Rhetorical Devices I
There are three types of appeals to ethos: credibility, ethics, morality. Which is this: "No man thinks more highly than I do of the patriotism, as well as abilities, of the very worthy gentlemen who have just addressed the House"?
Appeal to credibility
Name that device: " Suffer not yourselves to be betrayed with a kiss."
Allusion
What does Henry mean when he says “…in proportion to the magnitude of the subject ought to be the freedom of the debate?”
Because the issue of colonial liberty is such an important issue, everyone should be able to share their views on how the colonists should move forward to secure their liberty.
What does Henry believe the colonists must do if they mean to maintain their freedom and natural rights?
They must fight.
What are the exigencies for Henry's speech?
British aggressive actions
British ignoring the colonies pleas
Taxation without representation
There are three types of appeals to ethos: credibility, ethics, morality. Which is this: "Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offence, I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country, and of an act of disloyalty toward the majesty of heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings."
Moral Appeal
Name that device: "We have petitioned; we have remonstrated; we have supplicated; we have prostrated ourselves before the throne, and have implored its interposition to arrest the tyrannical hands of the ministry and Parliament."
What does Henry mean when he says that hope is an “illusion”? Why, according to Henry, do people often cling to hope?
Hope allows people to ignore their reality, and they cling to that hope because doing so allows them to ignore painful truths.
To what does Henry compare remaining under British rule?
slavery
SPEAKER: How does Henry present himself to the audience and why do you say so?
Patriotic, level headed, open-minded, experienced, respectful, knowledgeable
Name that device: "We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts."
Allusion
Name that device: "If we wish to be free² if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending²if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged..."
Anaphora
What have the British done that Henry views as acts of aggression?
The have sent armies and navies to the colonies.
Henry suggests that the time to act is now. Why?
Waiting will not make them stronger. It will only give the British time to solidify their aggressive position in the colonies.
What is the purpose of Henry's speech?
To get the colonists to stop trying to negotiate with the British and fight for their liberty
Name that device: "Is this the part of wise men, engaged in a great and arduous struggle for liberty?"
Rhetorical Question
DAILY DOUBLE: There are two devices in this excerpt. Name them: "...which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained, we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight!"
Epistrophe and Repetition
What have the colonists done for the last ten years to try to reconcile their differences with the British? What has been the result?
The have tried peaceful negotiations but the British have ignored them.
What is Henry's overall tone? Why do you say so?
Urgent
What is Henry's central message?
The colonists have tried unsuccessfully to negotiate with the British, and now the only option they have to secure their liberty to is fight for it.
Name that device: "I have but one lamp by which my feet are guided; and that is the lamp of experience."
Metaphor
Name that appeal: "Three millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we possess, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us."
According to Henry, the colonists’ actions make them seem (adjective)
weak
Identify an example of powerful imagery from Henry's speech and explain why it is so compelling. In other words, explain how it is intended to impact the audience? (5 senses)
Varies
What is at least one assumption that Henry makes about his audience and why do you say so?
Christians, knowledgeable about the current situation, patriotic, reluctant to fight