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Rhetorical Analysis Of Patrick Henry

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The American Revolution was a period where independence was growing immensely among the thirteen colonies of America. The struggle for independence was shown through persuasive literature and speeches spoken and or written by some of the most influential men in Americas early history attempting to persuade men in the thirteen colonies to fight against Britain for their freedom. Patrick Henry was one of these influential men. Patrick Henry’s Speech in the Virginia Convention addresses the delegates of the Virginia Convention with an ethos appeal that uses allusions, rhetorical questions, and parallelism to persuade the delegates to be on board with the idea of going to war with Britain. Patrick Henry uses allusions many times in his speech …show more content…

One of Henry’s most famous quotes is an example of this device, “Give me liberty or give me death!” (Henry190). Henry knows he must be dramatic with his words in order for the delegates to listen to him, so he uses death as a way to put his point across. He says that he would rather die than not have his right to liberty, making the delegates question whether they would do the same. Along with being dramatic, Henry also shows once again how he pokes at the delegates pride “The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave,” (pg.189). Henry is basically explaining that every man in the union needs to come together, not just the strong ones, but everyone. He says this strategically because he knows that some men don’t think they are strong or brave enough to fight, so he explains this to assure that everyone can and should fight for their country’s independence. Henry also explains the different ways they have been wronged by Britain, “We have petitioned; we have remonstrated; we have supplicated; we have prostrated ourselves before the throne,” (Henry188). Many of the speeches and other literature during this time had listed all the wrong doings of the king, and Henry did the same. In this parallelism example, he lists the ways that the colonists have tried to peacefully come to terms with the British, but their attempts have just been met with rejection and aggression. Henry’s reasoning for saying this is to explain to the delegates that they have tried everything in their power that they can do to peacefully end things with Britain and now it’s time for

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Lawyer and politician, Patrick Henry in his speech, “Give me Liberty Or Give Me Death” (March 23, 1775), explains that he give this plea to urge the old dominion to form militias to defend itself against British. He supports his claim by first using a religious reference to express the themes of freedom, equality, and independence. Then uses a selection of other strategies like rhetorical question and allusion to disprove the opposing arguments and clarify the point he is making. Patrick Henry purpose is to fight back and he wants other to fight with him in order for independence. He creates a powerful and commanding tone for the second Virginia convention.

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At the Virginia convention in 1774, the delegates such as Patrick Henry, gather to decide their course of action, in a time where their primary goal was to rid themselves of their oppressor, Great Britain. Patrick Henry addresses the other delegates and discloses his opinion on what course of action the people should take. In his speech at the Virginia Convention, Patrick Henry forcefully influences the audience to go to war with Great Britain through diction, figurative language and rhetorical devices and by confronting them with their current position of danger in the face of the inevitable British Invasion. Patrick Henry emphasizes his opinion of the necessary war by using diction such as ethos and logos, through appeals to their senses that make connections for the audience. Through Henry’s repetitive utilization of ethos

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In Patrick Henry’s “Speech in the Virginia Convention,” Henry uses persuasive techniques such as repetition and rhetorical questions to interrogate the motives of the British and to reason why the colonies should declare their independence despite the consequences. In Henry’s speech, he uses repetition to address that war is inevitable to show how they must fight in order to achieve their goals as a nation and to prove that the colonists will not be alone over the course of the battle. In Henry’s speech he includes, “The war is inevitable—and let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come!” By this quote, Henry is saying that the colonists have already gone so far and worked so hard to give up now.

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“ Give me liberty or give me death”,( Patrick Henry). The most well known speech given by the prestigious Patrick Henry on March 23, 1775 expressing his thoughts and feelings about fighting back against Britain and protecting their beloved country. At this time the British was defeating America terribly which had made Patrick Henry feel as though his freedom was being jeopardized. Patrick Henry’s speech was an attempt to persuade the american citizens not to just sit and do nothing, he wanted to fight back against Britain. Patrick Henry felt as though many of the citizens were not aware of the seriousness of what was happening and that the needed to have a wake up call.

