Jfk Rhetorical Devices

There have been many problems in society over human history. Speeches have been one solution to these problems. Speakers attempt to have the audience reach a specific conclusion after hearing the speech. They do this by using rhetoric. “Rhetoric is the art of framing an argument so that it can be appreciated by an audience.” –Philip Johnson. Many speeches can be pointed at as an example of this, such as the famous “I Have a Dream” by Martin Luther King Jr. Another example that is not as well-known is John F. Kennedy’s “Civil Rights Address”. All speeches have an intended audience, it is an important part of rhetoric. In the “Civil Rights Address”, Kennedy gave the speech to the American citizens over the radio. It was intended for the ears of all inhabitants of the U.S.A., no matter their skin color of ethnic background. On the surface, the speech informs people that a change is imminent, but it also tries to convince the audience that African Americans should not be discriminated against. Kennedy does this by using the rhetoric devices ethos, pathos, and logos. First, he uses pathos, an appeal to emotion.

Word choice is another part of rhetoric, specifically purr and snarl words. Some of the purr words that were used were freedom, equal, fulfill, and opportunities. Snarl words were Negro, threaten, crisis, and oppression. Parallel Structure in this speech was the repetition of “In short” and “It ought to be possible”. Rhetoric is an important part of speech craft and will help a speaker persuade, inspire, and evoke an emotional response. Kennedy’s “Civil Rights Address” has a rating of seven out of ten. It persuaded the American people to accept people of different skin color. Inspired the American culture today, with equal opportunity of all races. Although, it did not evoke an emotional response in someone that did not live in segregated