Intro
Attention Getter
A powerful speech can leave a huge impact and create a lasting memory, either good or bad.
Context
RFK
Robert F. Kennedy’s speech was about the tragic news of Martin King Jr.’s assassination. He engages with the senses, memories, and emotions of the audience to persuade them to not shed more blood because of this loss.
ANTONY
Marc Antony’s eulogy was for Julius Caesar. He was able to effectively change the Roman people’s optimistic view of Caesar’s death while simultaneously making Brutus and the conspirators look evil.
Thesis: Antony and Kennedy both effectively use rhetoric devices like ethos, repetition, and pathos to persuade their audiences in different manners.
Body Paragraphs
Ethos: By proving their credibility
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We’ve had difficult times in the past, but we — and we will have difficult times in the future. It is not the end of violence; it is not the end of lawlessness; and it’s not the end of disorder.”
Contrasting the events of the present, past, and future.
ANTONY:
“The noble Brutus; Hath told you Caesar was ambitious; If it were so, it was a grievous fault, And grievously hath Caesar answered it. Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest—For Brutus is an honorable man; So are they all, all honorable men—Come I to speak in Caesar’s funeral. He was my friend, faithful and just to me. But Brutus says he was ambitious,And Brutus is an honorable man.
Antony’s repetitive and sarcastic use of “honorable” hints that Brutus’ intentions are not what they seem. Antony effectively undermines Brutus’ noble character and persuades the Roman people against him.
“To wrong the dead, to wrong myself and you/ Than I will wrong such honorable men.”
Antony would rather say horrible things about himself, about the dead and to the public then saying horrible things about such “honorable” men. Antony uses the word “wrong” to make the word reverberate in their minds. That the word “wrong” does not belong to Antony for Antony is noble and a plain man to the people. But rather “wrong” is being taken to describe Brutus, for his actions were “wrong” that he killed Julius Caesar and it takes away from Brutus being
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By doing this, he wanted to show the life’s work of Dr. King and that an uproar would undo this work and prove it was meaningless. He’s trying to prevent an uprising and feelings of
Throughout his speech, Antony repeats the words “[Caesar] was ambitious” and “Brutus is an honorable man” to create a contrast between the two statements. (3.2.95-96). Through this repetition, Caesar successfully undermines Brutus. Everytime he calls Brutus an honorable man, he lists a positive trait of Caesar that contradicts Brutus’s claim that he was too ambitious. He tells the crowd about the times when Caesar showed compassion for the people and when he refused the crown thrice. Antony’s sarcasm about Brutus’s honor brings into question as to whether his honor deserved. This leads the audience to doubt their feelings upon Caesar’s ambition. Near the end of his eulogy, Antony uses apostrophe when he claims that “judgment ... art fled to brutish beasts” as a reason for why the Roman people believe Brutus. (3.2.114-115). Antony indirectly shames the crowd for their belief in Brutus in that Caesar was a tyrant. Fearing alienation of the crowd, he attributes this belief to a lapse in judgement that beasts have taken. Antony also makes a pun upon Brutus’s name when he comments “brutish beasts.” Antony implies Brutus has caused a lapse in judgement within the Roman people through his oration
The second henious act Brutus commits is murder on his dear friend Caeser. After commiting the crime he said "If there be any in this assembly, any dear friend of Caeser’s, to him I say that Brutus’ love to Caeser was no less than his". Brutus killed his dear friend because of ambition. If only today’s leaders had some ambition! He said that he love Rome more than Caeser and that is why he commited one of the most dishonorable acts a humn being can commit. After the act, Antony appropriately and sarcastically called Brutus an honorable man. Unlike Brutus, Antony knew what honor was. Even though Brutus knew that Caeser had turned down the crown three times, he still felt he was to ambitious to rule over Rome. If only Brutus would have had a level head on his shoulders like Antony. If anyone can call a murderer honorable, let them be known.
This speech proves that Kennedy had a way with words and knew the best way to get a message across. He clearly expressed his feelings but did so without letting them take over. He didn’t scream or shout, but showed he could handle his anger while still letting it shine through. Kennedy used the three appeals, strong diction and syntax, and a well-organized structure of his ideas to convey his purpose; Raise anger in Americans and side with them, while making the steel companies feel guilty for their
John Fitzgerald Kennedy delivered one of the most important American speeches after being sworn in as president on January 20, 1961. His inauguration speech was so influential that it seized the nation’s attention, and quotes from it are still clearly remembered by people today. It is considered one of the best speeches ever written and ever delivered. It presents a strong appeal to pathos, ethos, and logos and accomplishes what any speaker strives for – it speaks straight to the heart of the audience and inspires people.
