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Rhetorical strategies in john f kennedy inagural address
J f kennedy speech rhetorical analysis
Rhetorical analysis of john kennedys inaugural speech
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John F. Kennedy uses an antimetabole in his inaugural address to bring nationalism to the heart’s of the American citizens, and bring closure to the end of his speech. In his speech, Kennedy says, “ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country” (Kennedy 2). An antimetabole is when words are repeated, but in different orders. Kennedy using an antimetabole helps to rally the people under one common goal, helping the country. The word choice allows him to tell the people what not to do. By doing this Kennedy is able to promote nationalism by bringing disdain to those that are not helping the country and pushing them to change that. Kennedy’s wording makes all listeners believe in themselves and emphasizes that
anyone and everyone has the power to take a stand and do good for the country as opposed to waiting for the country to benefit them. Kennedy also uses the word, “you”, in this quote, this makes the speech very personal. He is calling out each and every person to do their part in helping the country, and he makes it an emotional/personal statement for everyone. The fact that Kennedy makes the audience feel liable to help their country creates a pathological effect on citizens all over the United States. Finally he brings closure to the speech through the antimetabole by giving the country a common goal to unify as one. The use of this antimetabole is what especially helps to invoke nationalism in the citizens and pushes them to rally together towards a common goal of putting America on top.
John F. Kennedy was the President of the United States from 1961 to 1963. Shortly after taking over in office he gave an inspiring speech during a News Conference held on April 10, 1961, to discuss the inflation of steel prices and the impact it had on the American people.
It was on January 20th 1961 that John F Kennedy gave his inaugural address after winning the presidential race and beating future president Richard Nixon. President, John F Kennedy in his speech, The Inaugural Address, he describes his plans for growth in America. Kennedy’s purpose is unite the people of the U.S. and bring everyone together for the good cause of promoting growth in the country. He creates a very inspirational tone in order to establish a connection with the U.S. people. In his speech Kennedy really used several rhetorical strategies of persuasion to motivate and persuade the U.S. people that they made the right choice in choosing him.
Since the beginning of mankind, humans always use their skills of persuasion in order to prove a point to an audience. John F. Kennedy and William Shakespeare, though it is a 362 year difference, wrote and announced work displaying persuasion values. John F. Kennedy, in his Inauguration Speech, and Antony, a character in the William Shakespeare play Julius Caesar, uses the tools of language and persuasion in order to deliver the audience their intended reasoning. In both of the speeches, some of the tools that make these speeches effective is the tone, the rhetorical devices, and persuasive appeals.
On January 20th, 1961, John Fitzgerald Kennedy gave a speech to the nation, which encompassed a new vision for the country with a new generation. That speech was JFK’s Inaugural Address. As the new 35th president, JFK was the youngest president to enter the oval office at the age of forty-three ("Inaugural Address."). The nation was still in in the process of healing after World War II. In the eyes of the masses, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was a breath of fresh air for the American People. He was a youthful president, with his youthful image; he was able to rally the younger generations with a progressive vision. This speech was a message to the nation in which JFK outlines a new direction for The United States by securing it’s freedom, being a competitive nation in all aspects, and rallying the citizens behind the government.
He insisted that the American people should go beyond their differences and to think of “today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom” (3). Kennedy urged the people to celebrate the history of their nation and embrace the future as a united people as he declared that “we are the heirs of that first revolution” (10). A nation and people that were “tempered by war” and “disciplined by a hard and bitter peace” both recognize the importance of American history and
In a tradition dating back to George Washington, every newly-elected president gives an inaugural address at the time of his swearing into office. Many of these inaugural speeches have been given during times of war. Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address was given on March 4, 1865, near the end of the American Civil War, Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Fourth Inaugural Address was given on January 20, 1945, in the last year of World War Two, and John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address was given on January 20, 1961, during the darkest years of the Cold War. Each in their own way, in their respective inaugural addresses, spoke words of reassurance and encouragement to a nation’s people troubled by war and anxious about peace.
Hence, through various rhetorical strategies, Kennedy achieves his purpose of gaining the spectators’ favor through stressing major current events that concerned the American people. These significant concepts include American patriotism and American diplomacy, stressed when he begins four consequent paragraphs with the same recurring three words, “Let both sides.” Kennedy’s brilliant use of pathos, parallelism, antithesis, and varied syntax successfully convey his ambitions and hopes for America, as it makes Kennedy’s speech a very memorable one in history.
Ultimately, from the materials that JFK used, his medium, his rhetorical appeals, his resources and constraints, and his language, it can be concluded that John F Kennedy’s inaugural address was a fitting response to the public during that
In conclusion, this speech was structured beautifully. Its use of figurative and expressive language makes it an unforgettable speech. Kennedy does a great job of using pathos, ethos, and logos to reiterate his commitment to the American public as well as discuss expected changes. Given the state of the world at the time of his inauguration, the decision to rely so heavily on pathos and ethos was a wise one which got the job done. His use of the rhetoric triangle effectively conveys Kennedy’s plan for America to not only her citizens, but to the world.
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.
With famed verses like, “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country,” Kennedy makes the spectators feel inclined to make an impact in the world they live in. Apart from infusing a sense of obligation in the crowd, Kennedy’s greatest element in his speech was the aptitude to arouse a feeling of esteem in the audience. Kennedy constantly uses phrases about freedom and sovereignty to remind the people they still are. “The heirs of that first revolution.” This dialect portrays America as a powerful and patriarchal republic that possesses greater philanthropy than all the other nations around the world.
The use of antithesis in President Kennedy’s speech reveals his desire for change, “Symbolizing and end as well as a beginning” (Kennedy 462). His contrast between an end as well as a beginning marks his presidency by describing that He uses words such as poverty, rich, young, old, freedom, devotion, loyalty, and sacrifice. He doesn’t just focus on a certain group he focuses on reaching out to everyone and making them feel as if they belong in this dream.
By delivering his inaugural speech, President Kennedy mentioned not only the American people, but also people from all over the world including new states, old allies, and the Soviet Union. He also sought to inspire the nation after a long, divided election; to alleviate the growing fear of drawn-out cold war, and to bless the hope for peace in the nuclear age. By using the extensive use of rhetorical devices, the President successfully completed and fulfilled the goals of his speech. Therefore, after reading his inaugural speech, I strongly want to choose this speech as an analysis for my research paper. I will analyze John F. Kennedy’s inaugural speech based on the idea of social cohesion about liberty, give evidence and number how this speech has influenced thousands of people based on its eloquence and persuasiveness.
Lots of things were happening in 1960 with John F. Kennedy was to be the president of the United States of America. America is going through a period of where they are scared and worried about what is going on in the world around them. They needed a strong leader to turn them around and get them back on top. John F. Kennedy gave them just what they need to hear with his inauguration address. He spoke of helping others, working together and protecting are freedom at all cost. It was exactly what the citizens of the United States needed to hear at exact moment.
In JFK’s inaugural address he said that the world should work together in peace, America will help people that need to be helped, and that we need our weapons to show that we are strong, so we won’t need to use them. He said America will help those who need to be helped when he said, “To those people in the huts and villages of half the globe struggling to break the bonds of mass misery, we pledge our best efforts to help them help themselves…” He also stated that we need our weapons to show we are strong and that countries should work together in peace when he said, “For only when our arms are sufficient beyond doubt can we be certain beyond doubt that they will never be employed” and when he said, “Finally to those nations who would make