Taylor Liechty. W131-Period 2. March 23, 2017. Ronald Reagan

The purpose of Reagan's address was to inspire the people to revitalize the American government and rebuild the economy. Reagan emphasizes the importance of returning power to the people, and he motivates the people to take part in improving the economy by calling the everyday working man an "American hero." Reagan creates the argument that a better future is in the hands of the people, not in the hands of the federal government. He specifies that the people are the everyday heroes that keep the economy alive. Reagan builds unity and a sense of togetherness in the American people through the use of rhetorical strategies like Kairos, anaphora, and rhetorical questions. He also drives his argument home by directly addressing the people, and by

Reagan spoke with passion and sorrow. But he showed an appreciation and respect for those who fought. He uses the word “we” very often, which unites the people and shows union. In his speech he uses the word we 19 times to show the bond between us as a people, and as a nation. He uses rhetorical questions asking why they served and fought till their last breath. “You were young the day you took these cliffs; some of you were hardly more than boys, with the deepest joys of life before you. Yet, you risked everything here. Why? Why did you do it? What impelled you to put aside the instinct for self-preservation and risk your lives to take these cliffs? What inspired all the men of the armies that met here? We look at you, and somehow we know the answer. It was faith and belief; it was loyalty and love.”(Reagan). He answers his questions with love and loyalty for their families and their country. Reagan uses this in his speech to make the audience think deeply about why the men did what they did and

Ronald Reagan was a child of the Great Depression who grew up with traditional family values. During his adulthood, Reagan supported Roosevelt, and in fact voted for him four times. Ronald Reagan can be compared to Franklin Roosevelt in many aspects beginning with the successes that each had as president. Both were conservatives who entered the presidential office hoping to make changes in policies and taxes, as well as changes in public attitude towards American progress, strength, and growth. Reagan entered office during the depression of the seventies and shortcomings of Jimmy Carter, much like Roosevelt rose out of the Great Depression and self-defeating endeavors of Herbert Hoover (Sloan, 2008). Prior to becoming recognized as great presidents, each would serve as governors

Throughout his Farewell Address, Reagan employs syntax to advance his purpose of the unification of America, when he says “We’ve got to do a better job of getting across that America is freedom-freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of enterprise. And freedom is special and rare. It’s fragile; it needs protection.” he repeats the word freedom many times, which invokes the feeling of pride and patriotism to the audience and expresses that America is a very prominent symbol of freedom, people from all around the world come to America because when they think of America, they think of total freedom. Reagan also emphasizes how Americans need to teach their children of the pride and spirit of America, for the betterment of America’s future society. Moreover, points out three particular freedoms America provides, Freedom of

Thatcher uses contrast to set Reagan aside from everyone else in the way he ran his country. Once again, using the example of “Others… He…” Thatcher tells of the fear, doubt, and uncertainty many Americans faced, while describing Reagan as the great inspirational leader who boosted morale, spread reassurance, and brought back hope into the suffering peoples’ lives. Contrasting this heroic president to devastated citizens helps to portray him as a ray of light during dark times.

With many changes on the horizon at the time, America was given something and someone to believe in. Many speakers in history have had powerful points and strong words sometimes expressing through a forceful nature intended to scare listeners. Reagan was a speaker who developed a commanding but soothing way that was appealing to the world. Regardless of his background as an actor, the

For the audience he gives them examples of how government interference hurts Americans and also allusions to past times such as the revolution and how the founding fathers did not want a big government. He shares that he has “an uncomfortable feeling that this prosperity isn’t something on which we base our hopes the future.” Reagan’s ability to connect with his audience was rare and unlike many of his colleagues. Whether the topics he spoke on were always relevant to that of the listener, it did not always matter.

Reagan was a kind, easy going, down-to-earth kind of guy which he portrayed through his television and radio talks. Even when he was shot in the chest, he was able to keep a smile on his face and joke with his wife. He was a very confident president and was great at giving Americans what they wanted. But political analysts disliked him for his simplistic view of the world (“Ronald Wilson Reagan”). He was given the name Great Communicator because of his ability to maintain support of the nation, even when his policies were not going well (“Ronald Wilson Reagan”). “Reagan was a hero to much of the American public and a villain and idiot to many political pundits” (“Ronald Wilson Reagan”). Conservatives thought that his administrative style was too easy going (“Ronald Wilson Reagan”). But he was admired by the public for his patriotism, commitment to traditional moral values, and hatred of communism (“Ronald Wilson Reagan”). However Reagan’s legacy is still very

The last element of the rhetorical situation is speech. Reagan’s primary objective of this speech was to show his condolence to those of who suffered from the accident and involve audience to join for grief. Throughout his speech his ideas were carried in a coherent way, without deviating from his objective. Reagan achieved this through using various words and phrases that magnify his emotion. Using phrases such as “slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of god” illustrated his feeling towards the situation without much of explanation. In addition, because he understood that the audience of this particular speech consisted of diversity of

On January 11, 1989, President Ronald Reagan sat at his desk in the Oval Office to address his nation for the final time. This rhetorical moment was not the first of its kind. Rather, the Farewell Address is a Presidential tradition, started by George Washington, that every president takes part in before leaving office. As a sort of “goodbye” to the nation, the President discusses the accomplishments of his administration while offering pieces of advice for the future. Washington warned against a government with an “unmoderated” political party system (Spalding 75), Ronald Reagan warned of the effects of an America devoid of patriotism.

This speech has meaning, excites emotions and reaches out to all, which makes it a great speech. Although Reagan chooses to ignore his administrations responsibility in The Challenger disaster, he concentrates instead on reassurance of the nation which makes this speech uplifting to the American people.

The last element of the rhetorical situation is speech. Reagan’s primary objective of this speech was to show his condolence to those of who suffered from the accident and involve audience to join for grief. Throughout his speech his ideas were carried in a coherent way, without deviating from his objective. Reagan achieved this through using various words and phrases that magnify his emotion. Using phrases such as “slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of god” illustrated his feeling towards the situation without much of explanation. In addition, because he understood that the audience of this particular speech consisted of diversity of people, he used words that are more approachable and easy to the audience.

At the outset of her eulogy, Thatcher describes Reagan's personality by explicitly stating examples of what it has done. Because of his sanguine and optimistic presence, he showed great ability to “restore the strength of the free world, and to free the slaves of communism.”

Ronald Reagan’s influence in conservatism can be analyzed in Ideals and Ideologies through three different texts which are each three different speeches. The first is his Inaugural Address, the second is a speech given at an annual Evangelical Christian convention, and the third is his Farewell Address given after his second term as the President of the United States. These three texts are rooted in strong references to foundational ideologies of the establishment of the United States in the first place. He uses these ideals to draw upon a sense of American patriotism seen from America’s birth, to create somewhat of a conservative revival or rebirth.

The events and times of Reagan’s life all point to the purpose of remembering a “great president, a great American, and a great man”, and the love for America and it being the land of the free and the land of opportunity for ordinary everyday people. Thatcher’s Coherence is expressed through deductive writing techniques, as she moved from the belief that Reagan was a great president/man/American and then goes on to show why with specific examples and events of his truly amazing character. Through all of the problems thrown at the white house and all the daunting historic tasks. That Reagan was this GREAT man. And she says the “We live today in the world that Reagan began to reshape…