Rhetorical Analysis Of Patrick Henry Persuasive Speech

Emotion in Motion March 23rd, 1775, this monumental day will forever be marked by Patrick Henry’s “Speech to the Virginia Convention”. This speech entailed a rally cry, a call to encourage the colonists to participate in a war to save their home land from Britain and their taxes without representation. During this time period was an enlightenment era based around science, religion was set on a back burner.

Back in the late 1700’s and the early 1800’s young America was being attacked by Britain but the colonists were too afraid to do anything. The colonies had declared freedom from Britain but America was not free yet. One man was able to persuade the colonists with a speech. That speech was written by Thomas Paine and it was titled “Crisis No 1”; Paine used pathos to persuade the colonists to go to war by appealing to their emotions with loaded words; an example of these loaded words is God.

In 1775, America was under the control of Great Britain. Many people were oblivious to the fact that we were under control, while other people thought it was time to break free and gain independence. Among these people was Patrick Henry, who was a huge advocate for colonial independence. In his speech at the Virginia convention, Patrick Henry argues to forcefully persuade the audience to go to war with Great Britain and pushes for the use of military action by using figurative language, rhetorical devices, and organization, and by confronting them with their current position of danger in the face of the inevitable British invasion.

How Did Henry Many wonder how Patrick Henry was able to convince so many unsupporting colonists. At the third Virginia convention Patrick Henry was outnumbered by people who did not want to fight the British. He needed to use a perfect persuasive technique. Pathos was the most effective technique because the colonists were emotionally excited to fight, they in fact, did not want to fight the British until Henry’s persuasive speech, and the colonists were finally calling themselves American because of the speech.

“It is only in this way that we can hope to arrive at truth, and fulfill the great responsibility which we hold to god and our country” (Henry) during the time the speech was written, the colonist were trying to be separate from Britain. People wanted out of British laws, but had fear of fighting war. The colonist struggled with no money for an army nor the support to create one. In Patrick Henry’s, “Speech to Virginia convention ” he primarily used pathos to persuade the audience to stand up and fight.

The colonies also called for a continental congress, in the first meeting they made decisions basically defending themselves from anything Britain could possibly throw at them: military preparations in case the British in Boston chose to attack, boycotting in hopes of abolishing trade with Great Britain, rejecting a colonial union under British control, the basically wanted nothing to do with Great Britain because Britain abused their power over the colonists to begin with. The Battle of Lexington and Concord was the official turning point for the colonists, they had colonists prepared with guns, minutemen, that were ready to fight at a seconds notice and they kept close eyes on Boston just in case the British chose to attack. William Dawes and Paul Revere were keeping watch for any British movement. When the British came the colonists were ready and by the end of the battle the British had lost many of their troops in this revolutionary war. This war was definitely the beginning of the fight for independence for the colonists, thy showed the British that they could stand up for themselves and that they deserved better treatment.

Henry uses loaded words and angry arguments to plant a deep dislike for Great Britain in his audience. Such is shown when he says, “We have petitioned; we have remonstrated… and we have implored its interposition to arrest the

I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and to the God of Hosts is all that is left us!” What patrick wanted to describe in his speech was repetition. Patrick henry wanted the delegates to fight against the rule of Britain with enough emotion and constantly repeating the words he was trying to persuade them, but one of his major points to convince the colonist with the tone and speech of repetition. Patrick henry used repetition and pathos to emphasize a point with emotional expression, convincing the delegates wasn't easy.

Common sense struck a resounding chord within the American conscience, as it was hugely influential and convinced many american colonists that the time had finally come to break away from british rule. In fact, the timing couldn’t have been better, only a few days before its release, King george delivered his opening speech to parliament calling for suppression of the american rebellion. If the American revolution were to succeed , the common people( farmers, merchants, soldiers,etc,) had to understand its causes, and common sense provided a comprehensible defence of the revolution. Paine began by criticizing ruler who violated, rather than that protected, the rights of their citizens, which led to the first principal theme, the evils of king george III, who Paine denounced as the royal brute of britain, he charged that the British Monarch was directly responsible for many injustices inflicted on the colonies , an argument Thomas jefferson would further develop in the declaration of independence. He hoped the accusations would provide an ideological justification against King George III that would gain support from colonists over anger issues such as the imposition of taxes without consent and suspension of trial by jury or the hiring of mercenaries.

This is the point where things begin to heat up and rhetoric comes into play. Angry that Jefferson has decided to run against him, Adams uses the newspaper to start a smear campaign against Jefferson. He does this with help from ethos, the "persuasion through the audience 's perception of the speaker", (Austin 664) and pathos, the “appeals to emotion.” (Austin 177) Because Adams is president people respect him and what he says, they take him on his word. Adams uses his credibility as president to manipulate the public into thinking terrible things about Jefferson.

With many losses to secure a stronghold in the provincial Congress the Patriot cause has been at a disadvantage. The Second Session of the Provincial Congress the petition to re-open the courts passed however it is under British rule. The very first act to not be in favor or help the patriot cause. Opening the courts under British rule will make passing laws and creating a new system more difficult. Americans wanting freedom from the British rule must take even more dangerous actions by way of mobs and a large amount of sacrifice the possibility of sending our men and sons to war to enable the Patriots a victory over his Majesty’s tyrannical ways.

If I had to choose a side, it would be Hamilton. I strongly believe he seen that America needed a government to rule over people, but the government also needed to work for the people. Although America has altered the government and the way it runs I feel he had the best sense of what the future of America looked like. Jefferson also did amazing thing for this country as well such as fighting for free public education, separation of church and state, the freedom of press, and to end all slavery. Jefferson did not help wright the Constitution directly, because he was out of the country.

Washington’s alarm and disapproval was so great that the events of Shay’s Rebellion convinced him to come out of retirement. Other elite figures saw Shay’s Rebellion in a similar light to Washington’s opinion. They saw it as a call for a stronger central government. Thomas Jefferson was one of the few elite figures who did not object to Shay’s Rebellion saying “I hold it that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing.” Overall, Washington and other elite figures did not support Shay’s Rebellion.

Peace talks after peace talks and nothing seemed to fix the needs of the coalitions that were fighting. It was not till the constant threatening and ultimately acting of Unrestricted U-boat Warfare of the Germans that thrusted the Americans into war. One of the best quotes in the entire book that the authors using was from the declaration of war by President Wilson, after he declared war and stated that the reason that the United States was going to war to make the “world be must be made safe for democracy”. After the Congress applauded Wilson’s message, he stated to his secretary, “My message today was a message of death for our young men. How strange it seems to applaud that.”

Those who were sympathetic to revolutionary causes were unable to act upon their convictions because of the lack of a navy in the 13 colonies. Another effect that the British Navy had on the populous of Nova Scotia was the utilisation of impressment – press gangs forced men to join the navy with little to no forewarning. Although impressment had a negative impact on public opinion of Great Britain, the press removed a portion of