Challenger Explosion Essay

The Explosion of the Challenger Space Shuttle was a national tragedy as it was the first time we had astronauts die during flight on a shuttle. The type of Speech that former President Ronald Reagan gave was an informative speech on the Challenger explosion that occurred January 28, 1986. During this time, the United States were still pioneering the way for space travel, even though we had already gone to the moon. As Reagan Stated, “We’ve grown used to the idea of space, and, perhaps we forget that we’ve only just begun” (Regan), meaning that the reason this tragedy struck a chord with the nation was because we did not expect trivial outcome. Ronald Reagan effectively comforts the nation through the use of rhetoric while also addressing the

families of the lost astronauts and those involved with the launch. Regan’s critical use of pathos is how he gets the audience involved to listen to what he has to say.
Reagan starts off the speech by addressing how was supposed to report on the State of the Union but is instead going to talk about the recent disaster.

The use of phrases such as “Nancy and I”, and “together as a nation” allows the speech feel personal to the audience showing that the everyone was affected by this event, not just the families of the crew members. Another way he appeals to emotion is by addressing to all the school children who watched the live shuttle explosion and saying, “I know it’s hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this happen. It’s all part of the process of exploration and discovery.” This appeals to the parents in the audience as it portrays Reagan as an empathizing parent, instead of a national leader. This also allows Reagan to seem he is on the same level of authority as the nation. Regan has great usage of transitions throughout the speech by ending off on a subject and applying it to a new point. For example, Reagan ends off a section by say Challenger crew members, “were pioneers”, then goes to explain how exploration and discovery is all a part of the process in, “expanding man’s horizons” (Reagan). I believe the organizational pattern of the speech was topical as it was pertaining to a recent event at the time, and logically breaking it up. It is hard to deny the credibility of someone in such a high position, such as the president of the united states, because why would a person of great influence want to steer the nation wrong. This does not mean I believe all presidents are truthful, but I believe Reagan was a credible source of information. Towards the second half of the speech, Reagan goes on to state, “We don’t hide our space program. We don’t keep secrets and cover things up. We do it all up front and in public. That’s the way freedom is”, this can be seen as a subtle attack to the Soviet Union as during the space race, information was not always shared (Reagan). He is trying to turn the audience to blame

the Soviet Union be saying because they kept their technology and launches secret, they could have shared the U.S. vital information which could have prevented the Challenger explosion. This could be seen a way to shift the blame, if there is any, away from the NASA Program and towards the Soviets. Would this be considered ethical? Probably not, as it criticizes the Soviets, who had nothing to do with the Explosion of the Challenger.
By vouching for NASA, Reagan can ensure that the public will not lose faith in their abilities so that future missions to space can continue. He goes on to address the NASA employees personally and say that, “Your dedication and professionalism have moved and impressed us for decades” and that “we know of your anguish. We share it” (Reagan). These lines encourage the employees of NASA to pursuit onward even though there will be mistakes along the way. Again, there is a relation to the audience when he says, “we share it”, stepping down from his role as president, and into the role of a sympathizing citizen. In the beginning of the speech, Reagan places the tragedy in a collective disaster with the occurrence of another, without diminishing the importance of the present tragedy. He then lists the Challenger Seven and says that, “We mourn their loss as a nation together” (Reagan). A seemingly common occurrence through out Reagan’s address is his emotional appeal to the audience, which is important for the president to appear relatable and sympathetic. Another thing to notice is that Reagan does not use gestures of any kind during his speech, but instead, keeps a calm and sympathetic tone maintain eye contact with the camera. In the conclusion of the speech, Reagan leaves off with, “We will never forget them… as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and “slipped the surly bonds of earth” to “touch the face of God” (Reagan) (qtd. John Magee). He quoted Magee, a famous pilot from WWII, who was inspired to write the poem while flying upward to 33,000 feet, which was high at the time, in his plane. Reagans shows an allusion between the two situations comparing the feats. Although the speech was short and the tone of the address did not change throughout, it is considered one of the most powerful speeches spoken.
What is amazing about the speech Reagan gave was how he was able to honor those life’s who were lost while still motivating everyone to look to the future. Reagan was able to comfort the families of the crew and the public while still addressing the viewers through the use of mainly emotional appeal. What happened was a national tragedy even though the outcome was a big possibility. Hoping that people would not be discouraged or show hatred towards space travel were the most likely reason for his speech. In order to progress in to the future, discoveries are needed to be made.