The 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy, in his first inaugural address, aims to inspire Americans by laying out his plans for the future as he takes the oath of office. Kennedy's goal is to gain the support of more Americans, knowing that the 1960 election was close, and to promote peace around the world. It strikes a hopeful tone to motivate Americans and citizens of other countries to work together to reform the world we live in. Although Kennedy's inaugural address was one of the shortest, it is often considered one of the most powerful speeches in history. He expresses that freedom is an important topic to Americans and he wants them to know that he will provide it for them by appealing to ethos, pathos, and logos. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get Original Essay Kennedy begins his speech by addressing his audience; former presidents, vice-presidents and citizens. He appeals to ethos by declaring: "for I have sworn before you and before Almighty God the same solemn oath which our forefathers prescribed nearly a century and three-quarters ago" and "the conviction that human rights do not come from the generosity of man.” state, but by the hand of God” (Kennedy). By giving these assurances, Kennedy creates credibility and gains the trust of his audience. Kennedy appeals to pathos by using parallelism. “This first revolution” is a parallel to this century, “tempered by disciplined war by a harsh and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage” (Kennedy). These words are used to convince the public that their help is needed to move our country forward and prevent another war. “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us good or ill, that we will pay any price, bear any burden, meet any difficulty, support any friend, oppose any any enemy, to ensure the survival and success of freedom” is a strong message. example of asyndeton due to lack of conjunctions in the sentence. Kennedy uses it here to emphasize that the freedom of a nation is necessary for the freedom of individuals. Finally, Kennedy uses logos when engaging with different groups in order to persuade the audience that they need to unite. It commits itself to old allies, new states, people in cabins and villages, our sister republics south of our border, the United Nations, and nations that would become our adversary. In doing so, Kennedy attempts to prove that "civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof." He goes on to carefully place the anaphora “let's have both sides” (Kennedy), which underlines his point that countries must come together to succeed. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized document from our expert now. Kennedy expresses that freedom is an important topic for Americans through his use of ethos, pathos, and logos. Among these rhetorical devices, he includes figurative language, such as asyndeton, parallelism, and anaphora. To maintain their freedom, Americans must contribute.