Ronald Reagan's Rhetoric: A New View Of Speeches

Andrew Moody
Mrs. Lange
Honors English
27 January 2023 Rhetoric A New View Of Speeches On January 20, 1981, President Ronald Reagan delivered his first inaugural address. Reagan had dominated the November election for multiple reasons, one being that Carter had sent the military to Tehran to rescue fifty-two American hostages held in the Iranian Embassy. However, the mission failed; President Carter saved no one, and eight troops died. Furthermore, inflation, concerns about the budget deficit, and unemployment contributed to a bleak economy. Consequently, Reagan won the 1980 election in a landslide, beating the incumbent President Jimmy Carter with 489 electoral votes. For that reason, Reagan automatically conferred a great deal of credibility.

He makes it clear that he is the president of all Americans. His objective is to restore a “healthy, vigorous, growing economy that provides equal opportunities for all Americans” (par. 11). Reagan supports the United States of America, which shows that he would stand with America no matter what making him much more credible than most people. The tone of the speech dramatically boosts Reagans’ ethos. Reagan used other rhetorical devices such as chiasmus, which can be seen when he said, “all of us need to be reminded that the Federal Government did not create the states; the states created the Federal Government” (par. 16). Reagan motivates the audience readers by telling everybody meaningful statements. He uses parallelism multiple times throughout his speechlike when he says, “it is rather to make it work -- work with us, not over us; to stand by our side, not ride on our back” (par. 17). Parallelism is mainly directed toward the audience and readers to make them feel

One of the many kinds of logos is expert testimony, which is when words are from a higher-up or trusted person. He evokes the image of the minutemen in 1775 by quoting Dr. Joseph Warren, the president of the Massachusetts Congress, who inspired the colonial army. On the eve of the American revolution, “On you depend on the fortunes of America, you are to decide the important question upon which rest the happiness and the liberty of millions” (par. 27). Reagan implies that he is a leader who can effectively guide the country through its moment of crisis. Another man by the name of Martin Treptow went to fight on the western front, “he was killed trying to carry a message between battalions under heavy fire” (par. 37). His diary was found on his body, and in it read, “America must win the war, therefore, I will work; I will save; I will sacrifice” (par. 37). This quote uses Anaphora, by repeating “I will” over and over again. Logos also is shown through metaphors which Regan uses in his speech to put more emphasis on specific sentences. Reagan wanted the world to be at the top when it came to producing goods he believed that “it is time to reawaken this industrial giant” (par. 26). He relates the American industry to a giant meaning it is ginormous and has the potential, to be even