On September 12, 1962, John F. Kennedy – the 35th President of the United States – stood before a crowd of 35,000 at Rice University Stadium , in Houston, Texas, and delivered an inspiring speech that moved America forward in the space race. The context of this speech was given during the Cold War, and by the time Kennedy gave this speech, the Soviet Union's satellite – Sputnik – had already been orbiting the Earth for 4 years and had also sent the first man in the world – Yuri Gagarin. – in space a year ago. The anxious American public was quickly losing patience and the President, with his determination that America would be the first to go to the Moon, reassured the American public that the United States would be the pioneer country in the space race. The importance of his speech was demonstrated when Neil Armstrong became the first man to walk on the Moon in 1969 and showed how persuasive he was that America would be capable of achieving such a feat within 7 years his speech. So today I will analyze the rhetorical and literary devices that Kennedy applied to his speech, and how it still resonates strongly 60 years after his speech. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on "Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned"? Get an original essay At the start of his speech, Kennedy first addresses the audience and expresses how he was "particularly delighted" to be invited as an honorary visiting professor. . He did not specifically mention himself as president, but rather as professor. And even though the entire audience knows perfectly well that he is the president, by presenting himself as a professor he establishes a friendlier connection and makes the audience more likely to agree with his decision to go to the Moon and the content that will follow. However, he still retains his role as president and the rhetorical device – the ethos – is important here as he uses his role to persuade the audience of his goal of reaching the moon. He then goes on to address Rice University and describes how he and the audience "meet in an hour of change and challenge." [show entire paragraph on screen] Throughout the paragraph, Kennedy uses inclusive language with the word “we” to make the audience feel like they are also part of this situation. The American public at the time was beginning to feel helpless due to the situation. lack of progress in the space race compared to the Soviet Union, but by including them, not only the public present but also those who would discover in the newspapers its goal of going to the Moon, we would have the feeling that they can be part of the group that will bring change and contribute to the betterment of their own country. Kennedy then condenses 50,000 years of human history over a period of half a century: “Ten years ago, by this standard, a man emerged from his caves. » Only five years ago, he says, man learned to write. And only a month ago, electric lights, telephones, automobiles and airplanes became available. So, if American spacecraft manage to reach Venus and American astronauts land on the Moon, "we will literally have reached the stars before midnight tonight." This powerful analogy certainly helps to excite the audience and demonstrates that a goal that seems impossible to achieve is actually within reach. It also motivates the audience to think about what might be possible if they were actually able to reach the stars before midnight tonight, it inspires people to.