Analysis Of The Evil Empire By Ronald Reagan

On March 8, 1983, President Ronald Reagan addressed the National Association of Evangelicals in Orlando, Florida. He presented his views and opinion of the Soviet Union and explained where he believed the greatest source of tension between the capitalist United States and the communist Soviet Union to lay. Halfway through his first term, President Reagan faced the tail end of the Cold War, and frequently addressed and attempted to lessen the fear present in the United States at the thought of the spread of communism. In a time where it actually appeared that the Soviet Union was winning with their successful invasion of Afghanistan and innovations militarily, it was up to the president to lift the United States out of what he would later call

With tensions high and the whole of the nation looking to him for guidance, President Reagan needed to further the anti-communist sentiment. With his speech “The Evil Empire,” President Reagan realigned the evangelicals of America and those with Judeo-Christian beliefs to press back against the communist influence that was reflecting itself through a questioning of ethics and rights in the United States. He did this through his ability to appeal to religious beliefs as well as his superb use of logic and ethics.

As President Reagan delivered his speech, “The Evil Empire,” he called upon the audience 's Judeo-Christian beliefs and ideals, as they are considered to be the antagonist of communism, to drive home his point. He called upon them as a group to help him put an end to the pull of the communist Soviet Union and to better the United States by taking it back to its core belief of “one nation under God.” President Reagan begins his speech by thanking those gathered for their prayers and making it known that

Reagan repeatedly calls into question the ethics of the Soviet Union and other non-religious movements to rally those in the audience to his cause. In emphasizing the lack of ethics in the communist movement, he effectively empowers and encourages the ethics of those with Judeo-Christian beliefs. The president made it clear that he found the ethics of the Soviet Union to be less than ideal. Their stance of strong opposition towards capitalism, freedom of speech, and freedom of religion placed them in a position that was polar opposite to that of the land of the free. Reagan reestablishes the american belief that freedom is a necessity, which can be cited as the reason for the nation’s profound success, claiming, “freedom prospers only where the blessings of God are avidly sought and humbly accepted” as shown by the United States (Reagan). He shows that the lack of freedoms present in the Soviet Union have a direct correlation with the rejection of God in their society. The pride of the communist state caused them to be unable to “humbly accept[]” any blessings that God may have offered, and their unwillingness to allow their citizens to seek God has restricted them, crushing any freedoms they possessed. Reagan goes on to speak on the issue of abortion methods being given to underage girls without the knowledge of their parents. The issue of abortion, of course, calls into question the ethics of