Rhetorical Analysis Of John F. Kennedy's Address

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During the cold war, there were very many points at which we were driven close to nuclear midnight. At one point in the conflict, we were brought to one minute to midnight, this event being the Cuban Missile Crisis (CMC). John F. Kennedy’s address to the nation during the Cuban Missile Crisis was an exceedingly influential speech because of its reassurance of the American populous in the face of nuclear annihilation.

John F. Kennedy’s address to the nation during the Cuban Missile Crisis was a great and influential speech because it reassured its audience by explaining the dangers of their situation. First a bit of background on the Cuban missile crisis. Cuba felt threatened by the United States and sought help from the USSR or the Soviet …show more content…
And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender or submission.”(6) This excerpt states that firstly the United States set itself upon a rough path and the nation’s resolve will be tested, secondly he states that the worst thing that we could do it to do nothing, thirdly he states that the path that the nation is on is the best path that it can be on while still keeping its values, and finally he says that this is the cost of freedom. This reassures the American populous by telling them that they although they are not on the safest path currently, it is the best path for it aligns with what the nation stands for. This explains the situation to the American populous and thusly reassures them.

John F. Kennedy’s address to the nation during the Cuban Missile Crisis was a great and influential speech because it reassured its audience by reassuring the nation that America had not lost its ideals. During the speech, JFK states “Our goal is not the victory …show more content…
Kennedy’s address to the nation during the Cuban Missile Crisis was a great and influential speech because it reassured its audience by successfully persuading the American populous that the USSR was at fault for the crisis. For instance, JFK uses repetition to emphasize the wrongdoings of the USSR. This is shown here: “the Soviet Government publicly stated… "there is no need for the Soviet Government to shift its weapons for a retaliatory blow to any other country, for instance, Cuba”…"the Soviet Union has so powerful rockets to carry these nuclear warheads that there is no need to search for sites for them beyond the boundaries of the Soviet Union." That statement was false…"the Soviet Government would never become involved in rendering such assistance.“ That statement also was false.”(6) What the speaker is trying to show is that the Soviet Union has been the destabilizer of peace in the world. This argument, although wrong, works very well in the speaker’s favor because the American populous in this setting because they have been taught by propaganda that the Soviet Union is “purely evil”. JFK leverages the public’s hate and misinformation of the USSR successfully, and he uses this hate that has been imbued into American culture to rally the American people against the USSR. At another point in the speech, JFK states “Neither the United States of America nor the world community of nations can tolerate deliberate deception and offensive threats on the part of any
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