The speech given by Wendell Phillips at the Cooper Institute in 1861 was one of the more effective speeches in history. The strategies that he utilizes help solidify his opinion and give him leverage to successfully sway the audience to his intellectual viewpoint. His passion for social justice and sharp wit also help give his speech a sharp, precise tone that works very well to iterate his viewpoint. It is his oratory strategies, however; like his brave comparisons, his use of strong figurative language, his connotation-packed diction and his keen incorporation of relevant and intriguing fact, that caused his speech to be so powerful and effective. Throughout his speech, Mr. Phillips draws very effective but risky parallels that help him establish his admiration of Toussaint Louverture. At the very beginning of his speech, he states that Frenchmen and Americans have infinite admiration for Napoleon Bonaparte and George Washington, respectively. He immediately afterwards begins talking in a similar fashion about Toussaint Louverture, which is very risky because the crowd was full of American citizens who generally view Washington as one of the greatest figures in history. The residual, dormant racism that was still residing in many of the Northerners may have caused them to become outraged at this statement and to attempt to physically harm Mr. Phillips. However, Mr. Phillips crafts his speech so well that it doesn’t outrage any of the crowd, and also has much of the crowd in vigorous support of Mr. Louverture by the end of the speech. George Washington wasn’t the only parallel that he drew, also mentioning Oliver Cromwell, who is revered for his political and military prowess. This move helped further iterate the extent to which... ... middle of paper ... ...tles the argument that Haiti is too small to compare Louverture and other great men by saying “I know it was a small territory; it was not as large as the continent; but it was as large as that Attica…” which helps to convince the crowd that Louverture should be taken seriously because he is similar to the leaders of ancient Greece. The tactics that Wendell Phillips uses are very effective tools that have a large impact on the audience of 1861, and of the reader in modern day. Judging by the response of the crowd and the widespread critical acclaim his speech receives and continues to receive, it is safe to say that it is one of the most powerful speeches in history. Although some of his strategies often analyzed only one aspect of a situation or were exaggerated to help reinforce his point, he had an impact that will be revered by orators in the foreseeable future.
In the first line of the speech, Phillips references Napoleon and goes on to mention people thought to be American heroes such as Oliver Cromwell and George Washington. His speech speaks very highly of them, and towards the end of the first paragraph he introduces Louverture as one belonging to their category. Phillips says, towards the end of his speech “I
When in reality, how can a slave-owning President be a hero to Black Americans today? Similarly, Americans of native descent today could not worship Washington, if they knew explicitly how he had treated their ancestors. However textbooks do not explicitly reveal these faults, and even if they give some indication the authors make sure to justify Washington to the best of their ability. Many Americans fail to know very little about the claims of Washington’s greed for wealth, his inability as a politician and President to speak before the Senate and Congress, and the debate to whether he was as good a General as is commonly believed. In addition to these forgotten flaws and human frailties; are the purely fabricated tales of Washington’s childhood, which are still retold to children today.
Phillips supported the abolishment of slavery. He thought that America should terminate the institute of slavery once in for all. He was particularly critical of the Constitutions compromises about slavery as well as limitations put on abolitionist to seek political action. Furthermore, he believed that the emancipation of slaves was the single leading obligation of the government, even more vital than the preservation of the Union. Not simply did he advocate for the freedom of slaves, but he also disputed for black suffrage and equal rights for African Americans, Women and Native Americans and rights for laborers and wage workers. For the most part Phillips was a peaceful reformer but in the 1850’s he became radical. During the 1840’s, he regularly attended conventions such as the World Anti-Slavery Convention in London that advocated the freedom of slaves. In years foreshadowing the Civil War, he became more aggressive, with events like Harpers Ferry Raid that subsidized his presence as a radical leader. However, after the war, he returned to being a more passive reformer by serving as a lecturer and public speaker. He heavily advocated for the...
“You’ll never change the world if you’re always worried about being liked” said Robin Sharma. In the speeches, “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July” by Frederick Douglass and “Declaration of Sentiments” by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, they both gave their speeches to a group of people that they did not care how the audience thought of them or the topic they were talking about. While analyzing these pieces of text, they are different in the ways they go about writing their speeches. Frederick Douglass and Elizabeth Cady Stanton had the same basic purpose for giving their respective speeches, and they accomplished their end goal in very similar ways, including both having experience on the topic they are speaking about, both going against the
Lincoln's style in this speech was inevitably persuasive. His rhetorical strategy appeals to not only the readers senses, but to their intellectual knowledge as w...
Next, we have David Henry Thoreau who wrote Civil Disobedience and Other Essays. In his famous speech, “Slavery in Massachusetts,” Thoreau is seen as a strident speaker in his opposition to slavery, overall not representing the prevailing view at the time and wanting to bring light to a new viewpoint. He is seen as the conscience of our nation through his goal of the betterment of mankind, overall wanting to create more humane ways in society, establish truth, and eliminate governmental inequity. Therefore in this speech, Thoreau emphasizes on individualism as well as his depiction of the lack of logic within the governmental law during the nineteenth century. He illustrates to the American audience that society is polluting man with the current government inequity. He states, “I
During America celebration of its 76th birthday, a man by the name of Frederic Douglass delivered a magnificent speech in Rochester, New York, July 5th, 1852. Douglass request to deliver the speech on the United States most important celebration of them appeared to him as mockery of his former persona and unjust treatment of black slaves in the United States. His speech, “The Fourth of July Oration,” was a true masterpiece result of skillful, eloquent and intelligent man. He began his oration by acknowledging America’s independence from the mother land’s ruling, England. Douglass alluded that despite being a seventy-six year-old nation, the United States was still at the eves of its career. Being a young country compare to those that were at the time to be by the thousands rather than tenths, created a grant opportunity for change that may be easier to successfully obtain under as a young nation rather than an older one condemned with opposition on its reforms. Douglass on his speech venerated the monumental accomplishment of the forefathers’ of their nation, of fearlessly fighting for their freedom and speaking for what they believed was right later becoming a revolution which ended the life and hopes of many as well as he felt as if the country and government was going against what they have constructed and in relation to how vague and misinterpreted slavery was being represented in the Bible. After he concluded venerating their independent country, he questioned why America citizens were celebrating independence. It was a time of commemoration for white folks but a time for desolation and woe for the black slaves of their nation at the time.
