In 1947, Congress passed the 22nd Amendment, which states that no president can be elected to more than two terms in office. Amendments are created and ratified because they are applicable to most of the general public; however, only one man had ever “broken” this new rule. Franklin Delano Roosevelt served as president during some of America’s roughest years: the Great Depression, Pearl Harbor, and World War II are just a few big events on the list. The public re-elected Roosevelt to serve four terms as America’s 32nd president, however, his legacy began with his Inaugural Address he delivered to the public in 1933. Throughout the speech he proved his credibility and authority as president, found a common ground with his audience, addressed the nation’s issues, and discussed the decisions he would make to fix them. To begin his address, Roosevelt acknowledges former President Herbert Hoover and the Chief Justice. This …show more content…
reveals his personal relationships with famous American political figures, thus enhancing his credibility. He then states in the third paragraph of his address, “This is preeminently the time to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Nor need we shrink from honestly facing conditions in our country today.” Roosevelt wants his audience to know that he is a man they can trust to reconstruct the turmoil that was the United States of America. While Roosevelt establishes ethos throughout the entire address, proving his credibility from the beginning not only supplies the audience with a sense of relief, but also boosts Roosevelt’s reputation. Another strategic element of Roosevelt’s inaugural address is the realities he shares with his audience.
Within a minute of his address, Roosevelt begins talking about all of America’s “common difficulties.” He says, “They concern, thank God, only material things. Values have shrunk to fantastic levels; taxes have risen; our ability to pay has fallen. . .” (5). Roosevelt delivered this speech in 1933, when the Great Depression was at its peak. The public knew how awful conditions were nationwide; however, the president declaring they were bad is incredibly important. Instead of brushing off reality, Roosevelt sides with his audience, thus making him a more reliable and trustworthy figure in the eyes of the American people. By building that trust right away, the public has the ability to see Roosevelt as someone they can relate to, and strengthens the points he makes throughout the rest of his address. It is said that honesty is the best policy, and Roosevelt does a remarkable job of sharing the truth with his audience during his Inaugural
Address. A difficult obstacle as president is addressing the public in a style that is comprehensible for everyone in the audience. Roosevelt recognized his audience, the people of the United States of America, ranged greatly in age and in levels of intelligence. Because of this, some sections of his address included impressive vocabulary and diction. On the other hand, some of his major points he simply stated to get the message across. A good example appears in the climatic section of the speech, when he says, “We must act. We must act quickly” (16). He strategically places this statement right after a long, informative paragraph discussing specifics on how Americans can contribute to the reconstruction. Young children and adults lacking an education may have had trouble comprehending all of the information Roosevelt supplied in the lengthy paragraph; however, he shortens up the message in a way that everyone could understand. In the text version of the address, these simple, yet effective statements are always placed in their own separate paragraph to add emphasis to that point. Roosevelt had the tremendous task of preaching change to a widely ranging audience; however, his use of syntax and style greatly benefits the clarity of his message. Roosevelt successfully established his credibility, related with the American public about the common issues, and started his service as president on the right note. His fame, legacy, and popularity as president began with this declaration of action and change. Most people can talk about why problems need to be fixed—Roosevelt knew how, and stuck to his plan. This passion for positive change that he possessed not only helped him as president, but also convinced America to re-elect him to serve a total of four terms as president. Although the Constitution now states that no person can be elected to more than two terms, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the perfect candidate to break that rule.
