Rhetorical Analysis Of JFK Inaugural Speech

President Kennedy always wanted above average and never wanted to settle for good, but for greatness. His inaugural address was his first step into greatness. He was a firm believer in unity and being together as one in this country. Throughout his short, but successful presidency, he shows how important togetherness is to make the country strong. January 1961, John F. Kennedy became the 35th president of the states and was giving his inaugural address. John F. Kennedy’s pathos, logos, and repetition in the speech allow the American people to be eager for his presidency and allow them to see the changes he foresees for the country during his term.

On a cold January day America’s newly appointed president John F. Kennedy delivered his inauguration address that was incredibly important to America’s success during the Cold War. Kennedy uses his speech as a call to arms, but not only to America but the World and our allies as a whole. He uses his strong powerful voice to appeal to the ethics of the country in the beginning of his speech telling America about the promise we made when we were founded and that we must uphold it still today, telling America we must make a difference. Kennedy also uses ethics to explain that we the people are united no matter what your background or where you are from, he refers to the Americas as one place, because he wants for us to feel unified not divided. Furthermore Kennedy’s use of powerful imagery, logic and pathos allows for him to effectively call the people of the World together during this terrible time.

On Friday, January 20, 1961, in the midst of physical cold and mental Cold War fears, John F. Kennedy gave his inaugural address to the citizens of America and the world, assuring his audience that peace will prevail, and that America, as a unified superpower, will lead the world once again into a new era of peace. His speech, infused with rhetorical appeals, has an anxious and discontent tone, calling for change and the implementation of his vision. To express his vision, Kennedy used various tools such as anaphoras, diction, and antithesis to form rhetorical appeals that effectively communicate his vision of peace.

In John F Kennedy’s “Inaugural address”, he tries to bring the nation together by speaking confidently and powerful. Kennedy’s vigorous use of rhetorical devices including Antithesis, Reasoning, Emotional Appeal, Allusion, and Anaphora that contribute to the success of his speech. JFK uses these rhetorical devices to convey his ambitions and hopes for america as a nation in a whole. Also hoping for a pledge of peace; that we do not show weakness. In his hopes of coming together our acts individually would make us look and be stronger. Kennedy used his speech as a way to draw all of the audience in by pulling us together.

Every choice, every action and every decision we make has a consequence. A couple weeks ago, I read two speeches by the 16th president, who served two terms, and an American politician, who is the brother of John F. Kennedy. The first speech I read was delivered on April 4th in 1968 by Robert F. Kennedy. He spoke about the Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. that occured in Memphis, Tennessee that same night. The second one was Abraham Lincoln’s Sencond Inaugural Address. Kennedy’s speech occured after Martin Luther King’s Assassination and Lincoln’s happened after he was elected president for a second term. In Robert F. Kennedy’s speech, he mentions race, hatred and the lack of compassion we have for one another. Although, in Abraham Lincoln’s speech, he mentions the tragedy of the American Civil War, the distribution of slaves, and God.

A global call for peace was made on January 20th, 1961. John F. Kennedy asked the world to find a well-known but hard concept -- world peace. Kennedy uses rhetoric, the art of speech or communication, to make their speeches less bland and more convincing, throughout his speech. At the time the U.S.A and the U.S.S.R were fighting in the Cold War, and the world was under constant threat of a nuclear war. In “JFK’s Inaugural Address,” Kennedy claims mankind should seek a global peace. He effectively builds this claim by using the following: ethical and emotional appeals, as well as tricolon and anaphora.

This previous knowledge and image of JFK builds up his ethos before the address was even given. The speech has many quotes that are still well remembered and hold a deep impact in many American lives today. Most notably was the qoute, “And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country”(JFK Library). This quote is a prime example of how JFK bridges appeals, pathos and logos, it creates a middle ground and commonality between JFK and the citizens. Also the sense of patriotism brought from this quote is a great example of pathos.

In John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address, he says, “if a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.” He also states the importance of helping others around the world who do not have freedom. John F. Kennedy wanted to create peace with all nations before everything would be destroyed by a nuclear war. Lastly, he tells the citizens of the United States and other people from different nations that they have the ability to determine their own success or failure.

