John F. Kennedy's Speech On The Cuban Missile Crisis

Encouraging oneself can be considered a challenging task, and to give encouragement to an entire nation on the brink of nuclear war may seem impossible. But on October 22nd, 1962, John F. Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States, when giving a speech on the Cuban Missile Crisis, did just that. Kennedy gave hope to the American people in a time where all seemed to have been lost. He did this by first explaining the situation that was at hand, then he listed the steps that would be taken to ensure a strong defense of the nation, and last he reminded the American people of their freedom and that to keep this privilege they must never surrender. By addressing the audience in a clear and honest way and stating the events chronologically

So, to keep the nation informed and free from panic Kennedy told the nation exactly what was happening. This may not seem like the best thing to do but if he were to lie to the nation then he would only be creating more controversy and fear once they found out. He builds trust within the first sentence of the speech when he says, “This government, as promised, has maintained the closest surveillance of the Soviet military buildup on the island of Cuba.” By doing this, he immediately gains the audience's trust and lets them know what the rest of his speech will be about. Kennedy then must give the part of the speech that will frighten many citizens, when talking about the missiles stationed on Cuba he says “Each of these missiles, in short, is capable of striking Washington D.C., the Panama Canal, Cape Canaveral, Mexico City or any other city in the southeastern part of the United States, in Central America, or in the Caribbean area.” No matter how he told this shocking information to the people of the nation they would always be afraid of what may happen next. But, by being honest and knowledgeable about the situation the nation was able to trust

By explaining the situation and the events that took place chronologically, the audience could understand the situation better and listen to what he was saying without confusion. Several times Kennedy gives the exact days different things pertaining to the situation occurred. For example, he said “the Soviet government publicly stated on September 11th that, and I quote, ‘the armaments and military equipment sent to Cuba are designed exclusively for defensive purposes.” By telling the audience the dates when certain events took place, they were now aware of how rapidly this situation had been