Rhetorical Analysis Of Jfk Inaugural Address

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.

John F. Kennedy delivered his Inaugural Address in 1961 to the entire nation. He establishes a conversational tone through the use of rhetorical devices. His use of metonymy and asyndeton elicits a feeling of solidarity and unity in the masses who listened to their new President. JFK’s catchy usage of chiasmus institutes compelling structure and an open, friendly attitude. These aspects of his speech were necessary for seeming like an approachable figure instead of the formal, far-away airs that are associated with the title President. Metonymy, asyndeton, and chiasmus were essential actions towards Kennedy’s goal of reaching his audience in a compelling and conversational way.

While the speech’s respectful eloquence is appropriate for the occasion of an inauguration, its youthful energy and look to the future make it distinctly John F. Kennedy’s. , The people of the United States desperately needed a boost in morale with ongoing tension of races, inequalities, the fight against communism and the cold war. The people were convinced that this war would be never ending, and believed in another inevitable war. From the beginning to the end of JFK’s speech, he uses a plethora of rhetorical devices to comfort the people and fill them with confidence.

It’s January 20, 1961. Inauguration day for president Kennedy. Entering his first term as president of the United States, he has to give the “Inaugural Address.” As president of the United States he needs to address his voters and the american people in person or through a television broadcast about his future goals and aspirations. During the transfer of power the US is going on there 14th year of the Cold War. The american people are fearful of a nuclear war and the other half wants to go to war. JFK wants diplomatic negotiations towards peace. JFK uses rhetorical devices in his “Inaugural Address” to influence the american people

On snowy, freezing cold January morning in 1961, five hundred thousand people lined Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, D.C. The temperature was only twenty-two degrees Fahrenheit and eight inches of snow blanketed the ground in the American capitol that morning, causing even more traffic than usual, but that didn’t stop these hundreds of thousands of people from attending John Fitzgerald Kennedy’s inauguration ceremony. Little did they know, they would be hearing one of the most famous and memorable speeches of all time. Out of all forty five presidents, the inaugural address that American citizens would remember more than all the rest was that of John F. Kennedy. But what made it so memorable? After all, each president has given at least one, sometimes even two or more, inaugural address. Kennedy’s speech was neither the most elaborate nor the longest; it had one thousand three hundred and sixty four words and took thirteen minutes and fifty five seconds to read and it used relatively simple language. The importance of the address laid not in the length or the intricacy, but in the theme and the rhetoric. With figurative language, themes of unity and freedom, and appeal to Ethos, Logos, and Pathos, Kennedy’s address became not only one of the most memorable inaugural addresses, but one of the most memorable speeches of all time.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy, arguably one of our greater presidents in our nation’s history, was assassinated on a Friday in the early stages of winter in 1963; however, he had accomplished much more than a man with lesser courage could have in his services to our country. One of President Kennedy’s most memorable actions while in office, actually took place very early on in his presidency; his Inaugural Speech in January of 1961. When attempting to motivate our citizens, Kennedy speaks of our citizens being “tempered by war,” and “proud of our ancient heritage,” he very successfully appeals to the emotions of his audience. Furthermore, his use of ethos quite effective when he speaks of

Sophia Zizzo Mrs. Campeau AP Language and Composition 28 February 2024 Rhetorical Analysis Paper On January twentieth, 1961, President John F. Kennedy delivered his Presidential Inaugural Address to call American citizens to public service during the nuclear age and the Cold War, where America was very fearful of being attacked. His purpose was to inspire the nation and signal challenges of the Cold War, looking for peace and to urge the audience to be hopeful and to participate in public services all while fighting against “tyranny, poverty, disease, and war” (Kennedy 24). In order for Kennedy’s message to appeal to the rhetorical situation, he uses asyndeton, anaphora, and allusion to connect with ethos, pathos, and logos. To start, Kennedy uses asyndeton to appeal to pathos and logos.