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Enthusiastic American patriot Patrick Henry rallies together with colonial Americans in attempts to revise their view points during his iconic speech that took place in Richmond, Virginia in the drastic red, white, and blue days. Henry’s words left his mouth, occupying the room with the intentions of brawny revolutionary concepts, trying to convince them to escape Britain's firm grasp. He whips up a storm of fear so he can persuade the American colonists that the only way to release themselves of England's control is by gathering a must of courage and to fight. The iconic “Give me Liberty or Give me Death” speech begins with three paragraphs of him releasing his neutral stance but his revolutionary beliefs.

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He also shares his remark of the quartering of the army, “They are sent over to bind and rivet upon us those chains which the British ministry have been so long forging,” they are forcing the colonists to act and do things that Britain would want them to (Henry). He equated the army to slave masters, and the colonists to slaves, as the British are making the colonists do whatever they want. His own actions can be seen through, “I have but one lamp by which my feet

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Patrick Henry, a successful Virginian delegate, spoke to fellow Virginia delegates in late March of 1775. Ultimately, his objective was to persuade delegates, especially those against war, that the only option was to fight against Great Britain for independence. By illustrating how a lack of action would result in the colonists practically being Britain’s slaves, he began to turn the people's’ minds towards his idea of pursuing war. Henry uses emotional appeal to persuade his audience, and an exceptional example of this is his famous quote: “Give me liberty or give me death!”. Henry’s use of rhetorical devices as means of persuasion were the key aspects of his speech and helped convince the colonists to fight back.

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Patrick Henry’s claim in his speech to the Virginia Convention is war with England is the only way to win freedom and their desires because England makes this the only choice. Before Patrick went up there were other men that had spoken before him, these men were speaking their views on whether or not they should initialize the war. Once Patrick has his chance to say his part he believes that they should fight because England hasn’t been fair. Patrick states this basically by saying “An appeal to arms and to the God of Hosts is all that is left us”. This is such a powerful statement because what he’s proposing is extremely dangerous.

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Patrick Henry, former governor of Virginia, bravely spoke on the 23rd of March, 1775, at St. John’s Church, introducing his strategies to end the American Revolution in victory. The speech was so inspiring that it ignited a massive flame of patriotism. Americans began to greatly support his political ideology. Due to his stirring choice of words, the phrase “Give me liberty, or give me death!” impacted the listeners, making his remarkable words yet known to this date.

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Finally, he also uses logos to show logical appeal towards the audience. Patrick henry says "shall we try arguments" talking about and thinking about everything they have done in the past that hasnt worked. Henry say the British will betray the colonists, telling the audience you can't trust the British that why we shall fight. Give me liberty or give me death is a way of him saying and showing he will get peace one way or another, but if the people dont agree with him then there is no hope for freedom so give him

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In 1775 the American Colonies stood at a tipping point. Britain and the Colonies had been embroiled in a continuing struggle over numerous injustices, and the Colonies seemed at long last situated to engage in a revolution against Britain. However, the colonial representatives were still tied up in negotiations with Britain, and many delegates of the Virginia Convention wanted to delay actions until the negotiations had concluded. Patrick Henry disagreed with the delay, so he addressed the Convention, arguing for the need to mobilize troops against the British, a request tantamount to treason. Instead of shying away from the polarizing nature of his argument, Henry adopted a respectful, but urgent, tone, crafting an argument that would inspire his audience into action.

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When Henry used juxtaposition in his rhetorical question, it was unusually powerful because the tension of the “fleets and armies” versus “love and reconciliation” is also the tension of every other war in history. The idea of the rhetorical question is to ask a question so straight to the point that they don’t know how to answer it. Henry uses a lot of these questions in the speech, to show how he feels and what he’s experienced while putting the Loyalists in the picture and forcing them to realize the impact of how they treat the enslaved. The juxtaposition between armies and love is powerful in convincing the loyalists because King George was already sending armies, so they had to make the decision to keep loving the King, no matter how awful he was to them, or to fight back. To conclude, Patrick Henry’s use of rhetorical devices furthered his argument that the Loyalists should commit treason and rebel against the King because the explanation of his points was so detailed that it was impossible to ignore the fact that the revolution had to

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