The Evil Empire - 1318 Words

Courtney Professor English 1302 20 September 2013 An Analysis of Ronald Reagan’s â€Å"The Evil Empire.† Ronald Reagan gave a speech in Orlando, Florida on March 8, 1983 called, â€Å"The Evil Empire.† This speech was intended for the ears of all Americans and is one of the best known presidential speeches ever given. In his speech, Reagan uses multiple rhetorical strategies such as; metaphors, allusions, rhetorical questions, tone, pathos, and uses references from the bible. He talks about all the main points of abortion, teenage sex, drugs, the Soviet Union, and the practice of praying and God in our public schools. His speech was very well written, moving, and extremely influential. This speech shows the president’s belief that the†¦show more content†¦The first use of metaphors in this speech is, â€Å"Yes, let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream† (Reagan 5). The use of this metaphor is referring to everlasting justice and righteousness in what Reaga n believes as the spiritual awakening that is about to initiate in the United States of America. Reagan also uses a simile in â€Å"The Evil Empire† speech. The simile he uses is, â€Å"We know that living in this world means dealing with what philosophers would call the phenomenology of evil or, as theologians would put it, the doctrine of sin† (Reagan 5). The use of this simile in this speech is stated to show that no matter what we do or what happens we will never be able to fully rid the world of evil. It is inevitable. Human kind will always have to face evil. It is just up to us to battle evil the best way that we can. The final two rhetorical strategies I found in â€Å"The Evil Empire† speech given by Ronald Reagan was the usage of pathos and logos. An example of pathos in this speech is when Reagan refers to the abortion matter that was taking place in this time period. He states that, â€Å"Unless and until it can be proven that the unborn child is no t a living entity, then its right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness must be protected† (Reagan 4). The use of this sentence is to appeal to the audience’s emotions and get the audience to start thinking about what abortion really is. Reagan wants the American people to realize whatShow MoreRelatedIs The Evil Empire `` Speech Propaganda?952 Words   |  4 PagesCameron Schwartz 5/6/15 Literature Final Paper Is the â€Å"Evil Empire† Speech Propaganda There are many different definitions of propaganda that people use. Propaganda is politicians deceiving the public into what the politicians want them to know or believe (Altschull). This definition is used to show how politicians can use propaganda. There are many ways to use propaganda. 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