For instance, parallelism such as the statement, “whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, hear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe,” gives flavor to the speech by pointing out opposite words within a single sentence but still making it work. A few antimetaboles are used in the speech, such as “let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate” and “ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country,” make the speech more effective by twisting around the order of the words, or syntax, to get people to realize a point. Additionally, what makes Kennedy’s speech so effective is that he can transition from a simple sentence to a more complex, meaningful one in a matter of lines of the speech. In accordance to the diction, the words in his speech (freedom, poverty, devotion, and loyalty) are considered abstract. This is because they all convey a tone of desire and significant qualities held by friends. They strengthen and add more feeling to the speech as well. However, the archaic words, such as writ and forebears, are used in a manner to bring in the old language as well as the new, therefore there is sophistication as well as understanding. Kennedy also uses juxtaposition when he says, “peaceful revolution,” and this adds spice to the speech because of the contradiction of the two powerful words. Yet

As a person who was known for his ability to speak publicly, and communicate comprehensible meanings while inspiring the people of his nation, President John F. Kennedy (JFK) gave his inaugural address on January 20th, 1961 in Washington D.C.. JFK was widely distinguished for his ability to use rhetoric in front of the masses, and in mass media. Like many authors and penman, President Kennedy implemented huge doses of rhetorical strategies in his speech, focusing on the appeals of Aristotle: ethos, logos and pathos. Ethos is used to convince the audience of the author’s credibility, logos is an appeal through the use of logic and reasoning, while pathos is an emotional appeal (Gayle et al). JFK applied all these rhetorical appeals

JFK had many great speeches, the biggest and best arguably being his Inaugural Address. If you think that giving a speech to gather followers is easy, you’re wrong. It is an art, there are many trick to it. Some people have mastered this, and JFK has mastered this by using the ethos of ethos a lot in his speeches. The idea of teamwork is a common theme to him.

Primarily, in his presidential inaugural address, John F. Kennedy had claimed that the United States will “assure the survival and the success of liberty” no matter the cost; accordingly, Kennedy describes, through the utilization of asyndeton, that “we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe” on the quest to make the world a prosperous location for all individuals. Kennedy’s use of asyndeton had also emphasized that there is absolutely nothing in the world that can prevent one from obtaining and experiencing freedom and liberty; therefore, Kennedy’s words that were uninterrupted by any conjunctions had instilled a great feeling of nationalism in numerous citizens in America. For this reason,

John Fitzgerald Kennedy delivered one of the most important American speeches after being sworn in as president on January 20, 1961. His inauguration speech was so influential that it seized the nation’s attention, and quotes from it are still clearly remembered by people today. It is considered one of the best speeches ever written and ever delivered. It presents a strong appeal to pathos, ethos, and logos and accomplishes what any speaker strives for – it speaks straight to the heart of the audience and inspires people.

In early 1961, the U.S. was going into long-lasting racial tensions and inequalities , as well as waging war going up against Communism and the Cold War throughout the world. Chaos and fear was all that could be in the minds of the American people because the Cold War was near its peak; the American people longed for a strong, reassuring leader. John F. Kennedy provided that reassurance in his Inaugural Address. There was a lot of confusion nationally and internationally, Kennedy sought to persuade the Nation’s people to join him in his efforts and unify together in order to achieve peace. In this paper is about JFK’s Inaugural speech, throughout this paper i will be using the following rhetorical devices; metaphors, similes, and anaphoras. All in all, i will explain the purpose, function of each device and the overall impact of his speech.

Kennedy’s goal for his speech was not to celebrate his victory but to unite the world together. He begins to compare the beliefs of America in 1961 to the beliefs of our country during the revolution and makes the claim that nothing has changed. Although, we had not reached freedom and liberty as a global community in 1961. He goes on to state,” let every nation, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty,” Kennedy applies to pathos here by making

In his January 1961 “Presidential Inaugural Address,” John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th president of the United States, orates on improving the world. Not just the United States, but motivating everyone to come together and contribute to world harmony. Firm and sophisticated, President Kennedy highlights numerous pledges to promise the survival and success of liberty. President Kennedy calls out to all Americans, allies, and the citizens of the world to come and protect the freedom of man. Engaging the world and welcoming peace for all, President Kennedy delivers an influential, coherent, and well-spirited speech inspiring the hearts of millions to come.