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William Faulkner's Speech Ap Language

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As the class of 1951 from University High School patiently watch the clock tick closer to the next chapter in their life, William Faulkner addresses the class with a small piece of advice, choose to change the world for the better. While these students eagerly await what’s next, Faulkner implements that fear should not drive your intentions by adopting a hopeful tone. In the case of most graduations, everyone from the graduates, to the family members, and the school faculty become over emotional. Knowing this, the author appeals to this sense by continuously using emotions and expressions, such as “baffled and afraid... or frightened or bribed.” which then causes the audience to develop a personal connection to the speech and is prompt to follow his advice. With also the use of parallel structure, evident in statements like that of “honesty and truth and compression” , ”today and tomorrow and next week” , and “baffled, or …show more content…

Because this speech was given in 1951, a few years into the recovery of World War II, Faulkner uses the increase in nationalism to defend his stance. By stating “all the Napoleons and Hitlers ad Caesars and Mussolinis and Stalin's.. Will have vanished from the face of [earth],” he establishes his hopeful tone while providing the audience with information showing he is credible. Others allusions Faulkner includes are references to God himself, in the fourth paragraph. Writing to his audience, most likely a predominantly white Christian neighborhood in Oxford, Mississippi, the author draws in the graduating class. Knowing the future lies at the hands of the youth, William Faulkner last farewell to the ℅ ‘51 can be seen as a means to push them to change the world for the greater good. No longer adolescents, these newly found lost adults need a little guidance to see that to live in fear is to not live at

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