In 1961, JFK made his inaugural speech as the 35th United States President to be in office. In his speech, Kennedy addressed the nation by giving the people motivation and inspiration to make changes. It was a time to make peace, not for chaos and destruction. All the worries about the overseas threats were only the beginning, yet as a country we would defend our rights. In the beginning of the speech, Kennedy makes it clear that man has the ability to wipe out the human race. Yet, a new generation of Americans has come to protect the nation.
Throughout his speech, Kennedy uses different strategies including ethos, pathos and logos, to grab the audience’s full attention and take his words in. Not only does Kennedy use these three strategies but he also uses repetition to make his point strong and also memorable. He asks the audience questions that begin a new form of thinking and working towards the process of change. The subject of his inaugural speech is to address not only the nation, who is his intended audience, but others around the world hearing his message.
The first example of logos is when he says, “To those people in the huts and villages across the globe struggling to break the bonds of mass misery, we pledge our best efforts to help them help themselves, for whatever period is required—not because the Communists may be doing it, not because we seek their votes, but because it is right. If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.” In these sentences Kennedy uses logos to appeal to the audience’s common sense that the people in the United States are not the only one’s suffering. There are others around the world who have it worse, and it is our duty to help them get to a better position, as he states, not because we want anything from them but because it is the right thing to do. He draws the example of saying if a society who, like the U.S, cannot save those who are worse off, how do they expect to save themselves. This is clearly pointing out logic to help the audience understand the position they find themselves in, and how much power they have to make a change. He uses other examples to appeal to the audience’s logic such as, “All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it be finished in the first 1,000 days, nor in the life of the Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.” The logic here is to show that although the change will not be immediate, the important thing is to start or nothing will be fixed.
Kennedy uses his authority or credibility as the new president of the U.S to reach his audience. He uses an expression of goodwill to let the audience know that they are in good hands. Kennedy was a religious person and uses examples from the bible to make his point clear. He uses a verse from the biblical book of Isaiah that makes a connection to his point of unifying both opposing sides, “Let both sides unite to heed in all corners of the earth the command of Isaiah—to "undo the heavy burdens ... and to let the oppressed go free." Kennedy demonstrates that he has good moral character by willing to defend the nation’s freedom and taking that responsibility, not just because he is the president, but because he is a citizen of the U.S. As he states in his speech, “In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility—I welcome it.” Given this authority, the position of a leader and the U.S president, Kennedy will do what needs to be done to ensure the welfare of the nation.
The appeal Kennedy seems to use more than any is pathos. He uses the fear of war and communism to prove to the people that the biggest threat out there is humanity itself. The fear of a nuclear war drove his main points as well as his first sentence in his speech. “The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life.” Although he stirs the fear within his people by making this statement, he eases there worries by requesting to those nations that wish them harm, for peace. Kennedy asks these nations just how far they will go before the power of science destroys them and us. It is man who created nuclear weapons in their quest to increase scientific knowledge. It is man who is capable of causing destruction, whether it be intentional or not. It is man who has put themselves in the very position of fear of war. Kennedy uses the fear of loss to invoke pathos and then uses promise of gain to persuade the audience into making a change for the problems they started.
To make his speech memorable, Kennedy uses repetition throughout his speech to help the people remember what it is he said. He begins a serious of paragraphs that follow each other with “To”. This shows how he is addressing a diverse group of people. Not only those who stand before him, listening to his speech, but also those people who happen to hear him in different parts of the world, both allies and enemies. He addresses the point of unity of both opposing sides by repeating, “Let both sides” at the beginning of some sentences. By repeating these three words it clearly defines the problems of the time, showing that as people living in the same world, we should all look towards discovering the beauty of science and not the bad part that will lead to our destruction.
In this short clip, highlighting some key words that Kennedy says, it is clear he means his words by the use pointing out towards the audience. Throughout Kennedy’s speech he is always pointing out to his audience, asking questions. By pointing out to the audience, it demonstrates how imperative his words are. It makes it feel as if he is singling you out, not in a bad way but to effectively say change begins with one small movement. To really draw his point in and completely receive the favor of the U.S citizens, he asks these famous words which are still in this day in age moving, “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.”
Citations
1. Inaugural Address, Kennedy Draft, 01/17/1961; Papers of John F. Kennedy: President's Office Files, 01/20/1961-11/22/1963; John F. Kennedy Library; National Archives and Records Administration.
2. "John F. Kennedy Inaugural Address Excerpts 1961." YouTube. YouTube, 15 Oct. 2009. Web. 10 Feb. 2015.
3. Kennedy, John F. "Inaugural Address (1961)." Presidential Inaugural Address. Washington D.C. Speech.
