Thinking Passages: Persuading with Political Speeches
For an audio archive of speeches from key political and social personalities of the past century,
visit The History Channel (http://www.historychannel.com/speeches/archive1.html). An archive
of important American speeches, with biographical and contextual information about each
speaker as well as video and audio clips, see PBS Great American Speeches
(http://www.pbs.org/greatspeeches/timeline/index.html).
Here are some examples of political rhetoric delivered in times of great crisis.
After reading the selections, answer the questions at the conclusion of the readings.
FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT, “DAY OF INFAMY” SPEECH (DECEMBER 8, 1941)
To the Congress of the United States
Yesterday, Dec. 7, 1941 — a date which will live in infamy — the United States of
America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.
The United States was at peace with that nation and, at the solicitation of Japan, was still
in conversation with the government and its emperor looking toward the maintenance of peace in
the Pacific.
Indeed, one hour after Japanese air squadrons had commenced bombing in Oahu, the
Japanese ambassador to the United States and his colleagues delivered to the Secretary of State a
formal reply to a recent American message. While this reply stated that it seemed useless to
continue the existing diplomatic negotiations, it contained no threat or hint of war or armed
attack.
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It will be recorded that the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack
was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago. During the intervening time, the
Japanese government has deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false statements
and expressions of hope for continued peace.
The attack yesterday on the Hawaiian islands has caused severe damage to American
naval and military forces. Very many American lives have been lost. In addition, American ships
have been reported torpedoed on the high seas between San Francisco and Honolulu.
Yesterday, the Japanese government also launched an attack against Malaya.
Last night, Japanese forces attacked Hong Kong. Last night, Japanese forces attacked Guam.
Last night, Japanese forces attacked the Philippine Islands. Last night, the Japanese attacked
Wake Island. The morning, the Japanese attacked Midway Island. Japan has, therefore,
undertaken a surprise offensive extending throughout the Pacific area. The facts of yesterday
speak for themselves. The people of the United States have already formed their opinions and
well understand the implications to the very life and safety of our nation.
As commander in chief of the Army and Navy, I have directed that all measures be taken
for our defense.
Always will we remember the character of the onslaught against us. No matter how long
it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous
might will win through to absolute victory.
I believe I interpret the will of the Congress and of the people when I assert that we will not only
defend ourselves to the uttermost, but will make very certain that this form of treachery shall
never endanger us again.
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Hostilities exist. There is no blinking at the fact that our people, our territory and our
interests are in grave danger.
With confidence in our armed forces — with the unbounding determination of our people
— we will gain the inevitable triumph — so help us God.
I ask that the Congress declare that since the unprovoked and dastardly attack by Japan
on Sunday, Dec. 7, a state of war has existed between the United States and the Japanese empire.
WINSTON CHURCHILL, “BE YE MEN OF VALOUR” SPEECH (MAY 19, 1940)
First Broadcast as Prime Minister
I speak to you for the first time as Prime Minister in a solemn hour for the life of our
country, of our empire, of our allies, and above all, of the cause of Freedom. A tremendous battle
is raging in France and Flanders. The Germans, by a remarkable combination of air bombing and
heavily armored tanks, have broken through the French defenses north of the Maginot Line, and
strong columns of their armored vehicles are ravaging the open country, which for the first day
or two was without defenders. They have penetrated deeply and spread alarm and confusion in
their track. Behind them there are now appearing infantry in lorries, and behind them, again, the
large masses are moving forward. The re-groupment of the French armies to make head against,
and also to strike at, this intruding wedge has been proceeding for several days, largely assisted
by the magnificent efforts of the Royal Air Force.
We must not allow ourselves to be intimidated by the presence of these armored vehicles
in unexpected places behind our lines. If they are behind our Front, the French are also at many
points fighting actively behind theirs. Both sides are therefore in an extremely dangerous
position. And if the French Army, and our own Army, are well handled, as I believe they will be;
if the French retain that genius for recovery and counter-attack for which they have so long been
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famous; and if the British Army shows the dogged endurance and solid fighting power of which
there have been so many examples in the past — then a sudden transformation of the scene
might spring into being.
It would be foolish, however, to disguise the gravity of the hour. It would be still more
foolish to lose heart and courage or to suppose that well- trained, well-equipped armies
numbering three or four millions of men can be overcome in the space of a few weeks, or even
months, by a scoop, or raid of mechanized vehicles, however formidable. We may look with
confidence to the stabilization of the Front in France, and to the general engagement of the
masses, which will enable the qualities of the French and British soldiers to be matched squarely
against those of their adversaries. For myself, I have invincible confidence in the French Army
and its leaders. Only a very small part of that splendid Army has yet been heavily engaged; and
only a very small part of France has yet been invaded. There is a good evidence to show that
practically the whole of the specialized and mechanized forces of the enemy have been already
thrown into the battle; and we know that very heavy losses have been inflicted upon them. No
officer or man, no brigade or division, which grapples at close quarters with the enemy, wherever
encountered, can fail to make a worthy contribution to the general result. The Armies must cast
away the idea of resisting behind concrete lines or natural obstacles, and must realize that
mastery can only be regained by furious and unrelenting assault. And this spirit must not only
animate the High Command, but must inspire every fighting man.
