Patrick Henry: An Analysis of America's Call to Revolution
Logan Barber
Ms. St. Clair
AP English Language and Composition
18 October 2013
Patrick Henry: An Analysis of America's Call to Revolution Leading up to the fierce and fiery confrontations at Lexington and Concord, a tumultuous period of debate and negotiation ensued regarding the preferred response of the colonies to British encroachment on their rights. The meeting of Virginian representatives in March of 1775 would prove to be a fruitless affair; that is, until a young, ardent lawyer by the name of Patrick Henry delivered an impassioned oration, with the intent of elucidating upon the reality of the situation: that the then-colonies were being driven to militant opposition of their royal overlords, and that to continue on passively would be to “retreat...[into] submission and slavery.” In his speech, Patrick Henry persuades the convention, and thereby the people, of the necessity of revolution through his employment of metaphorical imagery, stylized religious and mythological allusions, and a slew of rhetorical questions. In a blaze of libertarian sentiment, Henry incited the passions of the delegates and set the stage for the most glorious revolution in the history of mankind. Henry liberally applied metaphors wherever possible. In this way, he first seeks to establish his ethos with the delegation; portraying his intelligence, he claims that the only “lamp” by which his feet are guided, and that it is the “lamp of experience.” It is characteristic of any effective speaker to subtly compliment themselves, both overtly (as seen here) as well as covertly, in order to assuage the doubts of the audience, which Henry manages to achieve at this moment. Ethos established, Henry moves to a more logos-centric series of metaphors corresponding with a multitude of his rhetorical questions. He begins the sixth paragraph by stating that the colonists have already “done everything that could be done” to “avert the storm”. Henry does not have to explicitly say that
Ms. St. Clair
AP English Language and Composition
18 October 2013
Patrick Henry: An Analysis of America's Call to Revolution Leading up to the fierce and fiery confrontations at Lexington and Concord, a tumultuous period of debate and negotiation ensued regarding the preferred response of the colonies to British encroachment on their rights. The meeting of Virginian representatives in March of 1775 would prove to be a fruitless affair; that is, until a young, ardent lawyer by the name of Patrick Henry delivered an impassioned oration, with the intent of elucidating upon the reality of the situation: that the then-colonies were being driven to militant opposition of their royal overlords, and that to continue on passively would be to “retreat...[into] submission and slavery.” In his speech, Patrick Henry persuades the convention, and thereby the people, of the necessity of revolution through his employment of metaphorical imagery, stylized religious and mythological allusions, and a slew of rhetorical questions. In a blaze of libertarian sentiment, Henry incited the passions of the delegates and set the stage for the most glorious revolution in the history of mankind. Henry liberally applied metaphors wherever possible. In this way, he first seeks to establish his ethos with the delegation; portraying his intelligence, he claims that the only “lamp” by which his feet are guided, and that it is the “lamp of experience.” It is characteristic of any effective speaker to subtly compliment themselves, both overtly (as seen here) as well as covertly, in order to assuage the doubts of the audience, which Henry manages to achieve at this moment. Ethos established, Henry moves to a more logos-centric series of metaphors corresponding with a multitude of his rhetorical questions. He begins the sixth paragraph by stating that the colonists have already “done everything that could be done” to “avert the storm”. Henry does not have to explicitly say that