Rhetorical Analysis Of Lou Gehrig's Farewell To Baseball

The credibility, or ethos, of Gehrig's speech was already there before he ever started the speech. At the time of the speech Gehrig held one MLB record, Gehrig had played in 2,130 consecutive baseball games, quite possibly the most honorable MLB record. He was very well known and well respected by all fans and players. In his speech Gehrig says, “Who wouldn’t consider it an honor to have known Jacob Ruppert? Also, the builder of baseball’s greatest empire, Ed Barrow? To have

As Gehrig reached High School he was not playing the sport that he will eventually become one of the greatest to ever play. He was playing fullback for his High School football team. It wasn’t until his sophomore year that he would start his baseball career. Throughout

Throughout the course of American history, there have been copious amounts of famous speeches, spoken by many different people. From political figures to sports players; these people have provided deep thoughts and great insights about who they are and the world we live in today. Being a sports enthusiast, a memorable speech comes to my mind. Lou Gehrig’s “farewell speech”, given on July 4th, 1939, to more than 62,000 fans at New York City’s Yankee Stadium, has become a cornerstone in the history of baseball in America. Lou Gehrig is considered one of the most under-rated sports players of all time. Gehrig played in the same era with greats like Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio. In Fact, Gehrig played on the

Lou Gehrig gave this speech as part of his retirement. He did not intend of making a speech at the time and he gave a very good speech. He presented himself as a relaxed, grateful, and a very humble human being. In this speech he is showing a side of him that is very optimistic. He shared certain details about his life, the good parts. He shared his gratitude toward his parents, his wife, and mother-in-law. He shared his humble background and praised the people he worked with. He chooses to dwell on the good parts of his life, not his hardships. Gehrig wanted people to know that he has had a good life and they should not feel sorry for him. He does not feel sorry for himself. He said,

Professional baseball player, Lou Gehrig, in his speech, "Farewell to Baseball Address," sheds light on his baseball career and why it was coming to an abrupt end. Gehrig's purpose was not to be distraught about him getting diagnosed with ALS, but instead send a message to not take anything for granted and be thankful for everything that happens. He adopts a thankful tone by showing how humble he is to have played the game of baseball with many great people thus using grateful terminology for his teammates and associates and reassuring terminology for baseball fans who were worried about him and his fatal disease.

In 1939 an unforgettable speech was given inside of Yankee Stadium, home of the New York Yankees. A man who had played baseball all his life had been told that he will slowly start to die within the next few years. He would no longer be able to play the game he loves--let alone live a normal life. Throughout the speech, he conveys his emotions and the ones his fans are portraying towards him. Though he knows he will shortly die, he believes that he really is the luckiest man alive. This man was Lou Gehrig and he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which was later given the nickname, “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.” In this optimistic speech, Lou Gehrig describes how living with a deadly disease can still be enjoyable so that he can display

ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) or Lou Gehrig’s Disease is a classified as a degenerative neurological disorder that inhibits motor neurons in the spinal cord and brain to function properly. This disease eventually results in paralysis and imminent death over a period of time. ALS patients have anywhere from a few months, to a couple years to live after diagnosis since their nervous systems are slowly destroyed, rendering the body useless, and sustaining life impossible.

He also includes a lot of emotional parts throughout the speech this is effective as it may get an emotional response from the audience this happens when he says “Your loved ones were daring and brave” and “It is hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this happen” this is a good use of pathos as it does connect to the emotional feelings of the viewer.

During the 1920’s and 1930’s was a tough time for a lot of people, but luckily there isn’t only sadness in the world, but there is happiness, and Lou Gehrig was one of those people that would put a smile on your face. The attitude he had towards life was inspiring. I can’t even a imagine the joy he brought to the people of New York, especially when… Smack… he slammed a home run. Lou played in 2,130 consecutive games making him an outstanding role model for many who enjoyed the game

rest of the Oriole team were put up for sale. The Boston Red Sox bought Babe

In this excerpt from Jackie Robinson’s letter to President Eisenhower he uses literary techniques such as: hyperbole, repetition, and tone. Referencing the first paragraph, the tone starts out with an impression of pessimistic and reflective due to the way that the quote shows his feeling towards the summit meeting speaker. Transitioning into the second paragraph the tone shifts to a contemplating writing style. For the last paragraph the tone evolved into accusatory and critical tone. Jackie also uses hyperbole, for example, he stated that they are the most patient of all people. However, Jackie brought attention to the fact that they are worn out from fretting and grumbling. Another literary technique Robinson used in his letter was repetition

For as long as I have known the game of baseball and learned of our country’s history, there is one man that has always stood out to me. This man was very unique, he contained guts, courage, and a whole lot of drive. Who knew that with so called, “America’s Pastime”, he would play such a huge role and make such an outstanding impact on this great nation. The man’s name is legendary Jackie Robinson. Jackie grew up in unfortunate circumstances that many families dealt with at the time with his dad being a sharecropper. Born in Cairo, Georgia, Jackie was the youngest of five and moved to California with his mother after their husband/father left them. Despite their struggles, Jackie’s main focus was on sports and really pushed him through high school and colleges (Kenny, 34). Although I have also found to make that claim that Jackie Robinson was a good example of someone who grew up, not just with unequal opportunity because of the color of his skin, but also due to his financial situation. Jackie Robinson played a huge role in American History and after my doing my research, I found much that I didn’t know. Not only was Jackie impactful in the game of baseball, but he was a Jewish icon, in the U.S. Military, and played a huge role in Civil Rights Movements. It was quite some journey for Jackie and he managed to live quite the impactful life (Purvis 366).

In 1927, Babe Ruth and the New York Yankees changed the face of baseball by setting numerous records and being arguably one of the greatest baseball teams of all-time. Behind the outstanding play of Babe Ruth, teammate Lou Gehrig was also performing at an amazingly high level but was shadowed by Ruth’s legendary season. Lou Gehrig’s play that season started to declined though due to his concern for his mother while she was in surgery. “His heart wasn’t in the game. All he could think about was his beloved momma” (Bryson 778). And with Lou Gehrig’s decline that season, the spotlight was on Babe Ruth and his legendary season that players today cannot even match.

At a time when baseball was America’s pastime, Gehrig’s fan base was immense. Unfortunately, at the age of 36 Gehrig was diagnosed with ALS which affects the body’s nervous and muscular abilities. Due to the rapid progression of the disease, Gehrig address his fans

He uses pathos to get this point across “I hope some day that some of the young fellas that's coming into the game will know how it feels to be picked on the Hall of Fame. ”(Ruth par.3). By showing that he cares for his fans but also the new players that are just starting out he is able to show his emotion and passion built in and around it. This helps gives the speech more authenticity and makes his words more genuine and heartfelt by his audience. As he continues in his speech Ruth begins to talk about the players he knows and the players he has talked to from the hall of fame.