Rhetorical Devices In George W. Bush's 9/11 Speech

What better way is there to appeal to an emotionally damaged group of people than to appeal to their feelings of resentment? The pathos in this speech was instrumental in the rise of Bush’s approval rating from just over 50% to a staggering 90% (Gallup, Inc. “Presidential Approval Ratings -- George W. Bush." Gallup.com). In one instance, Bush mentions the sight of Republicans and Democrats alike joined together on the Capitol singing “God Bless America”, and this is just one phrase that illustrates how devastating the attacks were. Bush makes many remarks to demonstrate that the acts of the Taliban are illogical, and only acted upon sheer spite. As said by Bush himself, “They hate what they see right here” (“The Rhetoric of 9/11: President George W. Bush -- Address to Joint Session of Congress and the American People”). He goes on to explain that this is indeed a reference to the democracy that the U.S. is

One of the most catastrophic events America has faced were the September eleventh terrorist attacks. Our nation faced one of the most damaging attacks in our history and it was up to our president, George W. Bush, to address the entire nation and assure everyone that America still remains a strong and functioning country. Our President George Bush was called upon to address the nation, a nation that was currently suffering from loss, fear, and despair. His goal was to persuade Americans to take comfort in the effort being put forth in resolving the aftermath of the attacks and the fear they caused. Recognizing his audience as being innocent victims of an unknown evil, President Bush ultimately had to present a speech that mastered various techniques

On September 11, 2001, George W. Bush delivered his 9/11 Address to the Nation at 8:30 PM to all Americans. This speech, broadcasted throughout the nation from within the Oval Office just hours after the terrorist hijacking and the crash on the Twin Towers, reassured American citizens during a time of devastation and need of proper leadership. (Eidenmuller). Through rhetoric intended to convey strength and the actions America had already taken to combat this tragedy, Bush instilled hope in the American people and provided them with a sense of unification.

Bush uses the appeal of ethos in an effective manner. Bush had prior experience being a governor in Texas before his presidential experience. He is very clear and confident throughout this entire speech that the American people will recover from this event. Bush knows how the American military functions more than any other person out there, and he states, “our military is powerful, and its prepared” (Bush, 2001, para. 3). That statement is very bold and it would give any American the sense of protection they needed to feel during this time. Bush had the experience to lead this country in a time like 9/11 and he and congress worked together hand in hand to work powerfully on these attacks (Bush, 2001). Although most of the American people did not know Bush on a personal level, when he delivered this speech, he made it his top priority to feel a personal connection with the entire country. Having the title of the President of the United States gives Bush the credibility he needed to use ethos effectively in the 9/11 speech.

On September 11, 2001, George W. Bush gave a speech to the American citizens following the horrible and tragic terrorist attacks that had taken place. Bush’s purpose is to create unity among the nation and to build his presidential credibility. United States President, George W. Bush, in his speech, 9/11 Address to the Nation, emphasizes how everyone should move forward and remain strong after the tragic events. Bush appeals to the audience using pathos, logos, and ethos while adopting a grieving, yet hopeful tone in order to tranquilize the people of America.

When certain people make speeches, don’t you just feel inspired by their words? For these certain people, they all put it into the delivery of their speeches to be as influential as possible. They use many forms of rhetoric to achieve their goals and gain support. This is the case for Obama’s Speech on the death of Osama Bin Laden. The goal of Obama’s speech is to unite the American people and support the war on terrorism. Obama’s creative choice of words are used as tools to persuade people.

President Bush, shares his view on the matter throughout this speech. Bush’s purpose is to try and help Americans not panic during such a terrifying situation that has changed American history. Since Bush understands what Americans or people in general the world must be feeling, he is able to address the matter in a calm and collected way. In “Bush’s 9/11 speech,” the author, President George Bush, uses various rhetorical devices to reinforce his position on the 9/11 attack.

“None of us will ever forget this day, yet we go forward to defend freedom and all that is good and just in our world.” That was one of George W. Bush’s many emotional yet strong sayings in his speech of the tragic 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York city. His goal of unifying, making the country feel bonded together, was achieved through vivid and organized word choice. He chose these words to connect with the people of america's emotions and feelings, while also displaying authority and logical sense that terrorism is a threat to the world.

