Analysis Of Nelson Mandela's Moral Speech

Nelson Mandela 's inaugural speech given in Pretoria addressed South African citizens and royalty as well as significant political figures. Mandela 's speech covered unity for the people and implied the future was going to embody equality amongst all. His speech covers the darkness and struggle of the past and goes in depth really connecting himself to the audience. His message is clear and easily understood. Mandela addresses the long struggle for democracy in South Africa and his beliefs about humanity. The purpose behind his speech was to acknowledge that the black and white audience should move away from the taunting past and reconcile so they would be able to unify in the future. "We must therefore act together as a united people, for

In her article " Do You Speak Presidential?" Trester explains how language is a powerful political tool presidents use to project a sense of pity and it 's not always what you say but how you say it (399). This sheds a light on Mandela 's speech with his use of pathos to target emotion and pity from the audience. "That spiritual and physical oneness we all share with this common homeland explains the depth of the pain we all carried in our hearts as we saw our country tear itself apart in a terrible conflict" (419). "Each time one of us touches the soil of this land, we feel a sense of personal renewal" (419). The language and tone Mandela speaks in projects a sense of pity as Trester says. Trester also says how language creates an identity. " Language is and will continue to be an important tool for creating identity" (403). This illuminates on Mandela 's rhetorical use with ethos. Mandela 's image and creditability is well known in South Africa, his past made this a little easier an his connection with the African citizens to be more than just a president but someone they can relate to. Mandela assures the people that he to has gone through the same suffering and long discrimination as well using "we" repetitively in his speech. "We understand it still that there is no easy road to freedom" (420). " We know it well that none of us acting alone can achieve success. We must therefore act together as a united people, for national reconciliation, for nation building, for the birth of a new world" (420). William Lutz, a professor of English at Rutgers University speaks on "Doubts About Doublespeak" which I believe also has a take on Mandela 's speech. Lutz 's articles refers to how doublespeak is a language which pretends to communicate but doesn 't (380). The fourth kind of doublespeak is inflated language, makes the ordinary seem