Lydia Velishek Mr. Stensrud Honors: US Literature & Composition 25 October 2017 Rhetorical Analysis Essay Patrick Henry utilizes logos, repetition and allusions to convince his audience that they should engage in war in his “Speech in the Virginia Convention”. Henry makes an appeal to logos when he states, “Are fleets and armies necessary to a work of love and reconciliation? Have we shown ourselves so unwilling to be reconciled, that force must be called in to win back our love?” (232, Line 31-32). He explains that the King and the forces of Britain are attempting to seize the colonies through the use of force, not through ‘love and reconciliation’. The military forces sent to suppress the disloyal colonists are viewed as a threat by Henry, and by stating this, he is appealing to logic before his audience. He states that love cannot be gained through intimidation, and logically, a rebellion is necessary to protect their personal freedoms and liberties. Additionally, Henry uses logos again to solidify his claim when he says, “They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. …show more content…
But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year?” (234, Lines 62-64). Here, he is also appealing to logic by calling attention to the fact that the colonists’ have been weakened by the suppression from Britain’s acts that have been placed upon the colonies and that their forces will only weaken the longer they outwait this rebellion. He claims that the increase in British military activity will soon leave them unable to rebel, and that their independence and freedom will be taken from them, inciting his audience to take action and fight for their liberation. Another rhetorical device Henry uses is repetition. This is evident when he states, “Gentlemen may cry 'Peace, peace'-but there is no peace” (234, Lines 80-81). When Henry repeats peace three times, he reinforces the idea he wants his audience to focus on- that the peace the loyalists seek cannot be found by sitting back and doing nothing, but with rebellion. He attempts to convince his audience to engage against England and take action. Repetition is also used when Henry states, “. . . we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight!” (234, Line 60). Again he tries to persuade his audience of war, stating that they must fight, rather than they should fight, as if it is their duty to engage. He repeats his claim so that they may agree with him and take up arms with the British troops. Finally, Henry uses multiple allusions through the course of his speech.
The first of which alludes to Greek mythology, when he states, “. . . song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts” (232, Lines 15-17). The siren that Henry speaks of pertains to the sirens discussed in Homer’s The Odyssey, who led sailors to sail their ships onto rocks and transformed the men into pigs. His audience would have been well versed in well as classical mythology and they would have therefore understood his allusion. Henry uses this regarding the oppression and tyranny of Britain, discussing how British Empire seeks to transform the colonies into mindless beasts that create exports for the Britain. The colonists, wishing for freedom, would oppose this and Henry takes advantage of this by attempting to get his audience to agree with the notion that they must
fight. Another instance in which Henry uses an allusion is when he states, “Suffer not yourselves to be betrayed with a kiss” (232, Line 28). This is alluding to the biblical story of Judas betraying Jesus with a kiss and revealing him to the Roman soldiers. Henry knows that his audience is proficient in the Bible, and he knows that by making this comparison he is making a personal connection with them, pointing out how their situation is much like Jesus’. They are being lied to and betrayed by Judas (Britain) and the only way of securing their freedom is by rebellion. In Patrick Henry’s “Speech in the Virginia Convention”, logos, repetition and allusions are used to help push for a rebellion against Britain.
Hal’s remark to his father indicates a now strong, independent mind, predicting that Douglas and Hotspur will not accept Henry’s offer because of their love for fighting. Henry’s reply in turn indicates a change in attitude towards his son, a newfound respect. Acknowledging Hal’s prediction, the king orders preparations to begin, and we see he has his own set of solid moral values: knowing that their ‘cause is just’ helps him to reconcile with his highly honourable conscience that there is indeed cause for war. Still maintained is the conflict between the very format of the text, with Hal and Henry’s conversation held in formal verse typical of the court world, in which Hal is now firmly embedded. Falstaff, however, sustains his equally typical prose speech, which indicates to the audience the enduring division between the court and tavern worlds.
Patrick Henry’s effective diction emphasizes how much the British had suppressed the colonists and that it was time to fight for their freedom. Henry displays this through his strong use of pathos, logos, and ethos. His rhetorical questions really appeal to the logic and ethics of the colonists and leaves the no choice but to join him and rebel.
In the “Speech at the Virginia Convention” Patrick Henry tries to persuade colonists to fight a war against the English; he uses several main rhetorical strategies such as; parallelism, metaphor, and rhetorical questions.
“Trust it not sir it will prove a snare to your feet”(Henry 102). In other words don’t trust the British owing to the fact in the end they will harm you. That was a quote from Patrick Henry’s Speech to the Virginia Convention during the mid 1700’s. The purpose of his speech was not to compromise with the British but to take up arms. Patrick Henry was a representative in the Virginia House of Burgesses. Mr. Henry enjoyed oratory which is a a religious society of priest for private worship. He also loved anything involving the law. Patrick Henry delivered the speech to the Virginia Convention using the compelling technique of pathos to convince the delegates to proceed to war with the British and fight for their country.