September 11, 2001 was a tragic part of  history for the United States of America. On September 11,  four planes crashed down by hijackers at the Pentagon, the Twin Towers, and a Pennsylvania field. The Pentagon and World Trade Center were the primary buildings where the Al Qaeda wanted to attack. The White House was another target, however they never made it. Later that night, President George W. Bush gave a speech about 9/11 in the Oval Office. George W. Bush inspired America of their safety and security of his confident tone, religious beliefs,word choice.

One of the most detrimental and traumatic events of United States history involves the terrorist attacks on the day of September 11th, in 2001. September 11th is a day countless Americans will never forget. Because our nation encountered such a horrific attack, it was up to our president during the time, President George W. Bush, to address the country. Many Americans suffered loss and fear; therefore, former President George Bush’s goal was to heal and comfort the nation by persuading them to see the light within the darkness. Bush’s speech was a success because he showed America’s togetherness and solidarity by creating an emotional connection to the audience; moreover, by responding appropriately to the attacks, he presented himself with a leadership and role no one else could take.

The citizens who lost family members were broken and lost. The government was shocked. The United States, as a whole, did not know how to recover, but it did. President Bush helped us push through. He had to make some hard decisions along the way, but in this speech, using tone, all of the rhetorical triangle, and cause and effect he justifies all of the tough decisions he made. He gives reasons for why he, his administration, and Congress made the decisions they did. In the end, using these rhetorical devices strengthened his speech, and left the audience agreeing with him, and even if they did not totally agree with the choices he made, they were left understanding his logic behind those decisions. Bush did a fantastic job appealing to his audience with this speech. It was a powerful and left the audience with a sense of security about where America is

The purpose of this speech was, overall, to address the tragic acts of terrorism. President Bush accomplishes this in an informative and effective manner through his elegiac tone throughout the speech. This mournful way of writing gives a respectful and empathetic feeling to the address. This is incredibly important, as many people were feeling grief, loss, fear, and heartache at the time. Another purpose for the speech is to call the American people to action. President Bush, through his use of imperative statements, successfully rallies his audience to action. After describing some upcoming changes to the government, he said “These measures are essential. But the only way to defeat terrorism as a threat to our way of life is to stop it, eliminate it, and destroy it where it grows” (“George Bush Speech”). This imperative statement gets the audience feeling determined to do their part to destroy terrorism. Soon after, he said, “I have a message for our military: Be ready. I’ve called the Armed Forces to alert, and there is a reason. The hour is coming when America will act, and you will make us proud” (“George Bush Speech”). This specifically calls the military to action, which is a critical aspect of the speech. President Bush also uses this speech as an opportunity to thank people who made a difference in the tragic event, saying “I thank the Congress for its leadership at such an important time”, “I thank the world for its outpouring of support”, and, “…I thank you for your

The speech took place on September 20th which is nine days after the attack occurred. There are several reasons that Bush waited nine days before presenting the speech, but having nine days to prepare for a speech of this magnitude is hardly any time at all. When he addressed the nation the night of the attack the speech must have been much easier to prepare for due to the fact that there is not yet a plan in place. When addressing congress a plan needs to be in place and it needs to be said efficiently. There was a clear objective in the message Bush was trying to convey to congress,

On September 11, 2001, America was attacked by terrorists. Before this traumatic event, one could not even imagine someone doing such a thing. When this event occurred everyone had been unaware and continuing their daily activities only to be stopped by this life changing news. The president at the time was George W. Bush. Doing day to day activities like the rest of us, he was reading to a second grade class that bright Tuesday morning. Upon hearing about the news, he was utterly shocked along with the rest of America. At approximately 8:40 p.m., which is around 12 hours after the event, he gave a speech to address this horrendous event. President Bush had successfully created a sense of unity and security throughout the country with his speech by using ethos, pathos, logos, tone and imagery.

Because of the purpose of Bush’s address, there is an exigency that is both very important and specific. Bush is responding to an attack that happened that same day, which gives his speech a sense of relevance and urgency, because as the leader of the country that was just attacked, he needs to ensure that the government programs and leaders remained intact, so that his people did not spiral into chaos and disarray. Also, because the World Trade Center was a center for global commerce, its destruction could have potentially caused damage to both the Manhattan and global economy. This provides its own exigency, because Bush needed to reassure the world of the stability of the economy in order to avoid further widespread panic.