Three Years after “Speech before Congress” was delivered by Carrie Chapman Catt a well-known leader of the women suffragist movement were women granted the right to vote and receive all rights as citizens. Catt’s speech was a major stepping stone for Congress to pass the 19th amendment. She was able to deliver her speech in a manner, which was persuasive to congress and encompassed all the rhetorical appeals. Not only did she describe benefits to enfranchising women, but she played to the patriotism of her audience to further her cause. During her speech she established herself as a woman of credibility by the eloquence she presented throughout it, also she used the logical appeal by referring historical precedence, and she created sympathy …show more content…
Catt begins her approach to her audience through the logical appeal by exampling from the nation’s historical precedence. She uses the words of the great men that built this country to what it is today. “Taxation without representation is tyranny,” American colonists first realized this when the British did not allow them government representation, yet charged them unfair taxes. (64) Catt used the same approach except with Uncle Sam a great national personality used since 1812; she states “seizing the billions of dollars paid in taxes by women to whom he refuses “representation.” (65) That would resonate with her audience because as men of congress they know what is like to be heard in the government and make decisions about their tax dollars. Women though paying billions in taxes did not see any fruits of it, because they were technically not seen as citizens. This would create the same double standard the colonists fought decades ago. Without women’s consent of government action or government authority how can they truly lead the nation, was the point Catt was trying to make when she states, “Governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.” (64) When to constitution was written the more perfect union was meant not to have these types of injustices. “How can our nation escape that logic it has never failed to follow” …show more content…
That was an obstacle Catt had to overcome while delivering this speech to the men in congress. Her approach had to create sympathy in her audience while maintaining that women can be just as calm and collected as men. During her speech Catt intended to derive her sympathy by having guilt for not enfranchising women. “You drive women of education, refinement, achievement, to beg men who cannot read for their political freedom,” at this time women were able to receive education, yet were not able to be involved in politics. (66) Women were in a position where they had to beg men with lesser education or that were not interested in their political freedom to receive information on politics. “Do you realize that such anomalies as a college president asking her janitor to give her a vote are overstraining the patience and driving women to desperation,” patience for women was wearing thin as they had to go to extremes in order to have a voice in the government. (66). “Is there a single man who can justify such an inequality of treatment, such outrageous discrimination? Not one…”
Noor Syed Bushnell, Horace: Women’s Suffrage, 1869. New York: Scribner Horace Bushnell was a priest from Hartford Connecticut. In 1869, he published “Women’s Suffrage”, a book in which he offered his view on women being allowed to vote. He embedded rhetoric based on cultural norms, religion, science, and history into his argument. Bushnell’s stance was clear: women should not be allowed to vote.
Susan B. Anthony's, "On Women's Right to Vote" speech was a historically significant oration that justified her position on women's suffrage. She establishes a proper, authoritative tone by citing government based documents, appealing to women's feelings of exclusion, and creating a logical argument through the use of many rhetorical strategies. Anthony references authoritative documents, such as the Preamble of the Constitution, to imply the abuse of the word 'we' in the document through the use of ethos. She states, "the people; not we" (Anthony 3) and, "nor yet we, the male citizens" (Anthony 3) alluding to the form of the word use " 'we' " (Anthony 2) in the Preamble of the Constitution. She indicates that the people are not a union and point out that women are just merely an irrelevant piece of the whole.
Anthony’s speech is historically significant and reached many people in America who eventually saw that women’s suffrage should be achieved. Throughout this essay, I will discuss how she was able to persuade her audiences, what types of arguments she used, and how powerful the speech proved to be in assisting in women’s suffrage. As I begin to explain these topics, I will examine how this led to an increased amount of attention on women’s rights and eventually led to the Nineteenth Amendment being created in 1920. Susan once said it was we, the people; not we, the white male citizens; nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed the union. (Barnett 42).
Before August 18th, 1920, only men could vote in the United States. One person that helped to right this wrong was Carrie Chapman Catt. In Carrie Chapman Catt’s address to Congress on women’s suffrage, she uses logos, pathos, and other rhetorical devices to convince Congress to give women more rights. One tool that helps make this speech as effective as it is is logos. She demonstrates logos when introducing the second reason as to why women’s suffrage is inevitable.
