On September 23, 1952, Richard Nixon gave his now-famous "Checkers" speech during the presidential campaign. Richard Nixon in the speech is not very convincing in his thesis that he is innocent of accusations of financial fraud because he tends to have weak logos, appeal to emotion which redirects peoples’ thinking, and use poisoning the well. The speech is a great illustration of a persuasive work that uses a variety of rhetorical strategies to sway the feelings and opinions of the audience. This essay will go over Nixon’s speech that he gave and how he uses his persuasive strategies. It will also go over how he tries to sway his audience and the motivation behind it. "My fellow Americans, I come before you today as a contender for the Vice …show more content…
For example, he claims, "Now, that's what we have done. That's what we're going to continue to do"(Nixon 212). You can see what Nixon is trying to emphasize the whole time by using “that’s what” so often. Nixon also appeals to the audience’s emotions. This fallacy that is being used is begging the question. He is making a claim here with no evidence or justification. Nixon's use of rhetorical tactics is also demonstrated when he uses the question: "Well, what would you expect me to do, an act of a coward?"(Nixon 213). Nixon is trying to show himself as a leader and having a lot of courage. The fallacy he is using appeals to the audience's emotions. He is shaming the people that are questioning his actions. He is making them feel like they have called him a coward without doing anything. Nixon also employs logical fallacies in his speech, such as the use of tradition when he says, "As I say, we didn't own a car until I was Vice President"(Nixon 214). He is trying to say how he has been poor just like most people have. He is trying to sound like he understands but he is using a poor example. He is using the fallacy again appealing to pity. The use of material things in an argument is just