9/11 Rhetorical Strategies

Although tragedies are often quite sad and tragic, many can often lead to a better tomorrow with the right kind of leadership. For example, world leaders like former U.S. President George W. Bush and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair use their speech to motivate people into overcoming a tragedy and turning it into an opportunity to make the future greater and safer for posterity. After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2011, it was absolutely necessary for Bush and Blair to use their speech to turn the world around and into a more positive direction. To accomplish this task, both Bush and Blair had to utilize tone and rhetorical strategies that would appeal to their audience.
Generally, tone can be described as the attitude of

a writer toward a subject or an audience. The tone of someone is capable of telling an audience whether they are sad, angry, or happy with something. The September 11th terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were some of the most devastating attacks in the history of the United States, and the level of devastation is truly shown in the tones of Bush’s and Blair’s speeches. In Bush’s speech to Congress on September 20, 2001, he says, “Great harm has been done to us. We have suffered great loss. And in our grief and anger we have found our mission and our moment. Freedom and fear are at war. The advance of human freedom, the great achievement of our time, and the great hope of every time, now depends on us. Our nation, this generation, will lift a dark threat of violence from our people and our future.” Since Bush is upset with the individuals that have caused terror, his tone can be considered to be bitter and angry. He also seems the be optimistic because he heavily believes that the American people have the power to win the war on terror. On the other hand, the tone of Blair’s speech to the Labour Party on October 2, 2001 is mostly sympathetic towards the American people. In his speech, Blair states, “I tell you: you do not feel like the most powerful person in the country at times like that. Because there is no answer. There is no justification for their pain.” The cruel acts of terrorism caused a deep sadness for British Prime Minister Blair, so he showed his sympathy for the American people through the tone of his speech. Both Bush’s and Blair’s tones were shaped to fit their audience, and this helped create a very effective speech for both individuals.
When a writer or a speaker wants to create a powerful and effective argument, they use rhetorical devices in their works.

Some of the most common rhetorical strategies used include simile, metaphor, repetition, and allusion. In George W. Bush’s speech, he uses a rhetorical strategy when he says, “We will rally the world to this cause, by our efforts and by our courage. We will not tire, we will not falter, and we will not fail.” The rhetorical strategy that Bush has used is known as an anaphora, a common type of repetition. The repetition of the phrase “we will” heightens the emotion of the speech, and it also adds a great amount of emphasis. On the other hand, Tony Blair also uses rhetorical strategies in his speech. For instance, Blair uses a rhetorical device when he says, “And as you crossed the room, you felt the longing and sadness; hands clutching photos of sons and daughters, wives and husbands; imploring you to believe them when they said there was still an outside chance of their loved ones being found alive, when you knew in truth that all hope was gone.” To have a better appeal to emotion, Blair softens his words when he says “all hope was gone” rather than saying that the victims of the terrorist attacks were ruthlessly killed. This rhetorical strategy is known as a euphemism. Both Bush and Blair employ rhetorical strategies throughout their speeches in order to accomplish their

goals.
Most of the time, people view tragedies as simply a horrific event that can be never be healed. However, with good leadership, tragedies can often guide people into creating a better future for all of mankind. The September 11th terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were some of the most gruesome tragedies in the history of the United States, but two world leaders were able to turn this negative into a positive for the future. Both former U.S. President George W. Bush and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair would produce great and powerful speeches that would motivate people to change the world for the better. By using appropriate tone and rhetorical devices, Bush and Blair achieved their ultimate goals.