Henry’s speech to Virginia uses several tactics to get your attention; the stress at the time was overwhelming as the pressure from Britain to dissemble and succumb intensified. “It is only in this way that we can hope to arrive at truth, and fulfil the great responsibility which we hold to God and our country.” His intention behind involving God and religion
There are few speeches in the American history that compel us towards great acts of patriotism. Patrick Henry's speech in the Virginia Provincial Convention of 1775 is a prime example of one of these great speeches. During the debates on whether or not to compromise with Great Britain, Patrick Henry proposed the idea to his fellow members of the First Continental Congress to declare war on Great Britain. A reason why the speech was so powerful was the rhetorical strategies of the diction of slavery, the appeal to God, and the appeal to logic, that he deftly employed.
Ann Richards’s keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention in 1988 was extremely interesting to watch. I believe her speech was intended to be focused on the American family and also the American farmers. These two areas seemed to be very important to Mrs. Richards and she made a point to discuss both.
The eighteenth century, a time of turmoil and chaos in the colonies, brought many opinionated writers to the forefront in support or refutation of the coming American Revolution. This highly controversial war that would ultimately separate the future United States of America from Great Britain became the center of debate. Two writers, both of whom supported the Revolution, now stand to fully illuminate one side of the debate. Thomas Paine, a radical propagandist, wrote many pieces during this time including “The Crisis Number 1” (1776). Through writing, he appealed to the “common man” in order to convince them to gather their arms and fight for their freedom. In this document, he utilizes many of the same rhetorical skills and propaganda techniques as Patrick Henry, a convincing orator, did in his famous speech delivered to the state’s delegates in 1775. Among these techniques are transfer, abstract language, and pathos. In both works, these were used to call the audiences to war. These influential pieces both contained a call to action which, through the use of strong and decisive language, aided the beginning of the American Revolution.
“If a free society can not help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.”(Kennedy, 1961) Statements such as these demonstrate how Kennedy appealed to the citizens by simply using reason. The use of logos in his speech was minimal compared to the use of pathos, and ethos.
Although Henry refused to serve on the Constitutional Convention, Madison needed Henry's persuasive ways. Henry had a way to make people agree with his ideas. Even though Henry didn't serve on the Constitutional Convention, he was still present to put in his word. As soon as the meetings opened, Henry began to argue against the Constitution. This argument went on for three weeks. Henry was aware that the new government had to be strong, but felt that the Constitution made the central government too powerful. He thought that the power should lay in the hands of the states. "What right had they [the group that wrote the Constitution] to say 'We the people,' instead We, the States?" he demanded.
Rhetorical Analysis: The Declaration of Independence. Our Declaration of Independence, was penned most notably by Thomas Jefferson in response to the atrocities committed by the British Crown against the citizens of the American Colonies. At the time of the drafting of The Declaration, Jefferson was widely known to be a successful practitioner of Law as a lawyer, and an eloquent writer. It is due to this, that although Jefferson was a member of a five-man committee charged with drafting the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson was tapped to be the main author. After enduring “a long train of abuses and usurpations” the colonists decided to declare themselves free of British rule (para 2).
...ck at his General for calling them mule drivers by dying in battle. In reality Henry was an insignificant soldier and the General would never care whether he died in battle or not. To me, a hero doesn't try to hide behind his insecurities, like Henry did, he faces them.
As time progressed Henry also thought of the injustice in working and paying the wages he had earned to a master who had no entitlement to them whatsoever. In slavery he had been unable to question anything of his masters doing. He was unable to have rage, sadness, or even sickness, for he would be b...
When henry says “If we wish to be free, if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending, if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained, we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and to the God of Hosts is all that is left us”, He is saying that the only way to get Britain from treating Colonial Americans like slaves is to fight back. Another quote that is similar to this is “Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace, but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field. Why stand we here idle?” Although the first shots of the war would come later, the war to stack up arms as well as build a military was happening. Henry is only trying to persuade the leaders of the colonies to use this military to metaphorically put its foot down on Britain’s abuse. He is saying that the US has done everything it can to make peace with Britain. The only other option is war. This was a scary thought to most colonials because the only military they had was a
Set during a particularly tumultuous period in history, The King’s Speech (2010; directed by Tom Hooper and written by David Seidler) depicts Prince Albert Frederick Arthur George’s struggle to overcome his crippling stammer and sense of inadequacy in the face of the untimely death of his father, King George V, the dishonor and uncertainty cast over the family when his brother Prince Edward VIII abdicates his right to the throne and the unchecked rise of a tremendous threat to the nation, Adolf Hitler. In order to become the leader needed in these difficult times, Prince Albert is forced to face his personal struggles head on through a multitude of ineffectual and often times medieval techniques administered by so called “trained physicians” until his wife, Elizabeth, happens across someone with a radically different approach. Australian stage actor turned speech therapist Lionel Logue’s openness, irreverence toward the throne and biting wit seem like the antithesis to the staunch and reserved Prince Albert, but these differences end up being exactly what the Prince needs to overcome his personal issues, assume his seat on the throne with confidence and, through it all, form an improbable but lifelong friendship. While The King’s Speech follows a fairly classical approach in regards to story and character development, it shares some traits with the formalist style as well in it’s frequent use of obscure camera angles that tend to draw attention to themselves. A great deal of emotions are expressed through it’s shot composition and camera placement which is somewhat unique to this type of historical drama.