his courage. In ending segregation in baseball before any other institution in America, Jackie Robinson demonstrated to American society that African Americans were to be treated with respect and dignity. Robinson was never afraid to speak up against injustices, on one occasion when a service station attendant refused to allow Robinson to use the restroom, Robinson protested by refusing to fill the bus’s 50-gallon tanks at that gas station (cite to pg 47). His protests are a foreshadowing of civil rights movements such as the montgomery bus boycott. Robinson’s moral indignation with the injustices in his world would serve to inspire
...his quote, he declares his dauntless passion for baseball, as well as his genuine earnestness in his actions.
The story of Curt Flood is one of tragic sacrifice and poignant courage. It is the story of a ball player giving up the game he loved for nothing more than a principle. Flood’s famous “I am a Man,” statement illustrated his belief that baseball was treating him unfairly (Burns, The Eighth Inning). Flood also penned these thoughts in a letter he sent to Kuhn on Christmas Eve of 1969, writing, “I do not feel that I am a piece of property to be bought and sold irrespective of my wishes” (Burns, The Eighth Inning). Craving the freedom to choose what team he played for, Flood would not accept the notion that he had no control over his own destiny as a baseball player. Flood however, stood alone in his fight. At his court hearing no active baseball player would testify on his behalf.
On April 18th, 1967, Jackie Robinson, the first African American professional baseball player, wrote a letter to President Lyndon B. Johnson thanking him for his role in the Civil Rights Act. Within the letter, Robinson uses logos and pathos to reassure the president he is doing a great job, and to persuade him not to give up despite the wartime demonstrations.
1.Hook: Two men, one tall, elderly and magical and the other black, young and fierce have a lot more in common than you may think.
Do you know anything about Jackie Robinson? Well don’t worry, if you don’t I will explain to you. Jackie Robinson is an inspiration by entering the Major League Baseball and changing history. I think this because he made white players accept him and by changing segregation.
The Great War rages on. An influenza epidemic claims the lives of several Americans. But, the Boston Red Sox have done it again. Last night, in a 2-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs at Fenway Park (thanks to Carl Mays' three-hitter), the Boston Red Sox won their fifth World Series championship--amid death and disease, a reason to live ... Babe Ruth and the 1918 Red Sox. If I die today, at least I lived to see the Sox win the championship. For, it could be a long, long, time before this happens again.
Introduction Baseball Saved Us was written by Ken Mochizuki, a novelist, journalist and an actor. He is a native of Seattle, Washington located in the United States. After the war between the United States and Japan during World War II, is parents were forced to move to a Minidoka internment camp located in Idaho. He got his inspiration to write Baseball Saved Us when he read a magazine article about an Issei (a first generation Japanese American) man who established a baseball diamond and formed a league within the camps. Dom Lee, the Illustrator of the book, is a native of Seoul, South Korea.