Analyzing Rhetorical Devices In John F. Kennedy's Speech

Oziel Rios S. Nambiar English 1302. SP3 12 February 2018 Kennedy Inaugural Address Rhetorical Analysis On Friday, January of 1961, John Fitzgerald Kennedy delivered a speech to the citizens of the United States of America and the world. Kennedy made a speech that he knew would be remembered for many years to come even after his presidential term.

John F. Kennedy uses literary devices to capture the attention of the audience, sets himself equal to his audience getting their attention and support, and uses the christian religion to strike the emotions and gain the support of his audience.

The Inaugural speech by John F. Kennedy is a landmark type of speech that was given to the American populace in order to inspire confidence and to provoke them to take immediate action. His speech made extensive use of rhetorical devices in order to successfully express his goals. His stylistic devices include antithesis, parallelism, and varying structure flows in order to attract attention and to show what his service will accomplish. Kennedy details “a new generation of Americans” by contrasting old and new with his antithesis. He states, “Symbolizes an end as well as a beginning” and “signifies renewal as well as change” in order to do so. This connects the younger generation of Americans and the older generation. He unites them under one goal and one purpose by using antithesis, ignoring their differences, and prepares them for what’s there to come in the future.

In his speech Kennedy uses different rhetorical devices to unify the citizens of both the United States and the world. Kennedy was giving this speech after winning by a very small margin of votes so he was trying to unite the people of the United States and show he was the correct choice for the president. This speech was given during the Cold War so he was trying to connect the people around the whole world and establish peace. Kennedy was able to unify the people and try to establish peace while at the same time making himself seem like a very competent leader. In his speech Kennedy tries to build his credibility as a personable leader by creating ethos. Kennedy uses the words we twenty eight times, us twelve times and our twenty one times.

Delivering the speech, Kennedy expressed compassionate and hopeful words to his audience. His view of freedom is something that makes its way through peace and negotiation. Kennedy states, “Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us” (16). This is a perfect example of Kennedy’s meaning towards freedom. He wants all nations to look at the things that join them together and can relate to rather than the things that guide them away from each other.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Junior’s, speech at his inaugural address in 1961 is undeniably a masterpiece of the persuasive arts. Although the speech is short as such speeches go, and although its main persuasive device is pathos alone, the masterful skill with which Kennedy’s speech is written makes it one of the most moving and effective political speeches to date. Kennedy’s vivid use of diction and metaphor, as well as his extremely memorable syntax, are particularly strong and successful.

John F. Kennedy was known for his charming, charismatic, and relatable personality which significantly attributed to him winning the presidency in 1960. These admirable characteristics of his were easily seen in his speeches as U.S. senator and as president, in which it was apparent he not only had the charm, but also incorporated his personal values into his administration as a public servent. One speech in particular which highlights this fact is his “City Upon a Hill” speech.

Robert Kennedy’s speech was given during a campaign rally in 1968, he broke the news to a crowd of supporters that MLK had been killed. This speech was analyzed through a PDF copy of the text.

John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address On Friday, January 20, 1961 John F. Kennedy was inaugurated as 35th President of the United States. In his Inaugural Address President Kennedy delivered a speech to unite and celebrate the peaceful transition of power that stands to this day as one of the most powerful addresses in modern history. Widely considered a call to action, President Kennedy challenged the American people to move beyond the precincts of the past to make a difference to move the world into an era of peace and prosperity. His promise to the other states on the world stage was no less spectacular when he swore “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship,

John F. Kennedy discusses and analyzes on how the nation differs from the past and present day in that time period. Kennedy narrators on the division and war in the the world to appeal to the audience patriotism by using pathos and logos. In this speech President Kennedy states “to thoses who would make themselves our adversary, we offer not a pledge but a request; that both sides begin the quest for peace, before the dark power of destruction unleashed.” He uses this quote to obtain a logical appeal to the appeal to the people. Kennedy uses logos to show that he wants the nation to come together and be humble together in one peace.

On September 12, 1962, at Rice University in Houston Texas, John F. Kennedy gave a powerful speech to garner support for the funding of the space race for the USA. He stated the importance of putting a man on the moon before the end of the decade in its efforts against the Soviet Union and the expectation was met in 1969 by the astronaut Neil Armstrong. His speech forged a new path that the US was heading and inherently started the revolution of the exploration of outer space. Kennedy’s “Moon Speech” makes use of ethos and Kairos to persuade the people of America to become interested in and invest in the ongoing space race.

Rhetorical Analysis on JFK Gone to the Moon Speech The Gone to the Moon Speech was written by John F. Kennedy and announced on the day of May 25, 1961. The speech was given the title Gone to the Moon because Kennedy wanted the first man to be sent to the moon and surface the moon in achievement. It was the foundational standpoint for technology to advance. JFK uses logos, ethos, and pathos to relay his statement in a unique way to connect with the audience.

On April 4, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy was in Indianapolis for a campaign stop, when he received news that Martin Luther King was killed, causing Kennedy to write and deliver a speech regarding the assassination. This speech was succinct but not only was it about the assassination, it was also to tell the people there is still wisdom and hope in this time of turmoil. To reach this purpose, he first builds up his ethos, uses pathos to add mood and hope, and unifies the people. The combination of these elements makes it a very powerful and memorable speech. Robert F. Kennedy builds his credibility by relating his personal experience and knowledge of what the audience is feeling to the current events.

Kennedy starts off by telling us how the world and freedom is in major danger, being close to a nuclear war, telling us that it has the power to end the human species (3). The next point made is that we should “... never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate” (Kennedy 15). This means that we should negotiate to make a means with that someone not because we have to negotiate to stay safe from that someone. Kennedy then says that the goal would to have the world work together to explore problems, have a common arm control and be equal in weaponry power, and work together to unlock new sciences (16-18).

John F Kennedy was a level headed, determined and well accomplished person. During his short-lived presidency, he had to take on challenges like no other and did it with sophistication and grace. From conflicts involving other countries, like Vietnam, to the Civil Rights Movement that directly affected our own country, Kennedy continued to take each problem day by day until there was an overall improvement or resolution. It would be safe to say that he is one of the more progressive presidents our country has ever seen. David Burner’s John F. Kennedy and a New Generation was written with the sole purpose of giving an insight into Kennedys upbringing and presidency in an entirely unbiased approach.