The purpose of an “inaugural address” is to inform the people of his or her intentions as a leader. Two of the most prominent inaugural addresses throughout history are Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s and Barack Obama’s. Franklin Roosevelt’s inaugural address stands the test of time because it gave the American people hope that they may overcome the terrible Great Depression. Similarly, Barack Obama’s address is well known because it inspired millions that we will be lifted out of economic crisis, but it was also remembered as the first inaugural address from an African American president. The inauguration speeches of Franklin Roosevelt and Barack Obama use the rhetorical devices parallelism, allusions, and emotive language to convey their messages
Theodore Roosevelt stepped into head of office on September 19, 1901 when President William McKinley was assassinated. He was the youngest man to become president. His motto was “speak softly but carry a big stick.” President Roosevelt would come into power offering America the square deal. He would take the power away from the industrialists as he controlled big business from the White House. He would soon become known as a TrustBuster. Roosevelt used American power for American interests and was quoted as saying, “I am an American first and last. “ Although some historians argue that Roosevelt acted like a six-year-old throughout his presidency and that he didn’t think things through, ie “he thought with his hips”, one can admire the tremendous leadership qualities that Teddy Roosevelt had. First, he was a very bold man who graduated magna cum laude from Harvard. The average citizen was aware of what a “positive, warm and tough, authoritative and funny” president that they had leading them. His leadership qualities stemmed from his time as a New York state Assembly man, a deputy sheriff, a ...
Roosevelt is very good at delivering his message to the people in a way that would inspire their trust in him. The way he does this is very simple; he talks to them on a very friendly and neighbourly level, using simple terms to describe what he is doing, shown when he says things like "Essentially we have " He is a very good communicator as he seems to be picking up on the feeling of the people he is talking to and he uses that to the best of his ability, as is shown when he says "Another question you will ask is this: Why are all the banks not to be reopened at the same time? The answer is simple and I know you will understand it: Your Government does not intend that the history of the past few years shall be repeated.
Roosevelt’s inaugural address focused on the current situation of the nation and he intended to declare war on the Great Depression. He stated a need to move as a nation through his leadership and become a better nation. Roosevelt took a strong stand and proclaimed, "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself. He looks to the future asking the nation to fulfill their “true destiny” of ministering to themselves and their fellow men.
Although the nation listened with little hope, the genuineness behind the words Roosevelt spoke opened the ears of many. While many ridiculed Hoover and found ways to belittle his status with phrases such as “Hoovervilles” to describe shanty towns or “Hoover Blankets” to describe the newspapers individuals used as warmth, he practiced denial. While the people of the nation suffered, his approach to keeping the facade that the economy “was on its way” was to preserve and uphold formal attire and protocol in the White House.... ... middle of paper ...
One reason on how Roosevelt's "First Inaugural Address" made a difference was the words he used to wage war. Roosevelt uses words like "retreat" and "advance" in his speech. "With this pledge taken, I assume unhesitatingly the leadership of this great army of our people dedicated to a disciplined attack upon our common problems," Roosevelt says. Which means that he is ready to dominate the Great Depression and help the people of America.
“The only thing that we have to fear is fear itself “said Franklin Roosevelt the thirty-second president of the United States in one of the most powerful political addresses ever delivered by an American president. President Roosevelt assumed the presidency during some of the darkest times in American history. He addressed the nation in a time of uncertainty and in a time of great fear. American Citizens were insecure about the economical situation the Unites States, as they were in the middle of the Great Depression. The Great Depression was a result of the stock market crash of 1929, also known as Black Tuesday. After the crash, profits plunged, prices dropped, and income fell. Unemployment rose to 25 percent in the United States. The nation was hungry for physical and emotional sustenance and Roosevelt's speech came at just the right time to satisfy and alleviate the minds of many Americans. Roosevelt delivered his first inaugural address to the masses that were in need of reassurance. In his Inauguration Address, Roosevelt acknowledges the faults that the government is accountable for, and illuminates the confidence he has in himself to get the country back on track. He aimed to declare war on the Great Depression and needed all the executive latitude possible in order to wage that war. By mentioning that we must not be afraid of fear Roosevelt inspired a nation that was fighting through a time of great economic and emotional hardship. In his speech Roosevelt hopes to give Americans courage to work at putting the country back on track and to earn their confidence as their newly elected leader. With the delivery of his Inaugural Address, Franklin Roosevelt attempted to pacify those wor...
