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John F Kennedy Inaugural Address Analysis

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John F. Kennedy Twenty years after Winston Churchill gave his now famous speech, a 43-year-old Senator from Massachusetts narrowly defeated Richard Nixon during the fall of 1960 and was elected President of the United States. That young Senator was none other than John F. Kennedy. Sharing many similarities to Churchill’s early life, John F. Kennedy was born unto a wealthy family and raised amongst privilege (Dallek, 2003). After attending Harvard, he joined the Naval reserve and eventually commanded a squadron of patrol boats in the Pacific Theater during World War II (Doyle, 2015). After the war, Kennedy continued his service to the nation by way of politics. He was first elected to represent the 11th congressional district of Massachusetts …show more content…

The US economy was struggling to rebound after back to back recessions. The burgeoning civil rights movement was vociferously opposing entrenched racist policies throughout the whole of America. Communist expansion across the globe, Soviet advances in Space and the ever-present threat of nuclear conflict produced an era of intense anxiety amongst the American population. It was upon this unforgiving geopolitical landscape that Kennedy would address the nation during his inaugural address. Kennedy understood the profound significance of his address and utilized the opportunity to orate the reality of communist expansion as well as the vision, courage and ethical considerations that would ultimately define his legacy. In his opening sentence he outlines the general theme of the speech as a progressive call to action stating: “We observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom--symbolizing an end as well as a beginning--signifying renewal as well as …show more content…

Instead of directly challenging adversaries he offers a new path of negotiation and arms control. He offers to explore areas of cooperation’s specifically outlining a vision where “both sides seek to invoke the wonders of science instead of its terrors. Together let us explore the stars, conquer the deserts, eradicate disease, tap the ocean depths and encourage the arts and commerce.” Kennedy then returns to the theme of ethics as part of his vision of the future by calling on the listener “to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle, year in and year out, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation--a struggle against the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease and war

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In the beginning of the speech he says “We observe today not a victory of party…” . He uses the term

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The bond created by using Aristotelian proofs allowed Kennedy to fulfill his goal of gaining the audience’s trust. Kennedy’s most prominent rhetoric method was seen in his word choice. His use of repetition persuaded his global audience because he shows that he has something to offer to his broader audience and that his pledges to other countries are such that one promise does not trump another. In addition, Kennedy’s speech’s impact is seen in that it lead to the creation of the Peace Corps. Kennedy was able to ignite a desire for unity and for making “God’s work [their] own”.

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John Fitzgerald Kennedy commonly called simply by his initials “JFK”, delivered the 35th presidential inauguration address on January 20th of 1961. This speech was extremely powerful and comforting that the entire nation turned an ear to hear the words of their new leader. During this time period, America was in the middle of a racial battle within their borders, fighting Communism and the Cold War across the ocean, and overall worried about the chance that another completely devastating war could break out at any time. What Kennedy’s speech did was address these issues and give the citizens of the United States hope for the future. It employed a strong appeal to ethos, pathos, and logos; which is why people continue to talk about it even to

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But being able to implement facts, statistics, and overall truth into one’s rhetoric will only make a speech like JFK’s Inaugural Address more compelling. Kennedy does this by establishing logos into his address, touching on many different aspects and mentioning many different groups of people around the world. Kennedy acknowledges foreign lands and those “struggling to break the bonds of mass misery,” (2) Kennedy establishes logos by outlining the spread of Communism from Russia to less evolved or developed countries and reminds us that “those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside,” (2), which means that adapting the foolish principles of Communism will lead to a gloomy result. Kennedy gives his Inauguration Address at around the height of the Cold War, and by recognizing this, Kennedy proposes potential healing with Russia: “Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us. Let both sides, for the first time, formulate serious and precise proposals for the inspection and control of arms – and bring the absolute power to destroy other nations under the absolute control of all nations.

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