One of the most influential presidents in United States history, John F. Kennedy was a brilliant politician and public speaker. In his inaugural address, he sparked hope around the world by discussing the hardships faced by all of society in the present time and then leaving them with a message of freedom, power, and hope. This measure of impact is not achieved easily; Kennedy masterfully utilized the art of rhetoric to emphasize his message and win the hearts of his people. In the middle of the speech, he discusses the dangers of the modern world and his drive toward international peace and cooperation. These messages are stressed through his use of charismatic language to signify his vision of a new and better world.

In conclusion, strong appeals to morals and emotions are important aspects of Kennedy’s inaugural speech, which was aimed at uniting the people of the world as one by referencing their commonalities− such as shared backgrounds, cultures, and values. Kennedy creates connections between the different societies and groups of people in the world to emphasize his powerful call to duty, which serves to further unite the audience together with a common goal to ensure that we can all live in a world of peace and stability, where basic human rights are protected for

To begin with, JFK was the 35th president of the United States of America. He was the youngest president, which meant he had to build trust. One of the main characteristics in Kennedy’s “Inaugural Address” is his powerful use of imagery, when he describes “the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans” (JFK paragraph 4). Kennedy talks about change and a future to look further to. His statement creates an idea of toughness, placing strength in each individual, but also in the President and government. Kennedy paints a desolate picture of the world which creates imagery. He describes the evolving world as “struggling to break the bonds of mass misery” (JFK paragraph 9), and nuclear weapons as “dark powers of destruction” that might “engulf all humanity” (JFK paragraph 11). He creates a dark mood and describes strong visuals to keep the audience’s interest in what Kennedy has to say about possible solutions to create peace. The imagery used is strong as it draws on images that are easily understood by everybody. He believes that all Americans should work together to create the peace they desire. He wanted America to reach its fullest potential. He felt it was important to use the past as an example but to look to the future and be prepared for anything to come.

Kennedy utilizes parallelism to illustrate his points. He repeats “Let both sides” in his speech to create harmony with the United States and the Soviet Union, and to fix common global problems like “tyranny, poverty, disease and war”. He wants countries to help one another with problems than letting issues divide them. In his address he wants his nation to

Throughout president John F Kennedy 's inaugural address speech he presents several emotional appeals to convey his feelings towards the American people. The purpose of Kennedy 's Inaugural Address speech was to inform the people of what his intentions were for the future of this country. Since this speech was based on his intentions for the future of his country, a sense of trust needed to be established between him and the people, he accomplished this by applying emotional appeals to his speech. President John F Kennedy charged up his speech by making sure he built bridges between him and the people. Through his speech, he capitalized on change, not only for America alone but for the globe itself. Since this time was not a time of peace, where war, inequality, racism was transpiring, President kennedy included numerous lines of hope, that could have potentially been used to persuade the audience to strongly believe in what he was communicating with them. He mentions “For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty…”(Kennedy para2) ,relating to all people of lower class, providing them a sense of hope in which they could look forward to. John F Kennedy then continues by summarizing that it is time for America to shape its own future and that the people as a whole can overcome any obstacle that is bestowed upon them. People at this time found these words very

In John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address, he speaks to the citizens of the United States and other nations around the globe. His purpose is to not only establish his own credibility as the new President of the United States, but also to motivate his audience to change for the better and listen to his words. Kennedy uses a confident and energetic tone for the citizens of the U.S. and those who want to find out who the new American President is. He emphasizes his main ideas using anaphora, chiasmus, alliteration, and abstract words, and it invokes a desire to come together as a nation and make a difference in the world.

President John F. Kennedy, in his inaugural address speech, claims that America will unify and assert peace, in and out of the country with the help of citizens who fight for liberty and protect their country. Kennedy supports his claims by applying rhetorical devices to create a good sense of optimism and community. The author’s purpose is to encourage his listeners to stand up and help others so that America can become a better, stronger nation.