Rhetorical Analysis Of Jfk Speech

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President John F. Kennedy presents a speech at Rice University Stadium in Houston, Texas on September 12, 1962. He talks about the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's plan to have humans venture onto the Moon and speaks on this from a supportive standpoint. Kennedy uses historical references, repetition, and word choices to effectively convey his support for the space program to the Moon and convince the people at the event to have faith in the project as much as he has. Kennedy begins the speech by making references to history. He mentions topics from the time of the cavemen to the invention of electricity. By doing this, it allows the audience to get an idea of what the main purpose of the speech is about. Kennedy is there to show his support for space travel, so reminding the people at the event of the numerous discoveries and inventions that have been made will open the audience's mind to new possibilities. His use of historical …show more content…

He says, "New ignorance, new problems, new dangers," explaining the effect discoveries and inventions have on the world. Despite the many positives of creating new ideas, Kennedy is transparent and explains the reality of discoveries. Not every new idea is a good one and he recognizes that; however, his words show hope and determination. His use of repetition here displays his genuine feelings toward the idea in hopes it would convince the audience to believe in the program. As he continues along through his speech, Kennedy uses repetition once again. He repeats, "First wave," meaning the beginning of a movement or idea. As he repeats that phrase, it allows the audience to think about the start of the actions he mentions, like the industrial revolutions and nuclear power. Letting the people at the event listen and think about these major life events helps them conceptualize what space travel would offer and gain their support for

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