Stylistic Analysis Of Rfk Speech
RFK Speech Analysis
Discuss RFK’s use of positive and negative and his response to the occasion/What makes it effective?
Kennedy’s speech is very effective in calming a volatile America, and is so primarily due to his ability to establish credibility and common ground with his audience. He balances the amount of negative and positive segments of his speech in a manner that allows the speech to be ultimately hopeful for the future, yet aware of the challenges that they all must overcome. That he acknowledges the continued existence of prejudice moving forward in America adds to his credibility. He then appeals to that credibility and tells his audience that the majority of Americans want to, and will, overcome the difficulties they are currently …show more content…
When he first begins his speech, the word "all" is frequently repeated: “some very sad news for all of you… all of our fellow citizens”. By phrasing the news as sad for all, Kennedy is already placing emphasis on a united America. He makes an appeal to emotion in the middle of his speech, empathizing with the audience by stating that he understands the anger that black Americans may be feeling in that moment – his own brother was killed by a white man. In doing this he establishes a common ground with the crowd – they both have a right to be angry and to be tempted towards hatred. It also demonstrates to the crowd that crime and its effects are not only white on black or black on white. It exemplifies that both in suffering and prospering, America is united. This pathos appeal, along with the repeated use of “all”, is not the only moment in the speech in which he establishes common ground; he repeatedly uses “we” instead of “you” or “I”. Kennedy is not only establishing common ground between himself and the crowd but also attempting to gather a sense of unity within the crowd and all those watching across America, in a moment where that unity is most threatened. After establishing that common ground and credibility, Kennedy utilizes logos appeals to drive home the purpose of his speech – that America must
Discuss RFK’s use of positive and negative and his response to the occasion/What makes it effective?
Kennedy’s speech is very effective in calming a volatile America, and is so primarily due to his ability to establish credibility and common ground with his audience. He balances the amount of negative and positive segments of his speech in a manner that allows the speech to be ultimately hopeful for the future, yet aware of the challenges that they all must overcome. That he acknowledges the continued existence of prejudice moving forward in America adds to his credibility. He then appeals to that credibility and tells his audience that the majority of Americans want to, and will, overcome the difficulties they are currently …show more content…
When he first begins his speech, the word "all" is frequently repeated: “some very sad news for all of you… all of our fellow citizens”. By phrasing the news as sad for all, Kennedy is already placing emphasis on a united America. He makes an appeal to emotion in the middle of his speech, empathizing with the audience by stating that he understands the anger that black Americans may be feeling in that moment – his own brother was killed by a white man. In doing this he establishes a common ground with the crowd – they both have a right to be angry and to be tempted towards hatred. It also demonstrates to the crowd that crime and its effects are not only white on black or black on white. It exemplifies that both in suffering and prospering, America is united. This pathos appeal, along with the repeated use of “all”, is not the only moment in the speech in which he establishes common ground; he repeatedly uses “we” instead of “you” or “I”. Kennedy is not only establishing common ground between himself and the crowd but also attempting to gather a sense of unity within the crowd and all those watching across America, in a moment where that unity is most threatened. After establishing that common ground and credibility, Kennedy utilizes logos appeals to drive home the purpose of his speech – that America must