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Rhetorical Criticism Essay
Ian Robinson
Professor Gabrys
Public Speaking CTAC 224
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INTRODUCTION
November 19th, 1863 Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg address. December 8th,
1941 Franklin D. Roosevelt delivered “The Infamy Speech” and in August of 1963 Martin
Luther King Jr. marched on Washington and gave his “I have a Dream Speech.” What do these
speeches have in common? Great men citizens and called for action, they called for change. The
35th President of the United States of America, John F. Kennedy delivered his “Peace Speech” at
a university outside of Washington, D.C. John F. Kennedy stood in front of those in attendance
to discuss the most important topic on earth, and his administration struggled with peace, a failed
attempt to overthrow the Cuban government of Fidel Castro, the Vietnam War, and the Cold
War. Kennedy’s presidency was surrounded by struggle both in the United States and the rest of
the world. The Vietnam War and the Cold War lasted well past Kennedy’s untimely death.
