Rhetorical Analysis Of Jane Addams

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Addam’s Condemnation George Washington was, naturally, renowned for his leadership of the country both during and after the Revolutionary War, and his parting words of wisdom in his Farewell Address are still taught and memorialized to this day. However, his leadership became a thing of the past, and the country strayed from his ideals and beliefs. The country became divided through political parties, had atrocious working conditions and socioeconomic splits, and became increasingly materialistic. Appalled by the country’s conditions and lack of effort to change, Jane Addams took this argument to Chicago’s Union League Club to speak out about her concern about the direction the country was heading. In her speech, Addams aims to express her …show more content…

When speaking of the “great man” who made an impact, she says that he evaluated the “moral issue” and kept his “sense of justice” consistent. Adams paints this great man as the standard of being a good person. He doesn’t succumb to personal greed or emotions and has integrity; he always chooses to do the right thing. Her choice of words such as “moral” and “justice” enforces his sense of righteousness and how, when making a mark on history, he always tries to be on the “right side.” This decision empowers her future claims and appeals to the Union League Club, an organization that promotes civic duty and social activism. She also uses patriotic diction to show how being a “great man” would benefit the whole country. Addams states that they will all have to rouse their “national consciences” and their “national pride” to make the world a better place. Tagging the word “national” to both these words clarifies that they would have to take the whole country into account when making their decisions. They would have to make sure that the effects were positive for everyone and give the citizens a reason to be proud of their

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