Essay On A Rhetorical Analysis Of John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Speech

John F. Kennedy was elected as a thirty-fifth president of the United States during difficult times. Communism, Cold War and all-round manufacturing of nuclear weapons threatened the world peace, while serious political tensions regarding discrimination and inequality in the country were the setting of the Kennedy’s Inaugural Speech, delivered on January 20, 1961. The events and attitudes in the society of 1960s have greatly influenced the way the speech was written. In his address, Kennedy declares the value of freedom and liberty in the times of turmoil, calls for the search of the peaceful solutions to urgent matters and argues the need in international cooperation. The young president reassures Americans that they have made the right choice when they have elected him as a president and argues that together American nation will be able to defeat the adversaries and make the country prosper. However, his audience does not include solely American citizens, as he also addresses different segments of world population and calls them to join American rally for peace and freedom. John F. Kennedy in his Inaugural Speech effectively applies rhetorical appeals to ethos, pathos and logos, and makes a great use of inclusive, interpersonal diction, vivid metaphors and elegant parallelism to render his points and achieve his persuasive goal.
As a newly-elected and promising president, Kennedy starts with establishing his credibility and gaining trust of the audience by appealing to ethos. The reference to “celebration of freedom” draws the link to the U.S. Founding Fathers, who are definitely the examples of willpower and drive to change the United States for better, and as a result, Kennedy is perceived as the legitimate successor of their goals and deeds, who holds the same values and believes in the peaceful prosperity and success of the country. This link establishes his credibility as U.S. leader, who knows what role he has to bear and is thankful to the citizens for electing him. In the next line, he continues establishing his credibility, as he says, “for I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forbears prescribed nearly a century and three-quarters ago”. He continues establishing the connection with the Founding Fathers, and introduces another important element – the reference of the will of God. It is important for him, as a president, to draw the connection with the prevailing majority of Christian Americans and highlight that he is accountable not only to the state and his citizens, but also to God. Moreover, in the text of the speech he constantly returns to the references to God and Bible to reassure the audience in his morality and responsibility. This way, he manages to successfully identify with his nation, consolidate his credibility and gain the audience’s trust.
The logos in the speech may be found in logical structure, well-reasoned claims and appeal to common sense. The speech is well-structured, as it has a clear and engaging introduction, the body with the distinct points that are segmented to address certain categories of people and strong conclusive paragraphs. Additionally, his claims are well-reasoned, though not obviously, as he addresses the adversities and hardships the world faces. For example, Kennedy mentions the issue of nuclear weapon saying that the world should crave for peace, “before the dark powers of destruction unleashed by science engulf all humanity in planned or accidental self-destruction”. There is not further explanation, but the claim is logical, as it is a common sense that the only way the atrocities will end is cooperation and desire to finally maintain peace. Logos makes Kennedy’s speech more organized and credible, as it does not make empty claims, but reasons wisely.
The strongest appeal Kennedy uses is appeal to pathos, as he aims at evoking different emotions in his audience, such as sense of unity and fear that works perfectly well in the combination with logos. First of all, he directly and logically addresses different categories of world population; however, these separate appeals do not divide the audience, but rather refer to every part of it to make them identify with the young president and each other and bring them together to serve one goal – reaching peace and prosperity both in America and abroad. Additionally, he uses the fear of nuclear war and communism to further strengthen this interconnection between people, as “man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life.” Kennedy also creates the sense of unity by dividing the world in two camps, and addressing them both, as if he becomes a mediator in the two camps’ communication, who strives to connect the adversaries, as he says that “United there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. Divided there is little we can do – for we dare not meet a powerful challenge at odds and split asunder”. These divisions, as well as fear help Kennedy to articulate the need of unity as the way of achieving peace that serves as a crucial point in his persuasive speech
The sense of unity is also well-established in the inclusive and directive diction of the speech in addressing the audience and presents Kennedy as just another person, equal to his citizens, who fights for the freedom and peace. The voice of the president is strong and assertive, but the speech is very inclusive, as it uses “we” instead of “I” in the phrases like “we observe”, “we dare not”, “ask of us” etc. The inclusion of everyone in this concept of “us” is felt, as he uses it to highlight that all people on Earth deserve the peace he pursues for his nation. The sense of inclusiveness is distinct in the speech, as Kennedy wants to concisely establish the relationship between his fellow citizens and himself. Additionally, with the help of inclusive diction Kennedy wants to show that the responsibility for maintaining peace and promoting prosperity is shared by every person that is living on this planet. This sense of unity is also conveyed through directive tone, as Kennedy makes use of direct and sharp addresses that have an obligatory element, for example, in the most powerful phrase of the speech, “ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country”. His appeal is very bold and the question is strong and consistent, so it affects the audience directly and creates the tone of the speech by establishing Kennedy’s connection with the audience. The diction strengthens the persuasive value of the speech, and enables Kennedy to relate to the audience, create the sense of unity and increase the influential potential of his words.
The use of vivid metaphors helps Kennedy to create the imagery capable of affecting the audience emotionally while most of them are used to negatively evaluate the “adversaries” of the U.S., such as poverty and war, and to make the images of peace and equality more elevated. For example, Kennedy criticizes the drive for power that brings hardships to population and condemns people who abuse it, as “those who foolishly sought power by riding the back of the tiger ended up inside.” In this metaphor Kennedy shows his attitude towards power, and instead, positions himself as a fighter, whose aim is not defined by the amount of power he receives. What is more, the metaphor emotionally affects the audience, as almost every person can identify with those, who were abused by the strong and powerful. What is especially effective is that Kennedy uses the whole sets of repetitive imagery to maintain the tone and style. For example, he returns to the wild nature of power, and human inability to control it in the line, “and if a beachhead of cooperation may push back the jungle of suspicion, let both sides join in creating a new endeavor, not a new balance of power”. The image of the tiger, as a power and the image of suspicion and lack of cooperation as the jungle interrelate and create a certain mood of the speech. These examples are only few of the imagery that is widely used in the speech to render the speaker’s point and emotionally appeal to the reader to achieve strong persuasive effect.
Rhetorical elements that play a crucial role in the structure of the speech, and present the ideas in simple and at the same time forceful manner are parallelism and antithesis. Parallelism positively influences the structure of the speech, as it is easier and more effective way to impress the audience and render the complex idea in the sets of chunks. For example, parallelism is used in the beginning of the speech, “we observe today not a victory of party but a celebration of freedom--symbolizing an end as well as a beginning--signifying renewal as well as change”. The parallel structures make the language more persuasive and vivid, as well as promote the audience’s understanding. Antithesis is also a device that makes the text more consistent, emotionally strong and persuasive, and it is used throughout the speech. The contrast between presented elements of the sentences triggers emotive and responsive reaction from the audience, as in the case of the sentence, “Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us”. The phrase evokes strong and appealing images of empowerment in the minds of the people and it helps Kennedy to make the delivery of his points extremely effective.
All in all, the collection of well-chosen rhetorical strategies and devices play a pivotal role in Kennedy’s Inaugural Speech and helps the speaker in presenting the argument and its points to the diverse audience. The persuasive goal of the speech is achieved through the use of logical structure, establishment of the speaker’s credibility, emotional connection to the audience and forceful and inclusive diction. Rhetorical devices used in the speech, such as metaphors, parallelism and antithesis also contribute to the overall quality of the speech, as they effectively serve to create vivid images, strong language structure and evoke positive response.