The structure of the speech enhances the ability for all people in the audience to connect. Beginning with an intimate remark and closing with a broad regard marks the address as both authentic and propelling. Nevertheless, what is most effective is Kennedy’s skill to access the atmosphere of the crowd and examine the circumstances of the juncture that is primarily the cause for the prosperity of this distinguished speech.
Honor is also a vibrant underlying foundation of Brutus’ character. After the suspenseful assassination of Caesar, specifically during his funeral speech, Brutus inquires the people of Rome, “Who is here so rude that would not be a Roman? If any, speak; for him I have offended” (3.2.29-32). Brutus is proving to the people of Rome that he is the noblest Roman of them all. However, on the eve of his shocking defeat by Antony, Brutus runs onto his sword preserving his undeniable honor as a noble Roman citizen.
Early in the speech Kennedy attempts to connect with his audience. He asks how, “when we are asking Reservists to leave their homes and families for months on end, and servicemen to risk their lives—and four were killed in the last two days in Vietnam.” Kennedy reminds them of their brothers, neighbors and friends fight across seas, effectively emotionally involving all present. The diction which he uses to draw his audience in, makes you feel like he too is experiencing loved ones who are away and fighting or to have even died when he acknowledges the four recently fallen soldiers. He gives a certain friendly, caring tone and yet urgent tone as he leads into the main idea of his speech.
John F. Kennedy’s speech was revered then and it is revered now. He talks on peace and freedom will never be forgotten. JFK arrived when America was going through a rough patch and delivered a speech for the ages. His line “…My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country” still applies even today. Even though John F. Kennedy’s live was tragically cut short in 1963, his speech on freedom and peace will always be remembered and it carries on with JFK’s legacy.
After Brutus kills himself, Antony says "This was the noblest Roman of them all: all the conspirators save only he did what they did in envy of great Caesar; he only in a general honest thought and common good to all, made one of them." This quote means that Antony regarded Brutus as an honorable man, despite the fact that he killed Caesar.
The speech, by Kennedy, claims the importance of the human rights and why citizens elect him as a president. He employs repetition, parallelism and alliteration to make his speech powerful and strike a chord with citizens.
The notorious Indianapolis speech, delivered by Robert F. Kennedy, breaking the news of the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King (informing a mostly black audience) is a perfect example of the humble, humanistic speech style of the former Presidential candidate. Although short, Kennedy’s words in this speech are profound and lasting, a simple approach which was mastered by this great social thinker. Through rhetorical analysis of this somber speech it is clear that Kennedy was a smart, emotionally connected public speaker who used his time to not only commemorate a life, but also build support for his campaign and what it stands for.
Firstly, Antony says a general statement that, “the evil that men do lives after them” (III.ii.74), when in fact he is subtly and sneeringly referring to the conspirators actions. The Roman commoners don’t realize that this general statement is swaying them, but the rest of Antony’s speech further convinces them of the evil the conspirators have done. Later, Antony talks about Brutus says that “sure, [he] is an honourable man” (III.ii.98), emphasis on the sure. Because he uses a scornful tone while sarcastically saying this statement, he is really beginning to show the audience his true feelings on the situation. Knowing that even Antony bitterly disagrees with the choices of the conspirators, it further persuades the common people of Rome to turn against Brutus and the rest of Caesar’s murderers. These occasions show Antony’s sour tone, especially towards the conspirators, and Antony’s tone also riles up the Roman citizens. His tone helps to exasperate the commoners with Caesar’s murder, and therefore assists Antony in achieving his purpose to manipulate the audience to turn against
Kennedy’s brilliant use of pathos, parallelism, antithesis, and varied syntax successfully conveys his ambitions and hopes for America, as it makes Kennedy’s speech a very memorable one in history.
Brutus is seen by all of Rome as a good man and Antony sees the self-important side of Brutus which has developed from this. He notices this and uses it against Brutus. Through repeatedly stating the idea that ?Brutus is an honorable man?, he then points out the fact that Brutus is claiming to be so ?honorable? because he murdered Caesar.
Greed, ambition, and the possibility of self-gain are always constant in their efforts to influence people’s actions. In Julius Caesar, Marcus Brutus, a venerable politician, becomes a victim of the perpetual conflict between power-hungry politicians and ignorant commoners. He is a man of honor and good intentions who sacrifices his own happiness for the benefit of others. Unfortunately, his honor is strung into a fine balance between oblivion and belief and it is ultimately the cause of his downfall. His apparent obliviousness leads him to his grave as his merciful sparing of Mark Antony’s life, much like Julius Caesar’s ghost, comes back to haunt him. Overall, Brutus is an honest, sincere man who holds the lives of others in high regard while he himself acts as a servant to Rome.