The Berlin Wall Speech

On the night of August 13 th , 1961, police officers strung barbed wire across the border of

The Berlin Wall had been in place for 26 years. Increasing unrest was occurring in Berlin, and at this crucial time Ronald Reagan, as several presidents had done before him, traveled to the Brandenburg Gate, seen by most as the symbolical center of the wall. On June 12, 1987, he then spoke of peace between the USSR and the Western world, while motivating Berliners to help take down the wall and come together as a nation once more. Throughout the speech “Remarks at the Brandenburg Gate”, by Ronald Reagan, he makes use of imagery as well as appeals to ethos and pathos to incite the German people to rise up and destroy the Berlin Wall, reunifying Germany.

In President Reagan’s speech regarding the Berlin wall entitled “Address at Brandenburg Gate” delivered on June 12th, 1987, Reagan takes the position as the rhetor with the sole purpose of convincing the city of Berlin to unite and get rid of the wall separating the city in two. The wall is described by Reagan multiple times and is described to be both a physical and non-physical wall. Most of the city is separated by the physical wall and those that aren’t are heavily guarded and prevent travel to the other side. The discourse was intended to not only be heard by the leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, but by most of Europe and North America. The exigency in Reagan’s

On June 26, 1963, the famous words “Ich bin ein Berliner” changed the world. These words, which in English mean “I am a Berliner,” were delivered by John F. Kennedy in West Berlin. His speech was viewed worldwide and brought national attention to the Berlin Crisis and the Cold War. Today, most people have heard about the speech, but may not know a whole lot about it. They may ask themselves the following questions:

In the speech “Tear Down this Wall”, the author, Peter Robinson a speechwriter for the White House, attempts to end the divide between East and West Berlin. Robinson wrote the speech; however, former President Ronald Reagan brought it to life when he delivered the speech in West Berlin in June of 1987. Reagan presented this speech in a calm yet persuasive manner, ultimately winning over his immediate Berlin audience. President Reagan’s speech did not just reach Berlin. It was broadcasted all over from Western Europe to North America resulting in Reagan’s tremendous contributions to ending the Cold War. In order to persuade his audience, Reagan uses various rhetorical tools such as suggestions of hope, liberty, and freedom to grab the alienated German forces and reunite the opposing sides.

In 1963, John F Kennedy visited the city, to give a speech that would be recorded as one the most symbolic and moving speech for years to come. This speech was to show and tell the USSR the determination of the West Berliners to remain how they are, which was to stay non-communist.

On June 12, 1987 President Ronald Reagan trekked to the Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin to speak to the people of West Germany to express his views regarding to communism it’s inadequacy as a governmental system. President Reagan’s primary goal was to rally the people of West Germany to oppose the Berlin Wall and make steps toward a much needed democracy. Having the position of President of the United States, Reagan had substantial influence on his peers. Reagan was able to use influence with some persuasion and rhetorical appeals of ethos, pathos, and logos to the German people to provide cogent reasoning.

On November 9, 1989 the Berlin wall came crumbling down. For 28 years the wall did nothing but make everyone's life worse. However, when the wall fell everyone’s lives were about to be impacted for the better. Families were reunited, friends saw each other again, and peace was restored. The fall of the wall marked the winding down of the Cold War, and started a new age where communism would cease to exist. Much of the credit was being given to Ronald Reagan, who had visited the wall just a few years earlier. When Reagan gave his “Tear down this wall” speech, no one could’ve predicted, that it would lead to the tearing down of the Berlin Wall, and the eventual end of the cold war. Although as a result all communist governments in Eastern Europe had come to an end, would be replaced by “democratically elected governments”. With all this, there was a glimpse of peace and a time of rejoicing for all of the world. ("Fall of

The two speeches that were discussed in Germany about the berlin wall are similar but also different from each other. John f. Kennedy’s speech focuses on how he has never heard of a wall being put up to keep the people of Germany a divided continent. He also states that his people in his country take pride in being able to meet the people of West Berlin. To add on he also says “I know of no town, no city, that has been besieged for 18 years that still lives with the vitality and the force, and the hope and the determination of the city of West Berlin”. With that statement it lets people know that berlin is a strong and determined country. John demands freedom and in one of the lines from his speech he says “Freedom is indivisible, and