Franklin D. Roosevelt’s First Inaugural Address in 1933[ Richard Polenberg, The Era of Franklin D. Roosevelt 1933-1945: A Brief History with Documents (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s Press, 2000), 39-44.] was a famous speech because it instilled new hope in the people. During the speech, President Roosevelt said, “our greatest primary task is to put people to work/ there must be a strict supervision of a banking and credits and investments, so that there will be an end to speculation with other people’s money; and there must be provision for an adequate but sound currency.” Imaginably，a number of people could not find jobs and people were worried about putting money in a bank. Roosevelt emphasized the seriousness of reducing unemployment, reinforcing reliable baking system, and distributing currency. These problems were important contexts that shaped the content of this speech.
Roosevelt was elected in 1932. His promise to America was to regain back the liberties of the people all while repairing this broken economy. His run as president came at a pivotal time because Americans were losing hope not only within themselves but within in the United States progress as well. This strategy is what FDR called The New Deal. Within this strategy were a number of programs that were designed to help Americans from the struggles of the great depression and to restore prosperity. The New Deal was a Band-Aid to the symptoms of the problem but not an actual solution, luckily it was enough to restore some sort of hope in the people. With his focus on economic recovery and economic security he was able to help some but not all. At the end of FDRs second New Deal, The Great Depression was still apparent; unemployment continued to be an issue, businesses had yet to reach their previous fortune and liberties for all were still
Roosevelt entered his first term with quite a mess to fix. The unemployment rate in 1932 was 23.3 percent and suicides had increased by nearly 10,000 than the previous years. America was in the depth of the Great Depression and in FDR’s own words. the nation needed a leader who doesn't “shrink from honesty facing conditions in our country today…leadership of frankness an vigor”. The economic situation had gotten so bad that a state of emergency was called to allow the President the room to properly address the problem. Unfortunately, Roosevelt and his Brain Trust had difficulty pin-pointing the exact cause of the depression. This miscalculation would lead to nearly a decade of political fumbles and the eventual prolonging of the depression.
Unemployment rates were at an all time high. 23.6% of people in America were unemployed during the Great Depression. President Roosevelt was elected president in 1932. Roosevelt made the American citizens feel secure about themselves when he said “The only thing we have to fear is itself” (Roosevelt “First Inaugural”). He explained what his plans were for his presidency. “Our greatest primary task is to put people to work” (Roosevelt “First Inaugural”). Roosevelt believed in the American spirit. He knew that America was s...
In the presidential election of 1932, Roosevelt appealed to many Americans a man of action, in comparison to Herbert Hoover who was viewed as a “do-nothing president” and Norman Thomas who, as the Socialist candidate, was viewed as a radical. The American people also believed as President, Roosevelt would be able to resolve the Great Depression better than Republican and former President Hoover’s laissez-faire approach. Once elected into office, Roosevelt was able to restore a lost sense of confidence in the nation. For example, in his inaugural address he promised vigorous leadership and bold action, called for discipline and cooperation from the American people, expressed his faith in democracy, and asked for divine protection and guidance. Today his famous words, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself…” are still remembered for the optimism he felt in being able to save the nation from disaster.
Immediately following Herbert Hoover in the presidency line, Mr. Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) became America’s 32nd president. This democrat, inaugurated on March 4, 1933, won the 1932 election against Hoover by a landslide. The new president made a promise to his citizens, “I pledge you, I pledge myself, a new deal for the American people.” He reassured Americans that he would change their lives. He promised to get people back to work and back in their homes (“New Deal Timeline 1).
Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, was delivered March 4, 1865. During this time, he was in the process of attempting to mend both sides of the war. Instead of giving a victory speech to the North or a blame filled speech to the South, he instead spoke to both of them, in the attempt to have war reconciliation.
34,000 people gathered around the nation’s capital to hear Abraham Lincoln give his “Second Inaugural Address”. Lincoln expressed in his address that he made his speech short because there is no time for a long one, considering the circumstances of the Civil War that they were in. His speech was only 703 words long, making it one of the shortest addresses ever (Ronald). In the “Second Inaugural Address”, Abraham Lincoln believes freedom is the ability to live life out from under the dictation of others and make choices for themselves and to do this the war had to be won and ended by the North, thus ending slavery.