In the air — often at serious odds, often at odds hitherto thought overwhelming — we
have been clawing down three or four to one of our enemies; and the relative balance of the
British and German Air Forces is now considerably more favorable to us than at the beginning of
the battle. In cutting down the German bombers, we are fighting our own battle as well as that of
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France. My confidence in our ability to fight it out to the finish with the German Air Force has
been strengthened by the fierce encounters which have taken place and are taking place. At the
same time, our heavy bombers are striking nightly at the tap-root of German mechanized power,
and have already inflicted serious damage upon the oil refineries on which the Nazi effort to
dominate the world directly depends.
We must expect that as soon as stability is reached on the Western Front, the bulk of that
hideous apparatus of aggression which gashed Holland into ruin and slavery in a few days will
be turned upon us. I am sure I speak for all when I say we are ready to face it; to ensure it; and to
retaliate against it —to any extent that the unwritten laws of war permit. There will be many men
and many women in the Island who when the ordeal comes upon them, as come it will, will feel
comfort, and even a pride, that they are sharing the perils of our lads at the Front — soldiers,
sailors and airmen, God bless them — and are drawing away from them a part at least of the
onslaught they have to bear. Is not this the appointed time for all to make the utmost exertions in
their power? If the battle is to be won, we must provide our men with ever-increasing quantities
of the weapons and ammunition they need. We must have, and have quickly, more aeroplanes,
more tanks, more shells, more guns. There is imperious need for these vital munitions. They
increase our strength against the powerfully armed enemy. They replace the wastage of the
obstinate struggle; and the knowledge that wastage will speedily be replaced enables us to draw
more readily upon our reserves and throw them in now that everything counts so much.
Our task is not only to win the battle — but to win the war. After this battle in France
abates its force, there will come the battle for our Island — for all that Britain is, and all that
Britain means. That will be the struggle. In that supreme emergency we shall not hesitate to take
every step, even the most drastic, to call forth from our people the last ounce and the last inch of
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effort of which they are capable. The interests of property, the hours of labor, are nothing
compared with the struggle of life and honor, for right and freedom, to which we have vowed
ourselves. I have received from the Chiefs of the French Republic, and in particular from its
indomitable Prime Minister,
M. Reynaud, the most sacred pledges that whatever happens they will fight to the end, be
it bitter or be it glorious. Nay, if we fight to the end, it can only be glorious. Having received His
Majesty’s commission, I have formed an Administration of men and women of every Party and
of almost every point of view. We have differed and quarreled in the past; but now one bond
unites us all — to wage war until victory is won, and never to surrender ourselves to servitude
and shame, whatever the cost and the agony may be. This is one of the most awe-striking periods
in the long history of France and Britain. It is also beyond doubt the most sublime. Side by side,
unaided except by their kith and kin in the great Dominions and by the wide empires which rest
beneath their shield — side by side, the British and French peoples have advanced to rescue not
only Europe but mankind from the foulest and most soul-destroying tyranny which has ever
darkened and stained the pages of history. Behind them — behind us — behind the Armies and
Fleets of Britain and France — gather a group of shattered States and bludgeoned races: the
Czechs, the Poles, the Norwegians, the Danes, the Dutch, the Belgians — upon all of whom the
long night of barbarism will descend, unbroken even by a star of hope, unless we conquer, as
conquer we must; as conquer we shall.
Today is Trinity Sunday. Centuries ago words were written to be a call and a spur to the
faithful servants of Truth and Justice: “Arm yourselves, and be ye men of valour, and be in
readiness for the conflict; for it is better for us to perish in battle than to look upon the outrage of
our nation and our altar. As the Will of God is in Heaven, even so let it be.”
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GEORGE W. BUSH, FROM “ADDRESS ON TERRORISM
BEFORE A JOINT MEETING OF CONGRESS” (SEPTEMBER 21, 2001)
On September the 11th, enemies of freedom committed an act of war against our country.
Americans have known wars, but for the past 136 years they have been wars on foreign soil,
except for one Sunday in 1941. Americans have known the casualties of war, but not at the
center of a great city on a peaceful morning. Americans have known surprise attacks, but never
before on thousands of civilians. All of this was brought upon us in a single day, and night fell
on a different world, a world where freedom itself is under attack.
