ipl-logo

How Does Kennedy Use Alliteration In Jfk Inaugural Address

507 Words3 Pages

The inaugural address of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, better known simply as JFK, is often held as one of the greatest examples of his skill as an orator. In his inaugural address, President Kennedy calls on the American people as well as the people and powers of the world to embrace in a spirit of cooperation the problems which confronted the world in the 1960’s. In his inaugural address, President Kennedy makes extensive use of three rhetorical devices— antithesis, alliteration, and simplicity— to convey to the American people and to the world the goals he hoped to accomplish during his presidency. President Kennedy uses the rhetorical device of antithesis heavily in his inaugural address. He mainly uses antithesis to contrast the dark shadow under which the world is cloaked because of the Cold War and the hope which his new administration seeks to offer. One of the best examples of President Kennedy’s use of antithesis can be found in arguably the most famous line of his inaugural address, "And so, my fellow Americans; ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country,”(Kennedy 3). President Kennedy effectively uses antithesis to express his …show more content…

President Kennedy’s use of alliteration cements his words and phrases in the mind of his audience and further helps them to stay attuned to his speech. In one line from his speech Kennedy uses alliteration a total of four times: “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty,” (Kennedy 1). In this example of alliteration, Kennedy conveys to his audience that his administration, and the nation, will remain strong and free in the face on any

Show More
Related

What Is The Ethos In John F Kennedy Steel Speech

639 Words | 3 Pages

On April 10, 1962, President John F. Kennedy delivered a speech in which he attacked steel companies for raising the price of steel by three and a half percent. America had just climbed out of a recession, and President Kennedy believed that having stable prices and wages would help America recover. President Kennedy uses alliteration, anaphora, repetition, logos, and ethos to vilify steel corporations for their abuse of power and questionable ethics. John F. Kennedy uses alliteration to commence his speech. He repeats words that start with the letter “s”: “simultaneous… States Steel… steel … steel…”

Read More

Rhetorical Analysis Of Jfk Speech

639 Words | 3 Pages

This antithesis serves to create comparisons between what has come before Kennedy in Truman and Eisenhower, as well as to provide hope and new direction for the incumbent presidency. In this case, Kennedy's language

Read More

Rhetorical Analysis Of Jfk Inaugural Address

1295 Words | 6 Pages

In a time where many countries of the world were unsettled and feared another atomic bomb explosion, President John F. Kennedy was sworn into office on January 20, 1961 on a cold winter afternoon. He then proceeded to give an inaugural address that would last through the ages and inspire people not only in America, but also people around the world to unite together and achieve peace. His speech was eloquent and smooth, because of his use of many rhetorical strategies. He uses diction, appeals, parallelism and other literary devices all throughout the speech. President Kennedy wise use of diction greatly helped him appeal to the audiences.

Read More

JFK Inaugural Address

871 Words | 4 Pages

Top 100 Rhetorical Speeches: John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address In 1945, World War Two ended with the unconditional surrender of the Japanese Empire. In 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed by ten European nations, the United States of America, and Canada in order to organize a united front against the Soviet threat. In 1955, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Albania, Bulgaria, and the Soviet Union signed the Warsaw Pact as a communist counter to the capitalist NATO. In 1961, in the midst of a heated cold war, John Fitzgerald Kennedy (JFK) stood in front of the nation and delivered his inaugural address as the 35th president of the United States of America (USA).

Read More

How Did Kennedy Use Anaphoras In Jfk Inaugural Address

1428 Words | 6 Pages

Kennedy’s first use of anaphora serves to surprise the audience and makes them think about the consequences of humans having “the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life” (“Transcript”). Had Kennedy not stated the latter part of the sentence, people would not have pondered about the perilous world we live in. Kennedy wants the citizens to realize that these “instruments of war” (“Transcript”) are a grave danger to us and that people must fight to eliminate them to protect themselves, their family, and their country—the United States. Furthermore, President Kennedy uses anaphoras to grab the reader’s attention and makes them think about what he is saying and why he is saying it. For example, Kennedy repeats the phrase “Let both sides” (“Transcript”) multiple times in order to emphasize his belief that it is in the best interest of the world to maintain peace.

Read More

Rhetorical Analysis Of Jfk Inaugural Address

619 Words | 3 Pages

For my rhetorical analysis, I will be analyzing Inaugural Address, January 20, 1961, by John. F. Kennedy. Kennedy was trying to rally all of America in the quest for freedom, as well as getting other nations to rally in the cause. In one moment in Kennedy’s speech he had said ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country”, which was to let people know that if they wanted to make a change, they had to get involved. Kennedy also emphasizes that his victory of presidency is a “celebration of freedom” that symbolizes the end of old, and the start of new change.

Read More

John F Kennedy's Ethos In Jfk Inaugural Address

992 Words | 4 Pages

President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, gave his inaugural address on Friday, January 20, 1961. President Kennedy addressed all people in the world in his speech, but his primary audience was American citizens. The purpose of Kennedy’s speech was to raise confidence within Americans that they had elected the best president, and also to form unity. He encouraged countries, states, and different political parties to unite for the greater good. President Kennedy was able to convince his audience that he could be trusted to help them create unity through his outstanding use of ethos and his use of allness, alliteration, consonance, and assonance.

