Farewell Speech SOAPSTone Analysis
The speaker is Lou Gehrig. He was a baseball player that suffered from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. He gave his speech as part of his retirement. It was very optimistic.
The Farewell Speech was given on July 4, 1939 at an appreciation day celebrated in his honor. He gave the speech was given in a baseball field. People were upset about his retirement because he was very well known. People also were feeling sorry for him but he was being very humble and he wasn’t feeling sorry for himself.
The audience was Lou Gehrig's fans. They've been cheering him on since day one. "I have been in ballparks for seventeen years and have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans."
Without the usage of pathos, Gehrig’s farewell speech wouldn’t have been nearly as effective with his audience and the audience that would hear his speech or read his speech at a later time. Without pathos, it would’ve just been another professional sport players retirement speech. Many key elements contributed to the emotional appeal of Gehrig’s speech; first, he was finally addressing the reason why he was retiring from baseball, which was because of a life threatening disease known as ALS. Always regarded as one who could pull through anything, Gehrig finally made it clear through this speech that battling this disease was going to be the hardest battle yet and it would prevent him continuing to do what he loved which was play baseball. Nevertheless, Gehrig did not wish to evoke sadness out of his audience, throughout his speech, he sought to give hope over despair, thankfulness over pity, and humbleness over self-righteousness. It was so important that he displayed these emotions because then he would contrast to the ideals that many American people had come to believe. Also throughout the speech Gehrig did not seek sympathy from his situation; in fact, he did not once mention his disease specifically and rather focused on the positive moments that he had experienced throughout his life. Hence, people connected to this speech because here was a man who had experienced hardship upon hardship and yet still
The primary audience for this speech were those attending the speech at the 1993 ESPY’s and those watching at home that night. I can tell from his language he uses to direct his message at the audience, using words such as “you” and “we”.
The biggest part of Gehrig's speech is pathos, or the emotional part of his speech. In the first lines of the speech Gehrig grabs the audience's attention with emotional appeal by saying “Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about a bad break I
During his speech, he is honest and accepting of his condition but continues to stay positive. Although he knows he’s dying, he’s still positive even through his darkest times. He makes his audience realize that their problems aren’t so big and to enjoy life.
It is a speech that has a material presence in the modern day where leaders like John F. Kennedy among others have quoted it urging their countrymen to overcome challenges and soldier ahead despite the prevailing circumstances. A lot of inspiration has been drawn from the speeches made by Henry V.
In 1796, George Washington, who was known as being one of the greatest leaders in history, wrote an important document to the American people. This document was written to inform and help prevent the Americans from making any mistakes or decisions that could hurt the nation and the people in it. You should know that Washington was extremely sensitive to the importance of public appearance and he used his departure from Presidency to publicize a major final statement of his political ideas. He wrote what would later become his Farewell Address. He wrote this document with the help of James Madison’s in 1792. The Farewell Address to the United Nation was never essentially delivered verbally with words, it was first published
Throughout the course of American history, there have been copious amounts of famous speeches, spoken by many different people. From political figures to sports players; these people have provided deep thoughts and great insights about who they are and the world we live in today. Being a sports enthusiast, a memorable speech comes to my mind. Lou Gehrig’s “farewell speech”, given on July 4th, 1939, to more than 62,000 fans at New York City’s Yankee Stadium, has become a cornerstone in the history of baseball in America. Lou Gehrig is considered one of the most under-rated sports players of all time. Gehrig played in the same era with greats like Babe Ruth and Joe DiMaggio. In Fact, Gehrig played on the
In George Washington 's Farewell Address, Washington warns against the dangers of political factions by stating, “it occurs as matter of serious concern that any ground should have been furnished for characterizing parties by geographical discriminations, Northern and Southern, Atlantic and Western; whence designing men may endeavor to excite a belief that there is a real difference of local interests and views” (Washington). However, despite American leaders such as George Washington and James Madison warning of factionalism, the country would be divided by political parties arising out of the Northern and Southern states of the union. By the time Walt Whitman wrote “Songs of Myself” in 1855, tensions in the United States created by factionalism were at a high and were constantly elevating. In writing “Songs of Myself”, Whitman sought to help mend some of the wounds created by factionalism by seeking to bring together Americans whom factionalism had rendered alien to one another and by teaching to believe in oneself rather than the beliefs of political parties.
“Washington’s Farewell Address” is a compelling and inspiring speech that lifts the spirits of Americans while George Washington rejects taking a third term as President of the United States. This speech was never spoken to an audience, however, the speech was published in the American Daily Advertiser newspaper. This speech was created by George Washington, but James Madison and Alexander Hamilton helped Washington edit the document. It took George Washington, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton 5 years to publish the speech. The speech was finally published in 1796.
Have you ever had a life changing moment? Many individuals have faced life changing experiences like Feng Ru in the “Father of Chinese Aviation”, like Jackie Robinson in ‘I Never Had It Made’, and like Melba Pattillo Beals in ‘Warriors Don’t Cry.’
The speaker of the last speech is Malcolm X, who was another prominent figure during the Civil Rights era. Malcolm X gave an alternative view to the movement, where he advocated for the establishment of a separate black community (instead of integration) and for the
For the research project speed meeting I was Lou Gehrig. I wore a baseball cap with a New York Yankees logo on it, because that is the team Gehrig played for. I also wore baseball socks, because he played baseball. Lou Gehrig acted responsible and thankful, so during the meetings I acted responsible and I talked about how thankful I was for everything. Lou Gehrig was also very kind, so I made sure I was nice to everyone I met. When I was answering questions about my baseball career I talked about how thankful I was to have such a great career and to have gotten all the chances I had, because that was important to Gehrig. Also, I talked about the accomplishments in his career, because he was very proud of them. When I was asked about my childhood
The speech has importance because it was given after the passing of The Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Montgomery bus boycott and after the march on Montgomery, it is said to be the speech that ended the first chapter of the Civil Rights Movement. He is installing hope into his listeners by saying that nothing will stop them, burning, bombings, killings- nothing will stop the movement. He says he knows how hard and tiresome it is but as long as
Elie Wiesel uses rhetoric to convey his message in his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech. In the speech, he uses rhetoric by telling from his own perspective or from his own point of view. In paragraph three, the authors explains his opinion from his point of view that he doesn’t think he has the right to accept the Nobel Peace Prize: “It frightens me because I wonder: do I have the right to represent the multitudes who have perished? Do I have the right to accept this great honor on their behalf? I do not. That would be presumptuous. No one may speak for the dead, no one may interpret their mutilated dreams and visions.” He questions himself and he thinks that he doesn’t deserve the honor to be given the Nobel Peace Prize. In paragraph eleven, the author explains that there’s always something that can be done: “There is much to be done, there is much that can be done. One person...of integrity can make a
The speaker is clearly intending to motivate the audience to achieve higher. This is clear as the entirety of the speech is dedicated to him trying to motivate everyone to shoot for perfection and stop fearing failure.