How Is Pearl Harbor Address Similar To George Bush's 9/11 Speech

Some of the greatest speeches in American history have come on right after the greatest tragedies. Lincoln's “Gettysburg Address”, Reagan's speech after the Challenger Shuttle accident, and Wilson's “War Message to Congress” are all examples of how the times molded some of the most powerful speeches in U.S history. Although crises are horrible things that destroy American lives, they often set up for some of the most powerful speeches that change history. Two examples of this concept are Franklin D. Roosevelt's "Day that Will Live in Infamy" Pearl Harbor speech and George Bush’s “Great People Have Been Moved” 9/11 speech. Each given the day after an unprecedented attack on American soil, these speeches would change the U.S forever. FDR’s speech was involve America in a bloody world war that would forge the U.S. into a superpower and rival to the USSR, Bush’s would change America into a force against terror across the world. Both of these speeches were incredibly powerful because of their timing, tone, and how they connected with the people of the nation. …show more content…
FDR's speech was very direct and to the point, using very little imagery and relying on powerful words to emphasize points. Some examples of this would be the lines, "righteous might will win through to absolute victory" and "the unprovoked and dastardly attack." By emphasizing certain concepts with powerful words FDR makes his speech more effective. Aside from using powerful words FDR’s speech is entirely facts, something that adds to its effectiveness. About a quarter of the speech was just listing off the places that Japan had attacked in conjunction with Pearl