Alyssa Fry Dr. Rosenberg English 15: Section 246 11 July 2017 A Time for Rhetorical Choices: Rhetorical Analysis of Ronald Reagan s A Time for Choosing Although he was the 40th president of the United States, Ronald Reagan was not always a political figure. He was initially an actor and then, when his acting career waned, he decided to enter into the vicious political realm. On October 27th, 1964, one week before the 45th presidential election, Reagan made a speech that launched him into politics. The two remaining candidates in the race were incumbent Democrat, Lyndon B. Johnson and Republican, Barry Goldwater. Ronald Reagan was chosen to speak on behalf of Goldwater for a political campaign to gain votes and campaign funds. The speech was later named A Time for Choosing, and not only did it raise funds for Goldwater s campaign, it lead to Reagan s political career. Ronald Reagan combined his talent for public speaking and position in society with the use of appeals to politics, anger and honor-driven emotion, and patriotism to address the issues with the then-current government while encouraging the citizens of the United States to elect Barry Goldwater for president. It is very difficult to establish oneself well in the political sector in today s world. Many times, a person will have great difficulty gaining popularity at first because the media is drawn to the politicians who already have political power or to those who make wrong decisions. In order to publicize oneself positively in the fickle realm of politics, one must be confident and use powerful words that relate to the people. Ronald Reagan utilizes these very rare and natural gifts
Alyssa Fry 1 to his advantage when speaking to the voters of America. His speech was a refreshing change of pace that addressed issues in a deliberate and earnest tone. Every word was chosen with precision to get his point across clearly. Although he did not have political power at the time, Reagan applied this resource to his speech to relate personally to his audience as much as possible. The first statement he makes is that he wrote the speech himself. Often times when a public figure makes a speech, the words are given to them. By promoting his own writing, he established a connection between him and his audience, showing the people that they were listening to him, not his assistant. In addition, Reagan uses first person narrative with phrases such as I think, or you and I to create yet another connection between him and his audience. He makes the people feel as though he is one of them. Often times political speakers, whether they try it or not, appeal to a particular group of people, for instance, those with certain political views or those with a specific socioeconomic status. Although Reagan speaks from a Republican point of view with opinions on the conservative side, he appeals to every person listening to his speech. He says, You and I are told increasingly we have to choose between a left or right. Well I d like to suggest there is no such thing as a left or right. There s only an up or down, and continues to describe how every American has the same goal and dream of freedom. His immediate audience is the people in the room most likely all Republicans who are already planning on voting for Barry Goldwater. However, since this speech was televised, he must also speak to the Democratic party and everyone else who was watching or listening to the address. He appeals to the American citizen, not singling out a specific group or party entirely for the length of the speech. In other words, he
Alyssa Fry 2 addresses different groups at separate times throughout the speech. For example, very early in the address, he admits that he once sided with liberal views, and later in the speech, he speaks of a Democratic politician, Al Smith, who had recently come to realize that his fellow Democratic leaders are adopting beliefs similar to those of communists such as Marx and Stalin. This speaks to Democrats who may be wary to cross party lines even when the actions of fellow party members create dissonance with personal beliefs. On the other hand, speaking directly to Republicans, Reagan quotes Norman Thomas, a Socialist Politician who said, If Barry Goldwater became president, he would stop the advance of socialism in the United States. The rhetor replies by adding, I think that s exactly what he will do. Thomas said what he did to rally his fellow Socialists, however Reagan repeats these words from a different perspective to rally the Republicans, knowing they will support this claim. A different group that Reagan appeals to a various times during his speech is Christians, informing the audience of the faith that Barry Goldwater has in God. Reagan also uses emotional appeals, specifically anger and fear. To begin his speech, Reagan bluntly addresses the problems with the economy: the taxes are too high, the budget is unbalanced, and inflation has made the dollar lose its value by over 50%. Throughout the speech, Reagan makes the argument for a smaller government. He rallies the audience around Barry Goldwater by evoking anger and fear from the people, making the claim that large governments try to run the people s lives, not knowing or caring about what the citizens actually need or want. For instance, Goldwater was ridiculed for suggesting the abolishment of the government s planned inflation program. The value of social security pensions would rapidly lose their value