Americans have many questions tonight. Americans are asking, “Who attacked our
country?” The evidence we have gathered all points to a collection of loosely affiliated terrorist
organizations known as al Qaeda. They are some of the murderers indicted for bombing
American embassies in Tanzania and Kenya and responsible for bombing the USS Cole. Al
Qaeda is to terror what the Mafia is to crime. But its goal is not making money; its goal is
remaking the world and imposing its radical beliefs on people everywhere. The terrorists practice
a fringe form of Islamic extremism that has been rejected by Muslim scholars and the vast
majority of Muslim clerics; a fringe movement that perverts the peaceful teachings of Islam. The
terrorists’ directive commands them to kill Christians and Jews, to kill all Americans and make
no distinctions among military and civilians, including women and children. This group and its
leader, a person named Osama bin Laden, are linked to many other organizations in different
countries, including the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.
Americans are asking, “Why do they hate us?” They hate what they see right here in this
chamber: a democratically elected government. Their leaders are self-appointed. They hate our
freedoms: our freedom of religion, our freedom of speech, our freedom to vote and assemble and
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disagree with each other. They want to overthrow existing governments in many Muslim
countries such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan. They want to drive Israel out of the Middle
East. They want to drive Christians and Jews out of vast regions of Asia and Africa. These
terrorists kill not merely to end lives, but to disrupt and end a way of life. With every atrocity,
they hope that America grows fearful, retreating from the world and forsaking our friends. They
stand against us because we stand in their way.
We’re not deceived by their pretenses to piety. We have seen their kind before. They’re
the heirs of all the murderous ideologies of the 20th century. By sacrificing human life to serve
their radical visions, by abandoning every value except the will to power, they follow in the path
of fascism, Nazism and totalitarianism. And they will follow that path all the way to where it
ends in history’s unmarked grave of discarded lies. Every nation in every region now has a
decision to make: Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists. From this day forward,
any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as
a hostile regime.
Tonight I thank my fellow Americans for what you have already done and for what you
will do. After all that has just passed, all the lives taken and all the possibilities and hopes that
died with them, it is natural to wonder if America’s future is one of fear. Some speak of an age of
terror. I know there are struggles ahead and dangers to face. But this country will define our
times, not be defined by them. As long as the United States of America is determined and strong,
this will not be an age of terror. This will be an age of liberty here and across the world.
Great harm has been done to us. We have suffered great loss. And in our grief and anger
we have found our mission and our moment. Freedom and fear are at war. The advance of
human freedom, the great achievement of our time and the great hope of every time, now
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depends on us. Our nation, this generation, will lift the dark threat of violence from our people
and our future. We will rally the world to this cause by our efforts, by our courage. We will not
tire, we will not falter and we will not fail. It is my hope that in the months and years ahead life
will return almost to normal. We’ll go back to our lives and routines and that is good. Even grief
recedes with time and grace. But our resolve must not pass. Each of us will remember what
happened that day and to whom it happened. We will remember the moment the news came,
where we were and what we were doing.
Some will remember an image of a fire or story or rescue. Some will carry memories of a
face and a voice gone forever. And I will carry this. It is the police shield of a man named
George Howard who died at the World Trade Center trying to save others. It was given to me by
his mom, Arlene, as a proud memorial to her son. It is my reminder of lives that ended and a task
that does not end. I will not forget the wound to our country and those who inflicted it. I will not
yield, I will not rest, I will not relent in waging this struggle for freedom and security for the
American people. The course of this conflict is not known, yet its outcome is certain. Freedom
and fear, justice and cruelty, have always been at war, and we know that God is not neutral
between them.
Fellow citizens, we’ll meet violence with patient justice, assured of the rightness of our
cause and confident of the victories to come. In all that lies before us, may God grant us wisdom
and may he watch over the United States of America.
PRIME MINISTER TONY BLAIR (OCTOBER 2, 2001)
In retrospect, the Millennium marked only a moment in time. It was the events of
September 11 that marked a turning point in history, where we confront the dangers of the future
and assess the choices facing humankind. It was a tragedy. An act of evil. From this nation, goes
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our deepest sympathy and prayers for the victims and our profound solidarity with the American
people. We were with you at the first. We will stay with you to the last.
I know that here in Britain people are anxious, even a little frightened. I understand that.
People know we must act but they worry what might follow. . . . Every reasonable measure of
internal security is being undertaken.
Our way of life is a great deal stronger and will last a great deal longer than the actions of
fanatics, small in number and now facing a unified world against them. People should have
confidence. This is a battle with only one outcome: our victory not theirs.
