Pearl Harbor Speech Rhetorical Analysis Essay

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. Roosevelt impassions support for the war effort through his use of emotional diction through his declaration of war. He uses certain phrases to alienate the Japanese from the American people and show them as an enemy of the American people.Throughout his speech he uses phrases like “this form of

Roosevelt effectively uses rhetorical techniques to ensure trust with his audience through the use of emotional diction, and repetition to appeal to his audience and help rally support for the war effort. Roosevelt’s speech inflamed the passions of the American people to the point that the day after Roosevelt’s Pearl Harbor speech Congress declared war on Japan with the support of the majority of the American people. His mastery of rhetorical devices and language helped to get the U.S. on board to enter World War II which eventually helped to turn the tide of the war in the favor of the Allied forces. With his speech, Roosevelt was able to provide comfort to the U.S. people and inspire them to enter the war which makes his declaration of war one of the most powerful in