Alyssa Fry 3 causing instability in funds for senior citizens in their retirement. Fighting against the program shows that Goldwater cares about the future and success of the people. More examples of emotional appeals in A Time for Choosing stem from several quotes from politicians, including a Democratic politician who, in a previous speech had defined liberalism. In doing so, he cites the people as the masses. Knowing that this description leaves a bitter taste, Reagan responds I...resent it when a representative of the people refers to you and me, the free men and women of this country, as the masses. It seems as though he is setting an example for the way the people should react: angry. Though the label is a small insult, it opens up a lot of discussion into the issues with large governments; they see the people not as individuals, but as a collective group that is able to be controlled at once. Along the same lines, the rhetor acknowledges a statement made by a government employee who openly admitted that the government will solve its economic issues by raising taxes. No person wants to blindly trust an entity that exploits them. Instilling fear and addressing issues that will conjure anger is a technique Reagan uses to sway the audience to support a new president. It gives them hope that Goldwater can and will to make the economy work for the people in a logical way. The audience is told later in the speech that Ronald Reagan has never known a man in [his] life [he] believed so incapable of doing a dishonest or dishonorable thing, referring to Goldwater. The rhetor establishes credibility for Goldwater by convincing the audience that he is a man who is trustworthy and honorable. Another appeal to this type of emotion that Reagan touches on is Goldwater s respect and concern for the wellbeing of the military. Reagan informs his audience that during the weeks before Christmas, Goldwater would personally fly soldiers home to their families so they could avoid the busy airports during the holidays to spend as much
Alyssa Fry 4 time with their loved ones as possible. Lastly, Reagan verifies that Goldwater will not leave the military in the Cold War, which was occurring at the time of this speech, unnecessarily. While the United States must remain strong, Goldwater will not risk everything the people have worked for. By addressing the candidate s position on the war, Reagan establishes Barry Goldman as a man that the people can trust. I define patriotism as a call to come together as a country to reflect on the foundation that America was built upon. Throughout the entire address, Ronald Reagan embellishes his points with the appeal to this patriotism. It is especially powerful due to the Cold War in which the United States was involved, but it also calls for the people to unify under a new president. Several times, he brought his points to a close by mentioning the founding fathers and their ideals that originally built the country. These references strengthen the arguments he makes by reminding the audience of how the government is not what the founding fathers intended. For example, Reagan supports his argument against a large central government by claiming that it was the very thing the founding fathers sought to minimize. He also asks the audience to ponder the freedoms that the forefathers intended the people to have and to compare them with those that they actually have, demonstrating that many of our natural, unalienable rights are now considered to be a dispensation of government. Ronald Reagan asserts that Barry Goldwater will work to restore these core freedoms that had been taken away by the centralized government. Next, Reagan discusses that the war, though undesirable, is one that must be fought. He evokes more patriotic feelings by giving them an example of a Cuban refugee who fled to America for freedom. If we lose freedom here, there s no place to escape to. He uses this
Alyssa Fry 5 example to emphasize his point that the people must remain unified because slowly, other countries are losing their freedoms. As a man who had no political power before this address, Ronald Reagan grabs the attention of the American people, and in doing so, paves the way for his own very successful political career. Although Barry Goldwater lost the election, A Time for Choosing turned the heads of millions of Americans with its powerful truth and appeals. Ronald Reagan utilized his lack of political power and his gifts to appeal to his audience emotionally, politically, and patriotically while gaining credibility and trust for Barry Goldwater. Reagan s speech will forever be considered one of the greatest addresses in American history for its honesty and clarity through eloquence.