Ronald Reagan 's speech at the Brandenburg gate was one of the most impactful and important speeches given during the cold war, and aided in the eventual downfall of the Soviet Union. Reagan begins his speech by addressing the people present and recognizing the “freedom” and “feeling of history” of the city of Berlin has. He makes his first reference to previous speakers by saying, “Twenty four years ago, President John F. Kennedy visited Berlin, and speaking to the people of this city and the world at the city hall. Well since then two other presidents have come, each in his turn to Berlin. And today, I, myself, make my second visit to your city,”( Reagan 361) Ronald Reagan adeptly utilizes Ethos Pathos and Logos in his Brandenburg Gate address, he attempts to sway the audience of the importance of success of the marshal plan and western values as a whole, and convince the leader of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, to open up the barrier which had divided West and East Berlin since 1961.

In the year 1987, June 12th at Brandenburg Gate in West Berlin Germany, President Ronald Reagan gave one of the most memorable speeches (Berlin Wall) a president has given. The Berlin Wall speech changed Berlin completely, it reunited east and west berlin back together. The speech itself was intended for the people but most importantly it was meant for the soviet union leader Mikhail Gorbachev, President Ronald Reagan was an American Politician and also was an actor that appeared in over 50 films. This shows that even though he was our president he had a chose to visit berlin or not and give a speech that later on caused the wall to fall. To achieve this speech Ronald Reagan used rhetorical devices, such as Ethos, Rhetorical Question, Tone,

Standing resolutely at the Brandenburg Gate, President Reagan begins his speech by defining his audience and drawing them in using patriotic appeals to unite the “American Presidents” (Reagan) and “Berliners” (Reagan) which served to increase his pathos and emotion in the audience. For instance, Reagan, speaking to the people, claims that he came to “join your fellow countrymen in the west, in this firm, this unalterable belief” (Reagan) establishing a companionship with the Berliners, “... Es gibt nur ein Berlin. [There is only one

At the time when tensions were high and the once divided people of Berlin were beginning to lose hope, Reagan was able to captivate millions and not only unite the Berliners but also the world.President Reagan was a man with strong beliefs that made his statements believable and logical.Claiming the benefits of living in a free, democratic country, Ronald Reagan uses pathos, logos and ethos to sympathize with the Berlin people.Given the time and place when the speech was given, Ronald Reagan took advantage to address the Berlin people of their misfortune and provided a sense of support and hope making his speech more monumental than what it already was. Ronald Reagan was naturally a good rhetoric; and he used his abilities to persuade the world of the injustice of the Berlin wall and win over the Berlin people. “Remarks at the Brandenburg Gate” by Ronald Reagan was a powerful and compelling speech for its time and helped persuade the people to end communism and reunite the people of Germany.

This paper will analyze how John F. Kennedy was able to rally the people of West Germany with his speech and connect to this foreign audience using several techniques of speech and communication. Within this paper I will first of all give background information on Kennedy, give a brief cultural context of the situation in which the speech is given, and then I will explore how John F. Kennedy used three distinct public speaking or communication skills. The first issue about communication I am going to speak is from chapter 12, Communications as a Means of Social Action, of the book, Communication, A Critical/Cultural Introduction, on how we may perceive differences as opposition and how Kennedy uses this.

“Let them come to Berlin” is a powerful statement John F. Kennedy repeats multiple times to deliver a powerful messaged during his speech in West Berlin, Germany in June 1963. This speech later dubbed “I am a Berliner” was originally called “Speech from the Rathaus Schoeberg” but since it was remembered mainly for Former Presidents JFK opening and closing phrases, as long as the short speech in between them. I chose to preview this speech because at the turning of WWII Germany was divided in half between a Soviet fueled communist East and Democratic West Berlin. East and West Germany was spit by a wall that was erected. This speech had a last impact on Germany for many years, and Kennedy had a last impression and obtained trust from West Germans as well.