Rhetorical Analysis Pearl Harbor Speech

President Roosevelt’s Pearl Harbor Address

“A date that will live in infamy”. This sentence is forever ingrained in the American history. The bombing of Pearl Harbor the 7th December is an event that will never be forgotten and the speech by Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) held the day afterward is just as significant. The speech after the attack is one of the most recognizable and significant speeches in newer history. The speech brought America into World War II, even though they were heavily weakened by The Great Depression and a loss of troops during World War I. But how could this be? If due to the weakening of the Great Depression and a loss of troops during WW1, the US chose not to join the WW2, then why did the attack on Pearl Harbor change their mind?

FDR was the 32nd president of the United States and was elected to office four times, which is the

He uses Pathos to give receivers a feeling togetherness and unity, which is much needed for America in order to succeed against Japan. This can be seen when he said “Our people, our territory, and our interests” or “Very many American lives have been lost”. Especially the last quote causes the receivers to feel anger and revenge seeking. He also uses Ethos when emphasizing his credentials: “As Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy I have directed that all measures be taken for our defense”. By emphasizing his credentials the population agrees with Roosevelt 's tactic of fighting Japan. With the use of logos, FDR allows the listener to see the logic behind the decision to declare war against Japan. He claims that the attack by the Japanese was planned and their negotiations with a country was a huge setup: “…the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago”. Here Roosevelt claims the attack was indeed planned, and the logical thing would be to declare