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Pearl Harbor Speech Rhetorical Devices

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On the mournful day of December 8th, 1941, Franklin D. Roosevelt gave a speech to the nation informing them about the tragic attack by the empire of Japan on Pearl Harbor. The attacked occurred on the previous day before his speech, and he knew no matter what he had to say to the nation, it wouldn’t help. By waiting a day, he hoped it would have a greater impact on the people as a whole. Compared to other very popular speeches throughout history, this one is fairly short, but gets directly to the point. By doing this, he believed it would make everyone more engaged while also having more of a dramatic effect. The speech unleashed strong feelings that related directly to the audience helping capture their attention. This made it feel as if it was not just a response from the President but instead, a statement on behalf on the entire American people recovering from such a great trauma. The purpose was to inform the nation that the United States will respond to Japan’s surprise assault. Instead of discussing all the damage and loss …show more content…

The rhetorical device anaphora, is used. “Last night, Japanese forces attacked…” and “...Our people, our territory, and our interests...” When he uses anaphora it allows him to slow down the pace to draw more attention to what he’s about to convey. Another rhetorical device used more than once throughout the speech is alliteration. “As Commander in Chief of…” and “...Launched an attack against Malaya.” Alliteration is used to draw attention to the phrase and is often used for emphasis. One more rhetorical device used multiple times in his talk is personification. “The facts of yesterday and today speak for themselves” and “...A date which will live in infamy.” Both of these examples from the speech have personification because they give human abilities to a non human being or an abstract

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Patrick Henry writes his Speech to the Second Virginia Convention to convince the delegates that war is necessary to escape the unjust rule of Great Britain. Henry strategically uses his words and questions to illuminate the situation the way he sees it. Henry’s strategic word usage includes rhetorical devices such as repetition, figurative language, and rhetorical questions. In order to emphasize the importance of his experience, Henry uses repetition.

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The Best use of Rhetoric The Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation and the Address to Congress on Women’s Suffrage are both great examples of ethos, pathos, and logos. They are both political messages created to not only rely on facts but to strike emotion in the hearts of the audience, whoever they may be. In the Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation speech given by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on December 8, 1941, in response to one of the most tragic days in U.S. history, to help rally the people of the United States of America to the realization of war between the Japanese and American forces. The Address to Congress on Women’s Suffrage was given by Carrie Chapman Catt to spark a revolt and spur up emotion of great pride in women of all nature to take a stand fight for what is right.

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Part of this ricochet was FDR’s Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation. This speech was played to millions due to radios recently being readily available to the public and because of this, FDR’s speech would have a substantial impact on the events following Pearl Harbor. As a result of the crisis, FDR’s speech was made. Even though the speech contains some fallacies it remains effective in its use of rhetorical appeals, logos, pathos, and ethos to influence the audience.

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On December 8th, 1941 Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivered a speech to the House of Representatives, Members of the Senate, the House Speaker, to the Vice President, and to the American people. Franklin spoke of the incident of the attack on Pearl Harbor the day after it occurred. Mr. Roosevelt was stern and concise. He spoke on the occasion of tragedy to inform the House and the American people what the Japanese have done.

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December 7th, 1941 is a day changed the lives of all Americans. It is the day Japan deliberately attacked the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii killing many U.S. soldiers and destroying a lot of the U.S. naval fleet. This day which turned the tide of World War II, up until this point the U.S. had not chosen to intervene in the conflict overseas, but Japan’s attack had given the U.S. a reason to enter the fight. This speech given by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on December 8th, 1941 was his own passionate plea to the U.S. government and people to support the U.S. entering the war and fighting back against the tyranny occurring overseas. President Franklin D. Roosevelt effectively appeals to the emotions of the U.S. population by establishing trust with his audience through the use of emotional diction, and repetition which allow him to rally support for the war effort.

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knowledge with regards to the whereabouts of this attack, furthering the argument that the attack was a genuine surprise. American intelligence was unable to speculate or guess the Japanese nation’s intention (source B). This statement is supported by the fact that Japan had meticulously planned the attack, taking various precautionary measures to safeguard the security of their plan (source A). The United States would have found it tremendously difficult to completely decipher the Japanese plan. The messages that were recovered by American intelligence gave no indication that there would be an, “outbreak of hostilities” (Source B).

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I am an American citizen and if I were listening to FDR’s speech it would affect me strongly. When FDR read his speech, he explained that the Empire of Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor. Right away we knew we might be in grave danger. The President then went on to say how we were “at peace with that nation,” and that we did not expect Japan to do this. Before the attack, both countries were not friendly with each other but still tried to not cause any trouble.

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Considering the state that the country was in after the attacks, the presentation of this speech may have seemed an almost necessary thing to do for the president. However, the use of rhetoric goes above and beyond the basic presidential speech, it enables a connection with the American people on a personal level. Overall, we will never forget the events of that day, but we will especially remember how we pulled together as a nation, and how President Bush’s speech aided that feeling of

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He declares, “Last night, Japanese forces attacked Hong Kong. Last night, Japanese forces attacked Guam. Last night, Japanese forces attacked the Philippine Islands” (Roosevelt). By repeating “last night, Japanese forces attacked” then listing a place, he creates tension in the minds of the congressmen. They comprehend the amount of damage Japan inflicted upon multiple territories and they comprehend that their enemy has enough power to kill thousands.

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Rhetorical devices is used significantly through both text, Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation, and A Fable for Tomorrow. Both text use ethos, pathos, and logos, but in different forms, and techniques. Which affects the effectiveness of the tone, and feeling of each text. Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation, uses more ethos, facts and credibility. A Fable for Tomorrow, uses more pathos, appeals to emotion.

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The Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation by Franklin Delano Roosevelt was delivered on December 8, 1941 in Washington, D.C., a day after one of America’s largest tragedies. The bombing of Pearl Harbor is an event that is unforgettable and President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s speech in response to this shocking attack is one of the most significant speeches of all time. The significance of the speech is the fact that America joined into the fighting of World War II, something the Americans didn’t want to do at first. This speech has a stark resemblance to the speech George W. Bush gave after the terrorist attacks of The Twin Towers in New York City, an equally shocking event. FDR’s use of ethos, logos, and pathos was extremely effective in spurring

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He also wrote rhetorical devices in his speech. He states “that is why the future if the American Republic is today in serious danger. That is why this Annual Message to the Congress is unique in our history. That is why every member of the Executive Branch and every member of the Congress

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Franklin Roosevelt uses pathos, ethos and logos all throughout his speech. “December 7th 1941- A date that will live in infamy.” This quote will forever be in the minds of Americans. The bombing of the Pearl Harbor is an event no one can forget and neither is Franklin Roosevelt’s speech. It was this that brought American into World War Two and changed history.

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In conclusion from both events of Pearl Harbor and 9/11, we have learned that we still stood strong as a nation. We never gave up and never will. Both presidents during each event gave a very respectable speech. We can see from each speech that there were different vibes. Roosevelt believed in our arm forces would get the job done.

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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.

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