Ronald Reagan Address Rhetorical Analysis

In the early 1980’s the United States was still dealing with the repercussions of the Cold War. At this time, the Soviet Union was considered the United States’ most dangerous enemy and the public feared nuclear attack by the Soviets. Specific incidents such as the Soviet interference in the Middle East, specifically in Afghanistan, frustrated the United States because it affected oil supplies. Consequently, President Ronald Reagan took action in response to the aggressive behavior of the Soviets by boycotting the 1980 Moscow Olympic games and placing an embargo on goods. In March of 1983, Reagan gave the speech titled “Evil Empire” to the National Association of Evangelicals and to Florida Congressional Delegates. In this speech, Reagan
Because Reagan is giving his speech to the National Association of Evangelicals, which is a group that supports Christians around the United States, he uses his religious values to establish authority and to ensure that his points will be taken seriously. At the beginning of his speech, Reagan establishes himself as a good religious man. He starts by thanking the audience for their prayers because he and Nancy had “felt their presence in many times in many ways” and for them they had “made all the difference”. By thanking his audience for their prayer, Reagan demonstrates that not only does he appreciate the Christian community, he is a part of it, which makes him much more appealing to the public. Reagan then goes on to state that he does not “want to contribute to a stereotype” of an immoral, unrighteous politician. The president also describes himself as “noble,” “ god fearing,” and “dedicated”. Later in his speech, he takes the side of the association in an argument concerning the rights of prayer in public school, saying that American children are “entitled” to prayer in public school. By displaying his religious values, Reagan gains the support of his audience and also justifies the validity of his argument. He also proves that he is a moral and dedicated Christian and not an “evil” totalitarian leader, which causes
At the beginning of his speech, Reagan states that “freedom” and “personal liberty” are concepts that “prosper” when religion is prominent. This is significant because Reagan emphasizes the religiousness of the United States and the atheism of the Soviet Union. Therefore, he is implying that the Soviet Union is against freedom and liberty. Reagan also emphasizes that the United States government if fighting to “keep America strong and free” from enemies like the Soviet Union. He also states that “we will never give away our freedom,” which implies that the Soviets will try to take away the freedom of the American public. It is Reagan’s glittering generalities that caused the speech to resonate with his audience and the American public, because freedom, liberty, and prosperity are all values that are held in very high accord in the United States. Reagan uses loaded language to idealize the United States and to turn the public against the Soviet