blog




  • Essay / War Rhetoric: Churchill and Henry V

    Table of ContentsIntroductionAnalysis “Blood, toil, tears and sweat” “Their finest hour” Churchill's similarity to Shakespeare's Henry VConclusionIntroductionWith exuberant passion, Winston Churchill uttered many speeches during the 1940s while World War II was underway. British citizens in London had very limited food and material rations and were forced to live in the underground subway due to continued bombing in London. Limited rations and inadequate living conditions led to low morale and a loss of hope. Due to these conditions, the rhetoric Churchill used in his speeches helped raise the morale of the country. It was because people wanted something to believe that Churchill's powerful rhetoric affected them so much. Two of Churchill's speeches that really lifted the nation's morale were "Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat", Churchill's first speech as Prime Minister, and "Their Finest Hour". These two speeches were addressed to the House of Commons and the British government and were delivered just months before the Battle of Britain. The British people did not want the country to suffer another battle and were willing for the government to make a deal with Hitler. Conversely, Churchill believed that Britain could prevail and hold back the Germans. Using many rhetorical skills, he used his speeches "Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat" and "Their Finest Hour" to convince soldiers, citizens and the government to rally behind him and maintain morale like his speeches inspired him. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get an Original Essay: “Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat” Analysis In “Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat” by Winston Churchill, he uses rhetorical devices such as repetition, ethos (appeal to credibility) and pathos (appeal to emotion) to raise morale and inspire one's listeners. Churchill uses the repetition of the word victory in the quote: “It is victory, victory at all costs, victory despite all the terror, victory, however long and difficult the road; for without victory there is no survival” (“Blood, toil, tears and sweat,” Churchill). The goal is to make the audience understand that, yes, continuing the war will be incredibly challenging, but that it will ultimately end in victory. Churchill also uses the repetition of the phrase "no survival" in the quote: "no survival for the British Empire, no survival for all that the British Empire stood for, no survival for the impulse and the impulse of the ages, that humanity advances towards its goal” (“Blood, Toil, Tears, and Sweat,” Churchill). The purpose of repeating this phrase is to emphasize to British citizens and the British government that if the British surrender, the British Empire will be taken over. This made the government understand that giving up was not a choice. In “Blood, Toil, Tears, and Sweat,” Winston Churchill uses pathos to make the audience feel emotions such as fear. By using the same quote, Churchill is able to inspire fear in his audience. The quote "no survival for the British Empire, no survival for all that the British Empire stood for, no survival for the pulse and the drive of the ages, for humanity to advance towards its goal" (“Blood, toil, tears”). , and Sweat”, Churchill) made the British fear that the country would be invaded by the Germans if they did not continue the war. The people and government ofBritain wants to maintain control of their country and the fear of losing this control to the Germans motivates them to want to win the war and, therefore, continue the battles. Finally, Winston Churchill uses ethos to allow the audience to see him as one of their own. His quote "I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat" ("Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat", Churchill) shows that he must work hard to win this war, as everyone.This quote allows him to create a characteristic spirit of unity here by allowing British citizens and soldiers to see him as one of their own and show that they are not alone. Although there are many examples of rhetorical devices used in this speech, the ethos, pathos, and repetition really allowed Winston Churchill to convey that the people must choose the difficult path. The British people knew the war was important, but Churchill wanted them to know that there was too much to lose if they abandoned the war. He wanted them to understand that the outcome of war is only worth the time or effort you put into it and to fight for their survival. If you put in the effort and win, you will reap the benefits, if you just step back to end the war, your actions have no glory or meaning. Winston Churchill also wanted this quote to inspire people to want to continue the war despite the difficult living conditions it caused. “Their Finest Hour” “Their Finest Hour” had a very similar focus to “Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat.” With the same passion seen in his delivery of “Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat,” Winston Churchill uttered “Their finest hour” after the