Rhetorical Analysis of President Woodrow Wilsons War Message

With the status of the country’s belligerency heavily in question, an apprehensive President Woodrow Wilson prepared to request from an unmotivated and unprepared country a declaration of war against Germany. After exerting every attempt possible to retain the peace and honor of the United States, the President was finally forced to choose between the two, in which he opted for the latter (Seymour 26). As he sat down to compose his congressional address proposing war, the uncertainty of his decision overwhelmed him. He confided to a member of his cabinet, Frank Cobb, that he had never been as unsure about anything in his life as the judgment he was making for the nation (Baker 506). Through a rhetorical analysis of Wilson’s points of†¦show more content†¦He labeled the conflict as â€Å"a war against all nations† exemplifying the distress that other countries have experienced due to the unbiased and relentless bombing of their own neutral ships (Safire 111). By associating the United States with other friendly countries who are also at odds with Germany, Wilson’s cry for war seemed more convincing. He went on to assert that the choice made by the U.S must be befitting to the singular characteristics of the country and that they must be very clear what their motives upon entry into the war were: not vengeance or profession of physical might, but to defend the principles of peace and justice and â€Å"to set up amongst the free people of the world an observance of these ideals† (Safire 113). We were entering the war not to battle with the German people, but to combat a greater menace, the system that had impended these violations (Baker 512). The president proceeded with regard to his stance on neutrality. Aware of pacifists like Henry Cabot Lodge in the audience, Wilson appealed to those who had not forgotten his promises of keeping America out of war. He admitted that his assumption that armed neutrality would b e adequate in â€Å"safeguarding his people from unlawful violence† was in fact impossible and he had failed to â€Å"assert our neutral rights with arms, our right to use the seas against unlawful interference, our right to keep our people safe against unlawful violence†Show MoreRelatedWoodrow Wilson s War Message1405 Words   |  6 Pages Woodrow Wilson s War Message A Rhetorical Analysis Paper Cesar Gerardo Fragoso Texas AM International University Abstract On April 2, 1917, President Wilson wrote and spoke one of his famous speech: War Message. President Wilson wants to ensure the people s hope and faith from the war. As President Wilson (1917) stated in his speech Each nation must decide for itself how it will meet it... Our motive will not be revenge or the victorious assertion of the physical might of the nation, but onlyRead MoreRupert Murdoch ¬Ã‚ ¥S Media Monopoly5481 Words   |  22 PagesBibliography Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…. p. 17 Introduction The following term paper deals with the development of television from its early beginnings in the 1920s up to now. My attention focuses on the powers which influence what is shown on TV and the analysis of methods they use in order to manipulate the public opinion. Outlining the success story of this important means of mass media at the beginning of the first chapter, I will then explain the effects of globalisation on the TV market. ConsideringRead More Public Opinion and Television Essay5264 Words   |  22 Pagesof information presented on TV. Introduction The following term paper deals with the development of television from its early beginnings in the 1920s up to now. My attention focuses on the powers which influence what is shown on TV and the analysis of methods they use in order to manipulate the public opinion. Outlining the success story of this important means of mass media at the beginning of the first chapter, I will then explain the effects of globalisation on the TV market. ConsideringRead MoreOne Significant Change That Has Occurred in the World Between 1900 and 2005. Explain the Impact This Change Has Made on Our Lives and Why It Is an Important Change.163893 Words   |  656 Pages Agricultural and Pastoral Societies in Ancient and Classical History Jack Metzgar, Striking Steel: Solidarity Remembered Janis Appier, Policing Women: The Sexual Politics of Law Enforcement and the LAPD Allen Hunter, ed., Rethinking the Cold War Eric Foner, ed., The New American History. Revised and Expanded Edition E SSAYS ON _ T WENTIETH- C ENTURY H ISTORY Edited by Michael Adas for the American Historical Association TEMPLE UNIVERSITY PRESS PHILADELPHIA Temple