Thousands of women have screamed at the top of their lungs, clawed at the patriarchy, and tirelessly fought for their rights as citizens of the United States of America. From the beginning of mankind, women have been labeled as inferior to men not only physically, but mentally and intellectually as well. Only in 1920 did women gain the right to voice their opinions in government elections while wealthy white men received the expected right since the creation of the United States. A pioneer in women’s suffrage, Susan B. Anthony publicly spoke out against this hypocrisy in a time when women were only seen as child bearers and household keepers. Using the United State’s very own Constitution and Declaration as ammunition, Anthony wrote countless
Women want a chance. They want a chance to prove themselves, and they want a chance to prove that they are no less than men on any level. Politicians may think that the 19th amendment was enough to prove women’s equality, but the right to vote does not even begin to compare to what women have to go through on a daily basis and how hard they have to work to get recognition and thrive in today’s society. Not only did women fight for this, some men also used their power to fight for them. These very few men that fought for women’s suffrage saw the potential in women and knew that they were not any less than men, they are citizens of the United States and should be treated like they are.
Catt reminds Congress that at the beginning of our history we claimed: “‘Taxation without representation is tyranny’” (1). In addition Catt also incorporates “‘Ours is a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.’” (1). These quotes serve to remind Congress that they represent all people male or female.
Today, millions of women can implement their rights to vote in all elections in the united states of America, but this (rights) did not come easily to those women who sacrifice their lives to make this happen. In the speech “Address to Congress on Women’s Suffrage”, Catt delivered her message for women’s right from a firsthand account of what she had experienced as a woman living in the United States of America in the 19th century. She advocated for the rights of women to vote because she believes in equal rights and justice for all citizens. The speech was very successful because of the use of ethos, pathos, and logos.
The diction of Catt’s speech aids in making Catt sound credible and able to effectively connect with her audience. Her use of words like “revolution”, “Rebellion”, “government”, and “leadership” are all things that are oriented towards men. These words evoke feelings of power, authority, and coups, all things that are directed, derived from, and destroyed by men. Her use of the word “our” subconsciously makes the audience feel though they have formed a personal connection, they feel though as they are on Catt’s team and they are all working towards the same goal. The word “Our” functions as both a euphemism and an emotionally appealing word.
To urge the arrogant politicians to pass the women’s suffrage amendment to the Constitution, Chapman Catt not only induces fear and culpability in them, but the language she employs also establishes herself as a credible individual by aligning with respected figures and emulating the politicians’ style of speech. Chapman Catt establishes herself as a credible individual by aligning with respected figures. Premising from the beginning of her address, she alludes to the cause of the American revolution, and the government’s power coming “from the consent” of the people as the two “fundamental principles” that “anchor” the liberty of the United States (39-40). This aligns her with the American ideals that founded the country. Building on that premise, she continues by
In Washington, Paul became a household name in American circles. Despite how she is not a public speaker everyone wanted to know what is her suggestion on what to do. Everyone wanted to hear from Alice Paul. President William Taft did not favor women 's suffrage and that it’s clear for everyone. Taft’s speech upsets everyone based on what he said, “That women in general had to be denied the right to vote because of the possibility that the less desirable among them might actually vote while the more intelligent among them choose not to vote.”
The first thing that will appear if you log onto the United States Selective Service System’s webpage is a picture of a man accompanied with this caption: “Register: It’s what a man’s got to do. It’s quick, it’s easy, it’s the law,” (Selective Service System 2015). Why doesn’t the website have any women pictured or any words of motivation for women to register for the Selective Service? The reasoning for this is because women are not required by law to register for the Selective Service at the legal adult age of eighteen as opposed to men.
The American Revolution was a political upheaval that brought many changes to America by greatly altering the popular understanding of women’s partisan status and creating a widespread debate over the meaning of women’s rights. White women had large, essential roles in America’s victory in the American Revolution creating new opportunities for women to participate in politics and support different parties. Women were able to take advantage of these opportunities until a conservative backlash developed by 1830 that stopped any political advancement of women. In Rosemarie Zagarri’s book, Revolutionary Backlash, the author talks about the many things that played a part in causing a backlash against women in the early republic starting when women’s
In her speech she continues to say, “And it is a downright mockery to talk to women of their enjoyment of the blessings of liberty while they are denied the use of the only means of securing them provided by this democratic-republic government -- the ballot.” (Anthony,1)
Susan B. Anthony, a woman who was arrested for illegally voting in the president election of 1872, in her “On Women's Right to Vote” speech, argues that women deserve to be treated as citizens of America and be able to vote and have all the rights that white males in America have. She begins by introducing her purpose, then provides evidence of how women are citizens of America, not just males by using the preamble of the Constitution, then goes on about the how this problem has became a big problem and occurs in every home in the nation, and finally states that women deserve rights because the discrimination against them is not valid because the laws and constitutions give rights to every CITIZEN in America. Anthony purpose is to make the woman of America realize that the treatment and limitations that hold them back are not correct because they are citizens and they deserve to be treated like one. She adopts a expressive and confident tone to encourage and light the hearts of American woman. To make her speech effective, she incorporates ethos in her speech to support her claims and reasons.