Rhetorical Analysis Of Roosevelt's Speech After Pearl Harbor Speech

Roosevelt's speech after Pearl Harbor is one of the most recognizable and significant speeches in American history. It was this that brought America into World War Two and solidified America’s status as the premier world superpower for the next half-century. Given the day after the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, the objective of this speech was to urge Congress to declare war on Japan. On the night of pearl harbor, Franklin Delano Roosevelt prepared a speech to say over the next day, encouraging congress to declare war against Japan and Americans to support Roosevelt’s war effort. Roosevelt's smart way of writing and usage of both emotional and logical proofs was extremely effective in convincing America to join world war two. Franklin

As the President of the United States, he is obviously viewed as a credible source for information. At the time that this speech was given, FDR was nearing the end of his fourth and final term as president. This clearly shows that he was well loved and well trusted by the people of the United States. They would never have elected him in four straight elections if they did not think that he was a capable and trustworthy leader. While many other speakers might have to prove their credibility with facts and statistics during their speech, Roosevelt does not have to do this because his mere title proves his credibility and establishes his ethos for him. In addition to the ethos of his political status, Roosevelt also provides a significant number of details pertaining to the attack on Pearl Harbor and other attacks that the Japanese carried out in combination with the bombing of Pearl Harbor. By sharing additional details about the events of December 7th, it shows reliability to what he was saying about the bombings of Pearl Harbor. If FDR had simply said that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor, it may not have been as well-believed as it was since he provided so many details about the attack.

Roosevelt also uses emotional phrases to convince the nation. He uses phrases such as, “Righteous might,” and “unprovoked and dastardly act,” to help make his audience feel something towards the bombing and therefore making them connected to what happened. Throughout his entire speech he uses vivid, emotional phrases for example “deliberately planned,” and “this form of treachery. When he uses these phrases to get congress to feel that the attack was unjustified and that they should feel anger and declare war on Japan.