On November 19, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln delivered ‘’The Gettysburg Address’’. Abraham Lincoln’s purpose in ‘’The Gettysburg Address’’ was to persuade listeners to finish what those who fought for died for by treating everyone else equally. ‘’The Gettysburg Address’’ is the most compelling speech due to its use of rhetorical
In 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered an iconic speech paying respects to the soldiers who fought the Battle Of Gettysburg. His words oozed with emotions that resonated with people of a nation that have been burned out by the tragedy of war. He conducts a call- to-action for the American citizen to honor those who lost their lives, as they move forward and regain their strength and unity. He uses moves such as diction, allusion, contrast, as well as repetition to articulate his thoughts in a clear effective speech. His credibility can be found in his admiration and respect for these servicemen throughout the speech; Nevertheless the rest of the speech he successfully expresses a series of emotional appeals, ones that pertain to America’s responsibilities.
Imagine a historian, author of an award-winning dissertation and several books. He is an experienced lecturer and respected scholar; he is at the forefront of his field. His research methodology sets the bar for other academicians. He is so highly esteemed, in fact, that an article he has prepared is to be presented to and discussed by the United States’ oldest and largest society of professional historians. These are precisely the circumstances in which Ulrich B. Phillips wrote his 1928 essay, “The Central Theme of Southern History.” In this treatise he set forth a thesis which on its face is not revolutionary: that the cause behind which the South stood unified was not slavery, as such, but white supremacy. Over the course of fourteen elegantly written pages, Phillips advances his thesis with evidence from a variety of primary sources gleaned from his years of research. All of his reasoning and experience add weight to his distillation of Southern history into this one fairly simple idea, an idea so deceptively simple that it invites further study.
The year 1964 is known for civil rights activists, racist groups, and political strife. In order to achieve this goal and increase the speeches effectiveness, X utilizes a variety of rhetorical strategies within his speech. When analyzing the powerful and informative speech of Malcolm X, its evident that it’s a memorable one. The tonality of the speech employs anger and seriousness. This causes the audience to also to be filled with immense anger as he opens their understanding about the disputes going on in the society.
Many people remember President Abraham Lincoln as being a very gifted orator as well as a dignified leader of our country. Through his many speeches and writings, Abraham Lincoln captivated American minds and gained millions of followers. In Lincoln's "Perpetuation speech," given before the Young Men's Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois, in 1838, Lincoln himself stated that our country was in great danger. He speaks of people such as Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Napoleon and then asks, "Is it unreasonable to expect , that some man possessed of the loftiest genius, coupled with ambition sufficient to push it to its utmost stretch, will at some time, spring up among us?" (Grafton, page 7). In this, he shares his fear that some man with great ambition and power could exist in this country who is not satisfied with just the power of the presidency and strive for more than that. I believe that Lincoln had the power to be one of those people. When Lincoln's orations and writings are carefully analyzed, one can see how he used his wit and intelligence to manipulate the American people. With his intelligence and immense popularity, Lincoln could have easily been one of the men that he spoke of. He used his gift as an orator to get ahead and that, I believe, made him a threat to American society.
In the 19th century, the political climate could be closely related to a tooth gritting earthquake or a tremendous volcanic eruption. As Europe transitioned into Romanticism, socialists and classical liberals started rising from all over Europe with many different ideas. In America, slavery and social reforms were a hotbed of debate sparking many controversy’s, one of which almost lead to the secession of South Carolina. No one besides Charles Fourier, Alexis de Tocqueville, and John C. Calhoun represented the potent cocktail of varying social ideas and political theory of the 19th century better. These three were unique in their ideas and have a very impacting legacy.
34,000 people gathered around the nation’s capital to hear Abraham Lincoln give his “Second Inaugural Address”. Lincoln expressed in his address that he made his speech short because there is no time for a long one, considering the circumstances of the Civil War that they were in. His speech was only 703 words long, making it one of the shortest addresses ever (Ronald). In the “Second Inaugural Address”, Abraham Lincoln believes freedom is the ability to live life out from under the dictation of others and make choices for themselves and to do this the war had to be won and ended by the North, thus ending slavery.
Throughout history, many orators have utilized public speaking to persuade, inform, and commemorate. For example, Abraham Lincoln 's Gettysburg address, which commemorated the victory of the Union in the Battle of Gettysburg. Within the speech Lincoln memorialized the soldiers that fought courageously and emphasized the equality that would soon apply to all of the United States citizens. Still, in order to give a exceptional and influential speech there are a multitude of factors that one must consider before devising a speech. For instance, length, purpose, mobility, chronemics, and location are just some situational characteristics that public speakers must take into consideration before constructing a speech. Additionally, the central focal