What happened on 11 September was without parallel in the bloody history of terrorism. Within
a few hours, up to 7000 people were annihilated, the commercial centre of New York was
reduced to rubble and in Washington and Pennsylvania further death and horror on an
unimaginable scale. Let no one say this was a blow for Islam when the blood of innocent
Muslims was shed along with those of the Christian, Jewish and other faiths around the world.
We know those responsible. In Afghanistan are scores of training camps for the export of terror.
Chief amongst the sponsors and organisers is Usama Bin Laden. He is supported, shielded and
given succour by the Taliban regime. . . . Be in no doubt: Bin Laden and his people organised
this atrocity. The Taliban aid and abet him. He will not desist from further acts of terror. They
will not stop helping him.
Whatever the dangers of the action we take, the dangers of inaction are far, far greater.
The action we take will be proportionate; targeted; we will do all we humanly can to avoid
civilian casualties. But understand what we are dealing with. Listen to the calls of those
passengers on the planes. Think of the children on them, told they were going to die. Think of
the cruelty beyond our comprehension as amongst the screams and the anguish of the innocent,
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those hijackers drove at full throttle planes laden with fuel into buildings where tens of thousands
worked.
They have no moral inhibition on the slaughter of the innocent. If they could have
murdered not 7,000 but 70,000 does anyone doubt they would have done so and rejoiced in it?
There is no compromise possible with such people, no meeting of minds, no point of
understanding with such terror. Just a choice: defeat it or be defeated by it. And defeat it we
must.
OSAMA BIN LADEN, VIDEO STATEMENT (OCTOBER 7, 2001)
Here is America struck by God Almighty in one of its vital organs, so that its greatest
buildings are destroyed. Grace and gratitude to God. America has been filled with horror from
north to south and east to west, and thanks be to God that what America is tasting now is only a
copy of we have tasted.
Our Islamic nation has been tasting the same for more than 80 years, of humiliation and
disgrace, its sons killed and their blood spilled, its sanctities desecrated. God has blessed a group
of vanguard Muslims, the forefront of Islam, to destroy America. May God bless them and allot
them a supreme place in heaven, for He is the only one capable and entitled to do so. When those
have stood in defence of their weak children, their brothers and sisters in Palestine and other
Muslim nations, the whole world went into an uproar, the infidels followed by the hypocrites.
A million innocent children are dying at this time as we speak, killed in Iraq without any
guilt. We hear no denunciation, we hear no edict from the hereditary rulers. In these days, Israeli
tanks rampage across Palestine, in Ramallah, Rafah and Beit Jala and many other parts of the
land of Islam, and we do not hear anyone raising his voice or reacting. But when the sword fell
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upon America after 80 years, hypocrisy raised its head up high bemoaning those killers who
toyed with the blood, honour and sanctities of Muslims.
The least that can be said about those hypocrites is that they are apostates who followed
the wrong path. They backed the butcher against the victim, the oppressor against the innocent
child. I seek refuge in God against them and ask Him to let us see them in what they deserve.
I say that the matter is very clear. Every Muslim after this event (should fight for their
religion), after the senior officials in the United States of America starting with the head of
international infidels, (U.S. President George W.) Bush and his staff who went on a display of
vanity with their men and horses, those who turned even the countries that believe in Islam
against us — the group that resorted to God, the Almighty, the group that refuses to be subdued
in its religion.
They (America) have been telling the world falsehoods that they are fighting terrorism. In
a nation at the far end of the world, Japan, hundreds of thousands, young and old, were killed and
(they say) this is not a world crime. To them it is not a clear issue. A million children (were
killed) in Iraq; to them this is not a clear issue.
But when a few more than 10 were killed in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, Afghanistan and Iraq
were bombed and hypocrisy stood behind the head of international infidels, the modern world’s
symbol of paganism, America, and its allies.
I tell them that these events have divided the world into two camps, the camp of the
faithful and the camp of infidels. May God shield us and you from them.
Every Muslim must rise to defend his religion. The wind of faith is blowing and the wind
of change is blowing to remove evil from the Peninsula of Mohammad, peace be upon him.
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As to America, I say to it and its people a few words: I swear to God that America will
not live in peace before peace reigns in Palestine, and before all the army of infidels depart the
land of Mohammad, peace be upon him.
God is the Greatest and glory be to Islam.
Questions for Analysis
1. Identify the euphemisms and emotive words that tend to keep reappearing in these various
speeches. Why do you think the authors/speakers chose the words that they did?
2. Identify the themes that keep reappearing in the various accounts. Why did the
authors/speakers choose these particular themes?
3. Rank the speeches in order, from most persuasive to least persuasive, and explain your
rationale for doing so.
4. Imagine that you were president of the United States during a national crisis. Compose a
speech that you believe would be persuasive to many people in America and the world. After
composing the speech, explain the rationale behind your work.
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