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Rhetorical Analysis Pearl Harbor Speech

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Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation-Franklin Delano Roosevelt Speech Analysis On December 7th, 1941, the United States of America was attacked by Japan without forewarning. One day later President Franklin Delano Roosevelt addressed Congress and the nation. President Roosevelt used his speech as a mean to convince Congress to declare war on Japan and to bolster American patriotism for the impending war. Roosevelt accomplishes this by utilizing emotional, polarizing diction, repetition, and pathos.
President Roosevelt employs vivid and heated diction throughout his speech to portray the Japanese as dishonorable and duplicitous. The most memorable phrase of President Roosevelt’s address is from the very first line. He declares December 7th, 1941 “…a date which will live in infamy.” Roosevelt’s carefully thought out word choice of “infamy” foreshadows the tone of his entire speech. Through one simple word President Roosevelt associates the Japanese as wicked to his audience. This …show more content…

President Roosevelt repeats “…the Japanese attacked…” to emphasize his point that Japan attacked not only the United States but many other Pacific nations too deliberately and without warning. This portrays Japan as the enemy and compels the nation to defend their homeland and make Japan pay for their cruel actions. Roosevelt also recites “Japanese” and “attacked” multiple times throughout his address. By using slight variations of word forms such as “Empire of Japan”, “Japanese Government”, “Japanese forces”, “the Japanese” and “Japan”, Roosevelt renders it evident that the many components of Japan cannot be separated. The attack was not made simply by the Japanese military, but by Japan itself. The variety of related terms emphasize that Japan as whole is to blame. Furthermore, Roosevelt’s use of repetition strategically highlights key phrases that carry the weight of his

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“There is no blinking at the fact that our people, our territory, and our interests are in grave danger.” The many examples of logos, ethos and pathos in Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s “Pearl Harbor address to the Nation” speech was very successful in urging America to declare war on Japan. The purpose of this speech was to persuade Congress to declare war. It was targeted at Congress, as well as to be broadcasted throughout the country. The people of America trusted Roosevelt.

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December 7, 1941 is considered one of the most impactful days in United States’ history: the day Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Despite their size, Japan left an incredible amount of damage with their 5 submarines and 408 planes. President Roosevelt had been avoiding scuffling with Japan since their pact with Germany and Italy; war with Germany was sure to erupt soon enough. However, soon after the ambuscade, the United States’ declared war on Japan and launched their involvement in World War II. Japan’s leaders recognized the risks of invading one of America’s naval bases; yet they persisted.

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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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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

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Roosevelt portrays the Japanese as both power hungry and warmongers. The American President’s speech is in agreement with sources A and E. This source once again refers to the meticulous planning by the Japanese. Once again, emphasizing the fact that a surprise attack was unavoidable. America could not have stopped Japan (source F). The fact the American president reiterates the point that the attack was a surprise, emphasizes the argument that Japan was definitely acting as the aggressor.

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Franklin D. Roosevelt gave birth to the term, “day of infamy” in 1941 by opening one of the most important and influential speeches of the United States with the phrase, “December 7, 1941 A Date Which Will Live in Infamy”. This speech was delivered by President Roosevelt after the catastrophic bombing of Pearl Harbor. Woodrow Wilson's, “The Fourteen Points” Speech was given on January 8th of 1918, and stands to be one of the most powerful expressions of the idealist mindset in the entire century. The 14 points were assembled and delivered by President Wilson during the first world war in an attempt to set the terms for reconstruction and the mending process of the countries involved. The major similarities between these two speeches is the representation of the rhetorical elements ethos and pathos while the major difference includes the usage of logos.

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The fact that many lives were lost and many families were damaged, shows that this was an extremely emotional time for America. FDR, as mentioned before, begins this address to the nation in a very somber tone to show the effect these attacks have had on the morale of the country. With the seriousness FDR shows in the beginning, it makes the American people pay attention and really digest the message he is giving them. Another huge emotional appeal President Roosevelt plays on is painting Japan as the true enemy to American peace. FDR, in an attempt to explain the rift with the Japan says, “Hostilities exist.

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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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