The speaker is former President Franklin Roosevelt. As President it is his duty to to be commander in chief of the armed forces of the United States. This speech is aimed at convincing the congress to declare war on the empire of Japan. As the President he suggests that the War be declared in retaliation to the attack on pearl harbor.
Franklin Roosevelt had been riding on the pacifist bandwagon for his campaigns, he was elected because He had said that he did not want to get involved in a foreign war. After the attack on pearl harbor Roosevelt could no longer stand by and watch as the world tore itself apart in war.
Why are they speaking at this time? Historical context of the speech? What do you think is the purpose of the speech?
The President is speaking at this time because the United States has Just been attacked, thousands of american soldiers have been killed, and many american navel vessels have been sunk. He is speaking at this time to convince the congress that war is now inevitable.
The historical context of this speech is when the face of the map is about to change, Japan has been attacking many countries around the island of Japan such as China. When Japan attacks pearl harbor it will signal a change in the direction of the war. President Roosevelt speaks to change the minds of the american people to get support for the long road ahead.
Discuss the sentence structure. Length? Sentence types
The sentence structure varies throughout out the speech but the average amount of words per sentence is 23. There is a part of the speech where the president lists off what attacks Japan has carried out against some of the american colonies.
The different types of sentence include short lists, a formal greeting, and there is a very short tow word sentence that FDR uses to clarify and solidify his point, "Hostilities exist." This short sentence to make the point that it cannot be denied that the future was going to be different.
Pathos, How does He stir emotion?
The words, "Yesterday, December 7th, 1941 - a date which will live in infamy" creates a solum attitude the the audience is expecting. The presidents goes on to explain that the United States was tricked by japan and was attacked without reason. He also speaks about the loss of life that has occurred on the day before. Simply stating these facts pulls at the heartstrings of the american people, the way he speaks gives him the trust of the american people and their emotions are on his side. By the time He asks the congress to declare war on Japan he has already made them feel both anger toward Japan and confidence in the armed forces of the United States.
Ethos. What does he do to enhance his credibility with audience?
The way that President Roosevelt starts his speech gives him a lot of credibility. He is very formal, he address the speaker of the house and the vice president. The tone that FDR takes is solum and serious. He is the leader of the United States and because of this he has a certain natural confidence and charisma. As a leader people want to follow him, with the attack on Pearl Harbor the job of declaring war is already halfway done, all FDR has to do is say We declare war and people will follow.
How does he or she visualize the future?
The way that FDR envisions the future is that the United States will triumph due to their righteous might. He implies that he does not know how long this war will take but with confidence in the armed forces victory is inevitable. FDR also looks toward a future where this kind of threat will never again endanger the American people.
Grade: B minus
ReplyDeleteOk you state the title of the speech clearly.
Much too brief on biographical background. Do some research on your own. I like that you can use information given in class. That shows that you have learned something. But, we need to know biographical information like when FDR was president, what makes him credible from his background.
Good to mention that he had promised not to go to war. What impact did his reputation for hating war have on THIS speech I wonder?
The speech is ceremonial. He is justifying declaring war, rather than trying to convince anyone. It is a ceremonial justification, since everyone was on board to war against Japan for what they did.
I am hoping that the tone of these posts might be more academic. The best answers would say things like the exact date and location, who he was speaking to, how many ships were sunk and exactly how many sailors were killed. These are details that are important in understanding why the speech was so famous. Be more like a scientist and give me detail from some research.
OK, so you sum up the historical context, but I would like to see a bit more detail from research on the nature of the conflict in the Pacific.
Excellent on sentence length and type. That answer is exactly what I want because it is detailed information that show you did some work and thinking and study of the speech. Counting things is one way to give specific detail. How many words was the speech? What was the shortest and longest sentence? How many paragraphs were in the text? These are details to make your analysis richer.
When you discuss how he stirs emotion, I am looking for images and repetition in the text of the speech that evoke a response form hearers. Cite metaphors and repeated lines that add vividness and drama to the text. Cite the names of the figures of speech (metaphor, alliteration, allusion).
On ethos you praise his formal delivery. OK, that does add to credibility. But, also his position as a beloved and peace promoting president would enhance his ethos with the audience. He is their leader in time of war. You miss this and only discuss his delivery.
Cite the lines where he visualizes the future and comment on his vision would be inspirational.
Analysis is too brief and shows lack of research. Also, please do a spell check and use academic expression with punctuation and tone.
Next time add more depth to your answers. I like how you applied theory discussed in class. Make corrections suggested above for a higher grade.
ReplyDelete