Read More

Rhetorical Devices In The Inaugural Speech By John F. Kennedy

570 Words | 3 Pages

The Inaugural speech by John F. Kennedy is a landmark type of speech that was given to the American populace in order to inspire confidence and to provoke them to take immediate action. His speech made extensive use of rhetorical devices in order to successfully express his goals. His stylistic devices include antithesis, parallelism, and varying structure flows in order to attract attention and to show what his service will accomplish. Kennedy details “a new generation of Americans” by contrasting old and new with his antithesis. He states, “Symbolizes an end as well as a beginning” and “signifies renewal as well as change” in order to do so.

Read More

Rhetorical Analysis: Kennedy's Inaugural Speech

1141 Words | 5 Pages

In fact, Kennedy accomplished his goal and is still remembered today, as the best speech ever written and delivered. Kennedy presents his speech with strong Aristotelian appeals of ethos, pathos and the stylistic devices of alliteration and antithesis. Kennedy accomplished what every speaker strives for and surpassed it by capturing the hearts of the audience and inspiring the people’s trust. Ethos is a very important rhetorical device in speeches because it establishes a sense of credibility and trustworthiness with the audience. Ethos permits the audience to feel a sense of trust that is missing in some people’s speeches.

Read More

Rhetorical Devices In Jfk Inaugural Address

950 Words | 4 Pages

In his inaugural speech on January 20, 1961, John F. Kennedy steps forward to the podium and, in front of millions of people, delivers a very motivational, uplifting but, serious speech. After taking the oath to become the 35th president of the United States of America, Kennedy proceeds to talk to the citizens of America as he outlines the programs of the future, as well as arouses a sense of security and a spirit of idealism. With the use of many rhetorical devices, pathos and very simple language, John F. Kennedy was able to successfully deliver his message, not just to America, but to the whole world. After analyzing Kennedy’s speech, the first thing that really stands out is Kennedy’s use of rhetorical devices, but more specifically,

Read More

Jfk Inaugural Address Analysis Essay

807 Words | 4 Pages

With this tension in mind, Kennedy sought to unite the divided country and reinvigorate patriotism in the new generation of Americans. He accomplished this task through using diction, rhetorical tropes, and modes of persuasion in his inaugural address when he took the office. Despite his young age, Kennedy confidently takes the presidential office by using archaic and abstract diction in his inaugural address. Wanting to assure his country that he is a leader who his country can trust, Kennedy implements words such as “asunder”, “forebears”, and “anew” to set a formal and old-fashioned tone to

Read More

Ethos And Logos In John F Kennedy's Speech

587 Words | 3 Pages

As President Kennedy enters office he gives an speech on the celebration of freedom; symbolizing an end, as well as a beginning of a new nation. Kennedy rises for the opportunity for persuasion after his inauguration has been addressed and he scarcely beats nixon. President Kennedy uses his authority for persuasion to bring the american people together under his power. The president uses the experience of war,poverty,and the desire for peace to develop an emotional appeal between the U.S and the world population. In this speech Kennedy uses ethos,pathos,logos,as well as other rhetorical devices to convince the audience.

Read More

John F Kennedy Antithesis In Jfk Inaugural Address

473 Words | 2 Pages

In 1961, during the Cold War, John F. Kennedy addressed not only America, but all nations in his inaugural address. As the 35th president to be sworn into office, Kennedy was the first Catholic and youngest president to be elected. When giving his speech, he provided his audience with reassurance for the future to come, even with so much change. Throughout his speech, Kennedy relies on the use of antithesis to provide a sense of unity to the public. By strategically depending on antithesis during his inaugural address, John F. Kennedy was able to bring his audience together by emphasizing the importance of unification between all.

Read More

Logos And Pathos In Jfk's Speech

580 Words | 3 Pages

His diction is very inclusive; he commences his speech with several uses of the words ‘we’ and ‘our’, which makes way for inclusivity. JFK is blurring the distinction between citizen and superior governor by including the people in his proclamation. While describing the hardships and challenges that the country is facing, Kennedy mentions how imperative the occasion is on a global level; in the midst of the Cold War, he reminds his audience of the importance of uniting. Through the use of the lexical field of danger — words such as: ‘defiance’, ‘serious’, ‘risk’, and ‘sacrifice’ — he creates a feeling of tension and urgency, and engages his audience to the concern. To conclude his speech, the President mentions self-guilt on the part of the country on how they had not displayed the “sense of business responsibility” that they should have, a rhetorical strategy that approximates the audience to the government.

Read More

Anaphora In Jfk Inaugural Address

553 Words | 3 Pages

He used rhetorical devices such as anaphora, parallel structure, and rhetorical questions to appeal to the listener and future reader’s sense of pathos. In Kennedy’s address to the nation, he used anaphora to trigger an emotional response from the listener. He gives the listener a sense of safety under his control, as he wants to “Let us begin anew--remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear.

Read More

More about How Does Kennedy Use Alliteration In Jfk Inaugural Address

Open Document