In the late 1760's, Americans were on the verge of war with Britain. They needed an excuse to fight and gain independence. Patrick Henry's famous speech created one of the many excuses that drove the people to fight. In his speech, Patrick Henry emphasizes the use of rhetorical devices such as anaphora and allusion to expose British atrocities to the people so that they could join the war effort. Patrick Henry used anaphora as a tool to convince the people to fight for independence because of the bad things that Britain had done to them. The people had asked, but their "petitions ha[d] been slighted; [their] remonstrances ha[d] [only] produced additional violence and insult; [and] their supplications ha[d] been disregarded" by the British.
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Henry told the people "suffer not yourselves to be betrayed with a kiss" when he talked about separating from Britain. Since many Americans at the time were Christians, they were able to understand the allusion to Judas and Jesus. In the bible, Judas betrayed Jesus after a kiss, and in this case Britain is Judas and the Americans are Jesus. Therefore, the allusion demonstrated how Britain was going to betray the colonists just as Judas did. Also, since the Bible presented Judas as evil, the allusion emphasizes the fact that Britain is as evil as Judas due to Britain's actions. By showing the colonists the striking similarity between their situation and a situation that they're so familiar with, Henry successfully exposed Britain's foul treatment of the colonists. The information made Americans more likely to join war efforts due to hinting about the comparison between religion and politics. In a time period where absolute monarchy was at the beginning of becoming unpopular, Patrick Henry had to work especially hard to convince the Americans that Britain was their enemy and that they had to fight for their freedom. Henry's manipulation of anaphora and allusion helped persuade Americans to join war efforts and fight for their freedom as a response to British atrocities. The use of these rhetorical devices exposed maltreatment and gave the Americans a reason to go to war with
Henry told the people "suffer not yourselves to be betrayed with a kiss" when he talked about separating from Britain. Since many Americans at the time were Christians, they were able to understand the allusion to Judas and Jesus. In the bible, Judas betrayed Jesus after a kiss, and in this case Britain is Judas and the Americans are Jesus. Therefore, the allusion demonstrated how Britain was going to betray the colonists just as Judas did. Also, since the Bible presented Judas as evil, the allusion emphasizes the fact that Britain is as evil as Judas due to Britain's actions. By showing the colonists the striking similarity between their situation and a situation that they're so familiar with, Henry successfully exposed Britain's foul treatment of the colonists. The information made Americans more likely to join war efforts due to hinting about the comparison between religion and politics. In a time period where absolute monarchy was at the beginning of becoming unpopular, Patrick Henry had to work especially hard to convince the Americans that Britain was their enemy and that they had to fight for their freedom. Henry's manipulation of anaphora and allusion helped persuade Americans to join war efforts and fight for their freedom as a response to British atrocities. The use of these rhetorical devices exposed maltreatment and gave the Americans a reason to go to war with