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WY5V8181
HR
// Notes were not included in the final submission.
// Religious tones
// gratitude
// continue work even though in good place
// vainglory = vanity and undue pride
// good stature of US =/= due to hard work, more like luck
// don't be boastful; be diplomatic
// humble
Subject: International Relations
Occasion: He is being elected. 1901 is before world wars, and US is thought
of as very successful on the world stage, mostly because it's
starting to colonize stuff (diplomacy)
Audience: "My fellow citizens." He wants public to support his diplomatic
approach to governance.
Purpose: Try to get America to be diplomatic on the world stage
Speaker: Roosevelt will assume this power ("big stick and speak softly")
Rhetorical device: elaborate syntax with a considerate biblical tone,
Roosevelt is delivering his inauguration speech to get the American
people to support and accomodate his preferred style of diplomacy and
international relations. Roosevelt's style consists of Big Stick
Diplomacy, where reasonable motivation is used in negotiations to
motivate compromise and agreement with the United States---the
negotiations themselves being friendly and theoretically occurring well
in advance of any legitimate crisis. Roosevelt appeals to the religious
(primarily Christian) belief system of his audience with elaborate
syntax and a considerate biblical tone which takes humanity as a whole.
His introduction readily establishes this biblical and theistic tone by
talking about a personified ``Giver of Good.'' This is directly related
to Christian theology with a personal and benevolent God which appeals
to the audience's sense of personal gain from this bounty, and leads
into talk of humility and great gratitude that the Bible preaches.
Roosevelt uses words like ``vainglory'' and ``abiding'' to push this
idea that there is a specific personal power which has allowed the US to
get this far and that Roosevelt's style of local governance will follow
this: that the hard-working American to which this appeals (``vigor and
effort'' and ``virtue'') will thrive under a government which takes
these values as its own, and that Roosevelt's will be that government.
Roosevelt takes these domestic theological values and extends them
further by reusing much of the biblical tone towards two points:
humanity as a whole deserves the kindness and involvement of the United
States government and that international diplomacy is the extent of such
an attitude. The specific words ``in our deeds...spirit of just and
generous,'' ``wrongdoing,'' and ``righteousness'' maintain the biblical
tone because religious oughtness is useful to convince his audience and
the idea that the US is backed by a great benevolent power established
in the last paragraph builds towards the belief that Roosevelt's int'l
affairs will act as fairly towards other nations, and the biblical tones
help to reduce the possible counterpoint of nationalistic isolationism
which is very popular at the time.
After creating this framework of ideals based in Christian good faith,
Roosevelt returns to the idea of great growth in prosperity but with the
added caveats that continued prosperity will require continued sacrifice
and that prosperity is not singularly beneficial (``care and anxiety'').
The person who considers themselves a hard-working American is being
targeted by this speech and this section in particular. Industrial
development and a ``rise to greatness'' by the US are intended to tell
this person being targeted by the speech that, by virtue of thriving in
this ``complex and intense'' environment, that he or she has high
``energy, self-reliance, and individual initiative,'' which contributes
to the country at large. Because Roosevelt is such a proponent of
diplomacy at a time when isolationism is fashionable, he is trying to
link that ideology to fear and shirking from duty. Because he has
phrased this approach as a duty of the American citizen, Roosevelt
has developed the emotional argument that support of the government's
``unbending, unflinching purpose'' will work towards ``the welfare of
mankind,'' which is a biblical imperative.
The emotional arguments which appeal directly to the ``hardworking
American patriot'' ideal's sense of righteousness and virtue push a
listener of this speech towards support of strong-handed government
endeavour and international connections of the American government.
Theistic tone and the connection of government action to a higher
calling make the listener believe that Roosevelt's government will
uphold his or her own beliefs and values.
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