Rhetorical Devices In Jfk Inaugural Address

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.

Moreover, Kennedy’s use of parallelism throughout his inaugural address reinforce the message of the speech. His use of parallel structure helped contrast ideas, accumulate ideas, and clarify ideas. In his iconic line, “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for

On a cold January afternoon in 1961 John Fitzgerald Kennedy delivered one of the shortest but most empowering inaugural addresses. Kennedy won by the smallest margin ever and to this day was the youngest and the only Roman Catholic ever elected U.S. president. With the victory of World War II behind the US and the fear of nuclear warfare with the Soviet Union looming Kennedy faced a difficult task. Kennedy was faced with the task of convincing the American people that he was fit to be leader. John F. Kennedy's use of rhetoric devices and persuasive appeals made in his Inaugural Address convince the citizens of his ability to be chief executive.

For JFK to have an effective inaugural speech, he needed to say things that would unite the country against the Soviet Union. One way he did this is by his use of ethos, a rhetoric device showing the credibility of the author or speaker. In the time period he gave this speech, T.V. had just come out. His speech was the first televised speech ever shown on television. Because of this, he made sure he looked smart, calm, confident, and poise going into it.

Perhaps the most important line of JFK's entire inaugural address was a utilization of chiasmus, which is a figure of speech by which

To begin, JFK’s use of rhetorical devices throughout his address had successfully captivate his audience by clarifying, persuading, and engaging his main points to his listeners. For instance, in his speech, JFK uses a plethora of rhetorical devices, all of which played a part in engaging his audience. Of the devices, Anaphora, Antithesis, and Reputation are the three most dominant devices which enthralled the audience. Through his use of rhetorical devices JFK, could create depth and character in his speech. In addition, he can engage the audience’s attention, allowing the audience to be engrossed to his ideas and insights, ultimately persuading them. Thus, through the literary nature and rhetoric devices present in his speech, JFK could seize and sustain the focus of his audience, creating for a persuasive and memorable speech.

Another rhetorical device John F. Kennedy uses is antithesis to strengthen his argument. He uses this to give contradicting ideas through his phrases, and this makes the sentence more memorable and puts emphasis on words. Kennedy says “ Ask not what your country can do for you-- ask what you can do for your country.” This statement gives contradicting ideas, but ends with what Kennedy wants done to help the country. It also adds balance to the speech. He also states “Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate.” Statements like this attach to the readers and listeners

In both speeches, the Kennedys used intensive repetition to define the stances they took on the topics they choose to talk about. In JFk’s speech, he uses the phrases, “To those” and “Let both sides,” to bring notice to the problems in the world and the people who can solve them. When JFK says, “To those,” he is speaking about countries that have recently gained independence, people who suffer from poverty, the countries of the world that have a strong alliance with America, and enemies of the country at the time (JFK 1-2). With these relationships noted, JFK goes on to say “Let both sides,” to show that it is not only the responsibility of just America, but of all powerful countries to negotiate and work together to solve their problems (JFK 2). Much like his brother, RFK uses repetition to reveal the trouble at hand, but he also uses it to give instruction on how to stop these threats. He first uses the phrase, “This is,” to clarify on the violence that America faces, which include the violence of institutions, economical and racial violence, and the violence towards areas of poverty (RFK 1). To solve these

The tone of JFK’s speech is reassuring and inspirational. Kennedy's diction along with many imperative sentences instills a high spirited feeling in the reader, while becoming very personal. Through the use of parallelisms and anaphoras Kennedy arrives as a confident president while constantly questioning the reader what he or she is or can be doing to for the peace of our word. By remaining extremely inspirational Kennedy is able to demand from the reader in a very personal uplifting

JFK used the effect of anaphora and parallelism throughout his speech. His repetition of words at the beginning of phrases and paragraphs aided in fostering his sense of pride and determination in his new role as President. He used phrases such as “Let both sides” and “To those” to bring about the focus of both sides, United States and other allied nations, coming together to help the world. When concentrating on his audience, President Kennedy started by suggesting that both sides explore the problems between them; he then progressed to all sides uniting to have ultimate power over all the nations, and then transitioned to exploring the science of the world and using it to their advantage in order to have a uniting force in all corners. When Kennedy used the phrase “to those” to begin several

parallelism and juxtaposition, John F. Kennedy was able to capture the minds and hearts of the

Kennedy successfully employs many rhetorical devices into his speech. For example, Kennedy uses the literary device chiasmus when he utters, “...ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country.” He employs this literary technique again when he claims, “Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.” Kennedy most frequently employs anaphora when he repeats again and again, “To those old allies… To those new states… To those people… To those nations…” He uses this anaphoric phrase to employ a rhetorical device while, at the same time, applying emotional appeal to bring his speech back to the theme of unification. Another example of anaphora as well as parallelism is when Kennedy repeats the phrase “Let both sides…” five times. These rhetorical techniques use repetition and the reversal of certain words/phrases to make Kennedy’s dialect clear and compelling to his audience.

On January 20, 1961, John F Kennedy delivered his historic inaugural address to a crowd of prominent officials and hopeful Americans. This powerful speech inspired citizens of America as well as nations around the globe. Even those who previously doubted Kennedy’s potential as a president before the election highly respected his opening message. Consequently, his approval rating shot up to 75% following the delivery of this speech, which confirms its profound effect on the American people. Much of the success of this speech is owed to the cautious, precise use of rhetorical devices, such as metaphor, anaphora, imperative sentences, and hortative sentences. These devices heavily assist Kennedy in conveying his hopes and ambitions for the

The remembrance of John Fitzgerald Kennedy often correlates with his tragic death; however, another significant moment that occurred in Kennedy’s presidency was his impactful inauguration speech that persuaded and united American citizens around the nation. His audience reached far beyond those gathered before him to people around the world. In preparing for this moment, he sought both to inspire the nation and spread a message of hope, strength, and unity to come in the future. Within the concluding statements of his speech, John F. Kennedy used rhetorical devices such as allusions and parallelism so he could appeal to the public’s pathos, ethos and logos. Along with assuring his credibility and reliability as the nation’s new president, Kennedy implanted fresh aspirations into his people’s minds.

The setting of the speech was highly televised and as such his audience was potentially every citizen of the United States as well as any and every world leader. There is no coincidence that every word the president speaks is deliberate and well thought out, thus making it, in my opinion, a prime example of rhetorical devices working together to form an effective and moving speech. His audience reached far beyond those gathered before him to people around the world. In preparing for this moment, he sought both to inspire the nation and to send a message abroad signaling the challenges of the Cold War and his hope for peace in the nuclear age.In addition to message, word choice and length, he recognized that captivating his audience required a powerful delivery. JFK was widely renowned for his ability to