A Rhetorical Analysis Of Pericles's Speech

Pericles, the author of the speech, was a general of Athens in the fifth century BCE. Often regarded as the greatest ruler of Athens and even all of Greece, Pericles fostered the famous democracy of Greece and supervised countless theater, statue, and infrastructure building projects. However, the majority of his rule occurred during the initial crumbling of Greece–the Peloponnesian War. In this deadly conflict between the city states of Athens and Sparta, both militaries fought for the title of the overarching ruler of the Mediterranean. Pericles gave this legendary speech after a major loss with the Spartans, in combination with funerals honoring the dead, hence the speech’s title. The text itself was recorded by the Greek historian Thucydides, providing priceless information about the mindset and rhetorical techniques present at the time of Pericles.

Center stage is the prized government of Athens, in which all men (freed men, not slaves or women) participate in community gatherings to make crucial political decisions. Pericles raves of democracy’s equal opportunity for the entire city state. In comparison to Sparta, the General notes that his home puts the law of the land in the hands of many rather than few, thus placing Athens’ government ahead of Spartan’s Council of Elders. Pericles targets his military next. He describes it to be a force of love, compassion, and bravery, something his rival does not possess. He adds that while Sparta trains its boys at the age of five, the Athenian army is still superior since its men have a solid foundation in education, along with the knowledge that they have equality at home. Pericles wastes no breath relaying the ripe quality of Athens and its people, claiming that it alone should unite Greece under its