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Essay / Rhetorical analysis of the speeches of Woodrow Wilson, Charles De Gaulle and John F. Kennedy
The speeches that will be analyzed in this article are “The world must be made safe for democracy” by Woodrow Wilson, which was a means to Wilson to justify his call for a declaration of war on Germany, then “The Flame of French Resistance” by Charles de Gaulle where de Gaulle urges the French not to give up in the face of the Germans, and finally “A New Frontier” by John F. Kennedy who Kennedy spoke of a future that would provide better housing and better transportation for a new America. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay On April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson visited a session of Congress to request a declaration of war against Germany so that the world could “be made safe for democracy.” Four days later, Congress voted to declare war, with six senators and fifty House members opposed. “It is a fearful thing,” he told Congress in his speech, “to lead this great, peaceful people into war, into the most terrible and disastrous of all wars, civilization itself "appearing to be in play." Wilson said that at the time, the war in Europe had already lasted almost three years, not to mention that it was already considered one of the conflicts with the greatest number of casualties in the world. history of humanity. By the end of the war a year and a half later, an entire generation had been killed and many countries, like France, had lost half of their men between the ages of twenty and thirty-two. Since Congress voted to declare war on Germany, four days after the speech. , this meant that Wilson had succeeded in convincing the public, Congress, to accept his request. Wilson was able to do this because he proposed different strategies in his speech to appear convincing and reliable. Woodrow Wilson uses ethos and pathos in his speech to reach the audience and successfully convince them to agree with his vision of Germany. Wilson uses ethos at the beginning of his speech when he says: "With a deep sense of the solemn and even tragic character of the step I take...the responsibility...to which I consider my constitutional duty, I advise that Congress declares the recent course. of the German imperial government is in reality nothing other than war...". Wilson says that as President of the United States, one who considers his constitutional duty to his people, advises Congress to declare war on Germany. Wilson uses his position to demonstrate credibility and engage the public. Wilson also uses pathos several times in his speech, one of which can easily be found at the end of the speech. Wilson ends his speech saying "God help her, there's nothing else she can do", Wilson says here that God will help America, Wilson uses pathos to appeal to religion and further convince his audience in him giving a feeling of protection from God. Finally, Wilson also uses anaphora to make his speech even more appealing: "We are... We are now on... We are happy... We have no selfishness...". By June 1940, it was clear that France was losing its country to the German invasion. Refusing to sign an agreement, Prime Minister Paul Reynaud was forced to resign. He is replaced by Philippe Pétain who expresses his intention to seek a capitulation agreement with Germany. Dissatisfied with this decision, General Charles de Gaulle, leader of the Free French Forces, fled to England on June 15. De Gaulle asks and gets from WinstonChurchill permission to make a speech on BBC radio. De Gaulle urged the French not to lose hope and to continue the fight against the German occupation. Charles de Gaulle, who was a veteran of the First World War and later became a general, intended to motivate and restore hope to the French people. through this speech. As De Gaulle did not agree with the idea of giving up to Germany, he told the French people to keep fighting. De Gaulle acted as an inspiration to the French resistance and successfully motivated thousands of French people around the world. De Gaulle uses pathos and logos in his speech. He uses logos when explaining that Germany is indeed stronger and is taking control of France: "It is entirely true that we have been and still are overwhelmed by enemy mechanized forces...", De Gaulle begins his speech by admitting the truth. , that the strength of France is nothing compared to that of Germany, in doing so De Gaulle develops a sense of confidence and practically tells the public that he is not going to lie to them. Then he uses pathos: “Must we abandon all hope? Is our defeat final and irremediable? To these questions, I answer – No! » . Right after stating the facts and admitting Germany's superiority, De Gaulle uses pathos to contribute to the motivation he is trying to convey. Not only that, but it also uses a metaphor that became the movement's slogan: "Whatever happens, the flame of French resistance must not and must not die", which is when De Gaulle tries to start resistance and give strength to the French. After the indifferent years under Eisenhower's presidency, Senator John Fitzgerald Kennedy offered new horizons and new hope to Americans, calling on them to join him on the new frontier. At the Democratic Convention in Los Angeles, he defeated Hubert Humphrey, Stuart Symington, Lyndon Johnson and Adlai Stevenson to win the presidential nomination. As he spoke at the acceptance ceremony, he was surrounded by his mother and sister, as well as his vanquished rivals. As the sun set, he spoke, facing west, to 80,000 Democrats at the Los Angeles Coliseum and to thirty-five million Americans watching on television. His face was tired and exhausted after a year of tension and a week of insomnia. His voice was sad and low. This reflects how much work and how much he really invested in his vision of a new frontier. John Kennedy won the election by a narrow margin over Richard Nixon and in January of the following year became the youngest and first Catholic president in U.S. history. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a custom paper now from our expert writers.Get a custom essayJohn F. Kennedy uses the three rhetorical strategies pathos, logos, and ethos. He begins his speech by quoting Winston Churchill, which is philosophical because he uses a reliable person to further emphasize his point. "As Winston Churchill said... If we open a quarrel between the present and the past, we risk losing the future", by quoting Churchill, Kennedy is trying to show the public that someone so reliable that Churchill had the same thoughts. like him. Kennedy then uses logos to explain why it is important to seek a new frontier rather than "staying in the past." "All over the world...young men are coming to power, men who are not bound by the traditions of the past, men who are not blinded by old fears..." Kennedy says here that the new merging countries,1.