defeat of the French and the lack of hope of the British citizens Churchill, again, used rhetorical devices such as ethos, logos (appeal to logic) and. pathos to strengthen morale and unity, knowing that the British trusted him, Winston Churchill created an atmosphere of fear by declaring: “What General Weygand called the Battle of France is over. the Battle of Britain is about to begin” (“Their finest hour,” Churchill). The mention of France’s defeat scares the British because the same thing could happen to them. Because they trust. in Churchill, they trust that he will tell them what to do. The fear aroused by this statement made it clear that the British must do something to prevent them from losing the eminent Battle of Britain. This declaration gives them a reason to rally to the war. Winston Churchill uses logos in the quote “Hitler knows he will have to break us on this island or lose the war.” If we can stand up to him, all Europe could be free and the life of the world could move on on vast sunny plateaus” (“The Finest Hour,” Churchill). This part of the speech requires the audience to understand the logic of the response. This phrase lets them know that Hitler must defeat the British to win the war and knowing that this gives them an advantage over him by knowing what he is going to do. Winston Churchill again uses pathos to create an evocation of hope. His quote “But if we fail, then the whole world, including the United States, including everything we have known and cared for…” (“The Finest Hour”, Churchill) makes people understand that They are not alone. This quote shows that not only do British citizens have each other, but the entire country of Great Britain also has the United States. The mention of the United States brings new hope to the British because they knew thatWinston Churchill used this part of his speech to reach out to the United States. The citizens and government were aware that the United States could provide aid with war materials and hoped that the United States would respond to Churchill's message and provide them with what they needed to succeed in the war. The mention of the United States also sparked a sense of unity. The British citizens and government felt they had an ally who wanted them to succeed and was willing to help them. This new sense of unity, along with all the other rhetorical devices used by Churchill, brought a second wave of unity and morality to British citizens, which allowed Britain to defeat Germany. Finally, thanks to Winston Churchill's position as Prime Minister which gave him credibility and his speeches, he was able to easily appeal to the ethos. Because the British public viewed Churchill as a credible source, they listened and took to heart what he had to say. Without this credibility, Churchill's speeches would not have been taken as seriously and people would not have so readily believed everything he said regarding the war. This speech, like the one analyzed before, is just another example of how Winston Churchill was able to inspire his country to continue World War II and defeat the Germans. Churchill's similarity to Shakespeare's Henry VA character with very similar war rhetoric Winston Churchill is Shakespeare's King Henry V. Before the famous Battle of Agincourt, Henry V's men were tired, cold and hungry. They knew they were outnumbered by the French and, although they had no option of giving up, they saw no point in continuing the war. Due to the low morale and motivation of the soldiers, they would have gone into battle and lost. King Henry, very passionate about winning the war, gave an emotional speech that completely transformed the morale of his men. Henry V accomplished this transformation of motivation by using rhetorical devices such as logos, ethos, and contrast. Logos, being the most powerful rhetorical device used by Henry V in his speech, played a huge role in encouraging and inspiring the English to continue the fight. First, to show the logic of continuing to fight, Henry V uses the quote "This day is called Crispian's Feast: He who survives this day and returns home safely, Will stand on tiptoe when the day will be named, And wake him in the name of Crispian” (Act 4, scene 3, 40-43) to make his men understand that they will be proud. When the war is over and the English have won, they will be proud to have fought on St Crispian's Day and proud to have decided to continue fighting. The second quote he used to convey logic to his men was: "He who lives today and sees old age, will celebrate every year to his neighbors, and say: 'Tomorrow is Saint Crispian's Day: » Then he will undress. his sleeve and show his scars. And say 'These wounds I had on Crispian's day'” (Act 4, scene 3, 43-48). Similar to the previous quote, this quote also tells the audience that they will be proud to fight this battle. Henry V knew these men and knew what they did in their daily lives and with this information he was able to target these men by telling them that when they go to a bar to have a drink they can roll up their sleeves , and with pride, show off their battle scars. The third and final example of King Henry V using logos in his speech is the.