Greatest Speeches of All Time- Franklin Roosevelt's Speech "The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself".
Summary of the Speech by Franklin Roosevelt “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”:
In his first paragraph, Roosevelt states that he is certain that his fellow Americans expect he will address them with honesty and a decision which the people will push forward. He also states that this is the distinguished time to speak the truth. That Americans should not shrink from honestly facing conditions in their country today. America will endure as it has endured and will revive and flourish. So first of all, he will support his firm belief that the only thing they have to fear is fear itself- unjustified terror which stops needed efforts to transform retreat into advance. He makes a point about how values have shrunken dramatically as taxes have risen, ability to pay has fallen, the government is faced by diminishment of income, exchange means are frozen in trade, the industrial enterprise is falling (“withered leaves”), farmers cannot sell produce, savings of families are gone and there are going to be more unemployed citizens. He speaks about how America doesn’t have the problems they once had with loss of produce and how “our forefathers conquered” and that American’s should appreciate it. He says that the country has many resources and shouldn’t waste them, like leaders have wasted resources before, whether it was because they stubborn or just plain dumb, they have passed on these habits to their future rulers. He acknowledges that they have tried, but their efforts were in vain. They have only ever proposed the lending of money. People before him have not had the choice to lure people to follow him by using money promises; they resorted to persuading the people through “pleading tearfully for restored confidence.” These people had no vision and only knew the rules of a generation of self-seekers, and with this vision people perish. He acknowledges that social values are more important than money values and that is where the restoration should begin. He
In his first paragraph, Roosevelt states that he is certain that his fellow Americans expect he will address them with honesty and a decision which the people will push forward. He also states that this is the distinguished time to speak the truth. That Americans should not shrink from honestly facing conditions in their country today. America will endure as it has endured and will revive and flourish. So first of all, he will support his firm belief that the only thing they have to fear is fear itself- unjustified terror which stops needed efforts to transform retreat into advance. He makes a point about how values have shrunken dramatically as taxes have risen, ability to pay has fallen, the government is faced by diminishment of income, exchange means are frozen in trade, the industrial enterprise is falling (“withered leaves”), farmers cannot sell produce, savings of families are gone and there are going to be more unemployed citizens. He speaks about how America doesn’t have the problems they once had with loss of produce and how “our forefathers conquered” and that American’s should appreciate it. He says that the country has many resources and shouldn’t waste them, like leaders have wasted resources before, whether it was because they stubborn or just plain dumb, they have passed on these habits to their future rulers. He acknowledges that they have tried, but their efforts were in vain. They have only ever proposed the lending of money. People before him have not had the choice to lure people to follow him by using money promises; they resorted to persuading the people through “pleading tearfully for restored confidence.” These people had no vision and only knew the rules of a generation of self-seekers, and with this vision people perish. He acknowledges that social values are more important than money values and that is where the restoration should begin. He
Bibliography: http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5057/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_D._Roosevelt http://www.archives.gov/education/lessons/fdr-inaugural/ http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/franklindroosevelt http://www.biography.com/people/franklin-d-roosevelt-9463381 http://www.biography.com/people/theodore-roosevelt-9463424 http://www.nchs.ucla.edu/Standards/historical-thinking-standards-1/3.-historical-analysis-and-interpretation