Analysis Of Fdr's Four Freedoms

Four Freedoms

In 1941 President Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivered a profound speech titled “Four Freedoms” during the tragic times of WWII. This speech united the American people and introduced a sense of worthiness and value in being from the United States of America. It was not until after Norman Rockwell’s paintings, inspired by the Four Freedoms, were created that the “rhetorical genius” (Rockwell’s four freedoms) of Roosevelt’s words were truly recognized. Citizens understood their civic duty to their country and completely changed everything from their normal daily lives to assist in the strengthening of democracy so they could keep their freedom. This speech quite literally reunited the United States and ultimately ensured a better future with greater possibilities for the people.

The man who mustered up every ounce of patriotism he had and poured his soul into this speech is Franklin Delano Roosevelt (see fig. 1). Roosevelt was raised with little money, yet, he had a fair childhood. His parent’s raised him with the beliefs that “a gentleman cares for the poor, does not

Essentially, in WWII Germany wanted power. The leader of the new cause was Adolf Hitler and he blamed many different races and groups of people for the ‘downfall’ of Germany’s greatness. His rage and influence became so strong he gathered soldiers, The Nazis, and began oppressing anyone who stood in his way. The one important skill that both Roosevelt and Hitler had in common, that brought both of them to such an influential level, was their skill at public speaking. Hitler spoke his way into peoples’ minds and brought war upon the world. He wanted to be the one and only dictator of all the land, he wanted to destroy the idea of democracy. Roosevelt would not let anybody take away peoples’ rights, so he used his words, specifically the Four Freedoms speech, to fight for not only himself, but for the rights of