Rhetorical Analysis Of The Farewell Address

George Washington himself wanted to avoid a party system in America. Unfortunately, even when saying this he was part of the beginning of one of the first parties in United States politics. There have been many different parties surface since the beginning of the American political system. They all have different thoughts, policies, and motivations. Each party has come and gone, some have made significant contributions and others have not. The first split, and beginning of the party system, came with the differentiation between the Federalists and the Democratic Republicans. These two parties were extremely different in thought, design, and status of people involved. This paper, will deal with

Washington’s farewell to being a politician as he retired; warned against political ties with other countries, the forming of political parties, importance of religion and morality, and to play a good role in conflicts worldwide

On September 19, 1796, George Washington, the first president of the United States, delivered his farewell address to the American people. In his address, he informed Americans that he would not run for a third term as president, but that he cared about America and would care about America until the day he died. Since he cared, he decided that he would deliver advice for the future on what the American people should and should not do. The advice he gave the American people could have helped them with problems they would face in the future. Based on President George Washington’s experiences, he advised Americans to stay united as a nation, follow the constitution, and stay neutral, because he predicted that these three issues could be a problem for the new nation and future Americans.

After his presidency, George Washington has explains many possible dangers and concerns he has for the for the up and coming nation that he spent 8 years so heavily devoted toward. There were many issues during Washington’s presidency so he writes a farewell address discussing the issues and giving Americans some wise words of advice. Some of the issues that Washington brings up include staying out of other nation’s issues and worry about ourselves, to not divide our nation by forming different political parties with different ideas, and pay off the newly acquired national debt. He explains all of these issues and more in his farewell address. He also says that if the constitution needs to be changed it should be done so legally and not by rebellion which Americans tend to do.

When Washington wrote his Farewell Address, he had already made the decision to retire from his job as president and return to his home on Mount Vernon. No longer was he concerned with making a future for the country. Instead he was concerned with offering the parting advice of an “old and affectionate friend”. Washington offered his advice on a number of different topics, but the most relevant topic to politics

After so many years of imposing taxes, differing views, and bloodshed the United States Constitution was finally able to make its way in 1788. The U.S Constitution called for a revision of the Articles of Confederation, establishing a new form government. In the end, it completely threw out the out the Articles of Confederation. The ratification of the U.S Constitution caused much criticism and separated Americans into two groups Federalists and Ant-Federalists. Although there was much objection, with George Washington as the leading figure behind this new central government, more people were less hesitant towards it.

Washington was a key figure in our nation’s history and his decision to step down appalled the citizens of America. In addition to shocking the country, Washington’s Farewell Address set a precedent for presidents to come. In his address, Washington gave his reasons for refusing to run a third term, and pieces of advice. The first warning Washington gave was to stay neutral, the second was to understand the importance of the separation of powers, and the third was not to form political parties. Though this guidance is not often followed, Washington had good reasons for giving it. His own opinions were formed by his experiences as President. Washington believed that the nation should remain bipartisan and neutral, and understand the

The Farewell Address of George Washington is both a personal and a political statement. The President writes directly to the American people as "friends and citizens." The overarching message of the farewell address is the importance of a strong national identity, known as unionism or federalism. Because the United States was a new concept and new political entity, it was necessary to point out that state affiliations were now to be subsumed for the greater good of the whole. To make this point, Washington alludes to the fact that if the new nation is perceived of as being weak and divided, it would easily fall. It could fall either because of internal factions, as were already brewing between republicans and federalists, or because of external pressures and opportunists. "The unity of government which constitutes you one people is also now dear to you"¦t is a main pillar in the edifice of your real independence, the support of your tranquility at home, your peace abroad; of your safety; of your prosperity; of that very liberty which you so highly prize." With unity comes strength, or in other words, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Washington first saw that we divide ourselves into political parties because it will end up in lots of disagreements, and end up dividing our nation. In his address Washington states,” The unity of government...be taken, many artifices employed to weaken in your minds the conviction of this truth;...” Washington is trying to say that other states may say that we need to be split to have a good nation, but that’s not true. He was trying to warn them that if there is splits in our nation that may be one of our downfalls, and have us plummet deeper into this crises. Washington may have thought this was good to brush up on because there was a division in his very own cabinet. Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson were both part of different political parties, which ended up causing a lot of disagreement. Hamilton thought that the rich was the greatest part of our nation and Jefferson thought it was farmers and small landowners. They had many disagreements which split Washington’s cabinet. He did not want it to happen to his nation so he gave them a warning even though they had not really listened.

Washington’s purpose for writing his Farewell Address was to address(?) why he wouldn’t be running for a third term of presidency, along with well thought out ideas on how to keep the Union strong and unified towards hard times in the future. He also wanted his address to be a reminder for future presidents and politicians to not to take advantage of their freedom they fought so hard to obtain. Washington continues to explain that education within the public is a priority; educated individuals will be able to articulate the different sides of the political spectrum and be able to vote with confidence in what they believe in.

2. For each of the three reasons you describe, name events from American history, (both common ones that you'll know, and recent events), that corroborate what Washington says. In other words, tell me about times that political partisanship has been damaging in the specific ways predicted by Washington.

“Leadership is practiced not so much in words as in attitude and in actions” (Geneen). No other president has exemplified such an understanding of leadership as President George Washington. There is no doubt that Washington deserves his reputation as one of the best presidents this country has ever had. His moral character and bold actions continue to set the standards for future presidents. Not only was Washington the Commander and Chief of the Continental Army and the President of the Continental Congress but he was the first president and only president unanimously elected twice and served from 1789 to 1796. During his time in office, Washington set this country on a path that has been able to withstand the test of time of over 200 hundred years. Some critics argue that Washington’s siding with Hamilton actually encouraged partisanship, the very thing Washington so vehemently denounced. However, it is clear that George Washington remained true to his vision of a strong and independent nation. He had many positive attributes, but it was his strong moral character, leadership skills, and political vision that made him worthy of the title “Father of America”.

Based on Washington’s past experience, his Farewell Address warned the U.S. citizens about the dangers of political parties. There were two political parties that kept having conflicts with each other, the Federalist Party led by Alexander

The United States has a very rich and eventful history dating from the first settlers to arrive at Jamestown to the present day. Within this time frame, many leaders have emerged to add their own personal achievements and successes to this rich history. One is particular is our first President George Washington. Washington is well known for his tenacious personality, his drive for freedom against Brittan, and finally is desire to keep newly liberated United States unified. Washington shows all of this in his Farewell Address once he stated that he would not run for a third term. In this address he advises the country to abandon a party system, beware of foreign alliances, and establish a country based on religion and morality.

We need to share ideas and theories to try to solve the world crises. Washington didn't like parties, I think it was because he wanted to be in charge and didn’t want to be told how to run the place. I think he wanted to do what he thought was right and you had no say in it. That’s why I think he was against parties because you could sorta tell him what to do and he didn’t like