Rhetoric is used in many different ways and in many different places. When using rhetoric a certain type of language is being used to persuade the audience to do something or believe in something. Martin Luther King uses many different types of rhetoric in “I have a dream” to persuade people to stand with him in fighting against discrimination of another race. Elie Wiesel uses rhetoric in “Keep Memory Alive” to persuade his audience to not be detached from the world and what is going on in it. King uses many rhetorical devices whereas Wiesel uses very few.
Speeches are used to commemorate points of history, and inform the general public of the product of their history but what makes a speech so impacting on it’s audience? Rhetorical devices give speeches and works of literature a way that can convey feelings or ideas to a viewer. When addressing during times of war or chaos, people such as Ronald Reagan, Abraham Lincoln, and Winston Churchill used these terms to better connect with their audience. Without these tools of the english language, dialogue and literature would be all the more dull and unappealing. However, with these useful instruments, writers and speakers can better communicate through some of the many rhetorical devices.
December 7th 1941- A date that will live in infamy. ” This is the first line of one of the most famous speeches given in American history. This speech, given by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt declared America’s intention to enter into World War Two.
One of the best ways a speaker can use to communicate his or her message is by using rhetorical appeals, President Roosevelt used pathos to be successful with his purpose. He used pathos because he wanted to make his audience get emotional to the event that had just happened, therefore his audience would listen carefully to understand the message that President Roosevelt was about to communicate. For example, president Roosevelt said, “The attack yesterday on the Hawaiian islands has caused severe damage to American naval and military forces. Very many American lives have been lost”. Based on this evidence, President Roosevelt intentions on including this not only had the purpose of informing his audience about the pass event, the attack by
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself,” (Roosevelt 3). On March 4, 1933 on the east side of the White House capitol, Franklin Roosevelt was inaugurated as the 32nd president of the United States. This address began the 1st of his 4 memorable and effective terms. Roosevelt ran for, and achieved various seats on the political ladder and climbed to the top becoming the president of the United States of America. Through the Great Depression and bombing of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Roosevelt stuck to business and made decisions that shaped today’s beloved United States.
The rhetorical tradition is defined as the language that is being used to maintain social groups. It is the way that the speaker uses and manipulates language in order to persuade an audience. Rhetoric, in this context, is the skillful use of language and communication techniques to persuade, inform, entertain, or otherwise influence an audience. “They are tools for persuading others to a particular point of view and are often used in writing and advertising to sway the audience” (Park, 2022).
In President Bush’s address to the nation, he uses many rhetorical devices. A rhetorical device is a literary device that is used to persuade the audience to support the argument made. Bush’s address uses Ethos, Logos, and Pathos. They were invented and studied by the famous greek philosopher Aristotle. Ethos appeals to credibility, Logos appeals to logic or reason, and Pathos appeals to the audience’s feelings.
What makes a speech effective? Using rhetoric, a person can appeal to others emotion and logic to persuade a person into doing a desired action. They can encourage a person into success or they can discourage a person into wanting to prove others wrong. The two speeches that will be discussed in this paper will be from Remember the Titans Gettysburg Speech and Glory Road Final game speech. The Gettysburg speech was made in the middle of movie.
Last but not least, Logos is referring to an appeal to logic, by reasoning. The logo technique Hitler applied in his speeches was the “either-or” fallacy, which is known as a false dilemma that is logically fallacious. It happens under a circumstance in which a person makes a statement that presents only two possible options, where there are actually more than these two. This type of fallacy is often made by someone attempting to persuade someone else into believing that only two options exist. Hitler used this appeal to persuade the Germans that although some actions or behaviours were unethical, it was the only option, such as what Hitler claimed “Either the German people annihilate the Jews or the Jews will enslave them.”
This is a day when all Americans from every walk of life unite in our resolve for justice and peace.” Those are the inspiring words of president George W. Bush in his 9/11 address after the horrific terrorist attacks on the American citizens. The address was given on 9/11/01, and Bush was assuring the American people that something is being done about the attacks and that they were not left unnoticed. Bush’s address was highly effective even though it relied predominantly on the aid of ethos and pathos, and logos was primarily overlooked.
Like most famous speeches the speakers main goal is to persuade. When trying to persuade or impress someone you are considered a rhetorician. When I think of a great rhetorician that is very notable and had great success in his persuasion. I think of former president Ronald Reagan. Particularly in his speech “Tear Down This Wall” performed June 12, 1987 at the Brandenburg gate in West Berlin.
In January, 1933 Adolf Hitler came into power as chancellor of Germany and began his plan for “purification” of the human race. Although his beliefs were wrong, he was amazing leader. Hitler convinced thousands maybe even millions of people to follow him even if they didn’t completely agree with his beliefs. The main reason Hitler was such a persuasive leader was because of his use of logos, convincing people that his ideas were only logical, ethos, making people follow him because they thought it was their duty to do so, and pathos, making people feel emotional toward what he was doing. Hitler used Logos to persuade his followers that it is only logical to follow him and carry out his commands.
Furthermore past leaders have used rhetoric in their quest for power. Rhetoric is defined as “The art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing”(Oxford dictionary). Orators and compelling leaders use rhetoric to influence their audience. Marc Antony in “The tragedy of Julius Caesar” uses rhetoric beautifully to sway the Romans from Brutus’s side to his. “You all did see that on the Lupercal.
Rhetoric is a way of speaking in a persuasive way to create an impact on the audience or have them think the same way as the speaker. The three main strategies of rhetoric speech is ethos, pathos, and logos. Ethos meaning the speaker is dwelling upon themselves, pathos meaning the speaker is using imagination to create emotion, and logos meaning facts and logic is used by the speaker to persuade the audience. Socrates used logos in a way that helped him exhibit an effective speech to prove which type of knowledge is worth knowing. In spite of this claim, Socrates was truly only showing the court that he really did not know much more than his name.
These devices create a speech that is clear to the audience, relatable to a wide variety of people, and develop strong pathos. It is because of his successful and abundant use of rhetoric that Obama’s speech turned him from an Illinois Senator into a rising star with a presidential
