I plan to break down an analyze George W. Bush’s 9/11 address to the nation following the attacks on the World Trade Center.
In GWB’s address to the nation, the president uses a clever use of rhetoric. In the first part of his speech when he is describing what has happened, he never directly explains what has occurred. Instead of saying what actually happened he says “..Our very freedom was under attack today..” Here Bush is making an attempt to appeal to the audience pathos. It isn’t just “freedom” that is under attack here, It is “our freedom” that is under attack. By saying it is our freedom that is under attack he is making it a attack on not just the country, but on every single person living in the country making an attempt to make the country feel frightened. Proceeding that line he begins to refer to America as the”…brightest beacon of freedom”. Like many american public figures, Bush makes a reference to John Winthrop’s “City Upon a Hill”. From MLK to JFK to Ronald Reagan, almost every president has made reference to Winthrop’s legendary literature that depicts U.S. as I promised land for the best and the brightest.
G.W. Bush also places large emphasis on particular words in the speech. During the speech he puts emphasis on both “Evil” and “Despicable” people who committed these actions.Later on during the speech he begins to place large emphasis on the sentence “We will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor them.” The emphasis on these words makes an effort to demonstrate his convictions of reprehending those responsible.
Towards the end of the speech Bush also makes an attempt to apply to the audience pathos again. When he is reaching the end of his speech he quotes the bible in saying:
And I pray they will be comforted by a Power greater than any of us, spoken through the ages in Psalm 23:
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil for you are with me.
Here Bush makes his attempt at applying to peoples emotions by reciting the pslam from the bible that is often associated with death.
From a delivery stand point, Bush often repeatedly blinks and nods his head that can be slightly distracting to the audience.
Great choice, Matt. This is certainly a very interesting rhetorical artifact, and worthy of exploring. I love that you pointed out the rhetorical history of the “shining city” imagery. think that the biblical quote at the end does more than appeal to pathos.
For your next rough draft, give a better indication of how you plan to divide the analysis into sections.
It looks like you already have a lot of ideas for analysis of the speech! I think this particular speech gives you a lot of material to work with- hopefully you’ll be able to keep your essay under five pages! Overall, I think you will be able to write an effective essay on the topic.
It definitely is a great choice of speech that you could write about. It must have been a very sensitive and emotional speech, yet logical at the same time given by the President Gorge W. Bush. I bet there’ll be a lot you can write about. Good luck