Full Answer
What is the main idea of President Reagan's speech A Time for Choosing?
In the speech, Reagan revealed his ideological motivation: "The Founding Fathers knew a government can't control the economy without controlling people. And they knew when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose.
What was the purpose of Reagan's speech?
Reagan called for the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev, to open the Berlin Wall, which had separated West and East Berlin since 1961. The name is derived from a key line in the middle of the speech: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"
What was Ronald Reagan's campaign message?
"Let's make America great again" was famously used in Ronald Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign. At the time the United States was suffering from a worsening economy at home marked by stagflation.
Which type of appeal does Reagan use in this part of the speech?
In this speech, Ronald Reagan uses the appeal to pathos with emotional tones, a common love for one's country and president, and an admiring tone in order to achieve his goal of raising money to create an endowment to found a new museum in honor of John F.
What is the most likely purpose of Reagan's speech quizlet?
Reagan's purpose was to remind Americans of their freedoms and to encourage Soviets to allow more individual freedom. Read the excerpt from President Reagan's Address at Moscow State University. But progress is not foreordained. The key is freedom—freedom of thought, freedom of information, freedom of communication.
What made the election of 1980 so significant?
The 1980 election marked a political realignment, with Reagan gaining in former Democratic strongholds such as the South and white ethnics (dubbed "Reagan Democrats." Reagan exuded upbeat optimism.
What are the main purposes of this speech?
There are three general purposes that all speeches fall into: to inform, to persuade, and to entertain.
What rhetorical devices are used in Ronald Reagan Challenger speech?
In this speech, he used rhetorical devices, such as alliteration, allusion, anaphora, and euphemism to relay his feelings of sadness and grief. In his speech in the aftermath of the Challenger explosion, Pres. Reagan used alliteration to convey his feelings of sadness to the families of the seven astronauts lost.
What is Ronald Reagan's time for choosing?
There’s no doubt that Ronald Reagan’s “A Time for Choosing” belongs in the top ranks of American speeches. It is among the most significant political speeches ever given by a non- officeholder and non-presidential candidate. It heralded the beginning of the political career of a man who would go on to be a successful two-term president, and it remains an extraordinarily powerful and cogent expression of a deeply held worldview.
What was Reagan's speech about?
Reagan’s core arguments in the speech about the deleterious effects of taxes, deficit spending, and debt defined the Republican agenda for two generations.
What did Reagan say about populism?
Reagan demonstrated in his speech that, even if you reject populist policies, which typically involve more government activism, popul ism is still the argot of American politics. This is what newly minted Republicans like Abraham Lincoln realized back in the mid-19th century. Lincoln had been a Whig all his life, and Jacksonian populists had beaten him up by for supposedly being on the side of bankers and other well-heeled interests (Whigs were, indeed, in favor of financial capitalism). With the rise of slavery as the dominant issue in American life, Republicans flipped the script and made populist arguments against the plantation owners and the “slavocracy” of the South, to great political effect.
What was the most important victory for conservatives in the past 30 years?
One of the chief conservative victories over the past 30 years is excavating the true meaning of the Second Amendment, and vindicating the individual right to bear arms, another victory for individual liberty. Indeed, the size of the federal government has grown at the same time that conservatives have strengthened their hold on the Supreme Court, raising the prospect of an era of heightened government activism coinciding with a relatively rigorous originalism on the Court, a combination that Reagan wouldn’t have foreseen.
What is the lesson of "A Time for Choosing"?
The fundamental lesson of “A Time for Choosing” is not that we need another Reagan in the sense of someone exactly replicating his policies and tropes. But we do need national politicians who, like Reagan, have a worldview that they have thoroughly absorbed and thought through, and who seek the exalted goals of defending the American nation and liberty.
What did Elizabeth Warren reject?
Elizabeth Warren rejects the label but embraces the agenda. Medicare for All, the Green New Deal, and free college for all are far more sweeping proposals for government aggrandizement than anything enacted in the Great Society era that had Reagan worried about the prospect of socialism.
Is Ronald Reagan a Democrat?
There’s a little something to this. Reagan underscores how he’s a former Democrat and says he accepts Social Security, although he wants to add “voluntary features” to the program.
What was Ronald Reagan's speech about?
" A Time for Choosing ", also known as " The Speech ", was a speech presented during the 1964 U.S. presidential election campaign by future president Ronald Reagan on behalf of Republican candidate Barry Goldwater.
When did Reagan use "A Time for Choosing"?
Reagan, though he campaigned for Goldwater, did not use "A Time for Choosing" until October 27, 1964, when it was part of a pre-recorded television program, Rendezvous with Destiny. (The title of the program was used by Franklin D. Roosevelt in his June 27, 1936 speech to the 1936 Democratic National Convention .)
Who gave the speech to Barry Goldwater?
Contrary to popular belief, however, the speech was not given at the 1964 Republican National Convention in San Francisco, California as a nomination speech for presidential candidate Senator Barry Goldwater; Everett Dirksen gave that nomination speech, while Richard Nixon introduced Goldwater prior to his acceptance speech. Reagan, though he campaigned for Goldwater, did not use "A Time for Choosing" until October 27, 1964, when it was part of a pre-recorded television program, Rendezvous with Destiny. (The title of the program was used by Franklin D. Roosevelt in his June 27, 1936 speech to the 1936 Democratic National Convention .) In his autobiography, An American Life, Reagan recalled going to bed that night "hoping I hadn't let Barry down."
Who gave the speech A Time for Choosing?
" A Time for Choosing ", also known as " The Speech ", was a speech presented during the 1964 U.S. presidential election campaign by future president Ronald Reagan on behalf of Republican candidate Barry Goldwater. The speech launched Reagan into national prominence.
Who was the Great Communicator?
Nevertheless, Barry Goldwater lost the election by one of the largest margins in history. Soon afterwards, Reagan was asked to run for Governor of California; he ran for office and won election in 1966. Reagan was later dubbed the "Great Communicator" in recognition of his effective oratory skills.
What was the motivation of the founding fathers?
In the speech, he revealed his ideological motivation: "The Founding Fathers knew a government can't control the economy without controlling people. And they knew when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose. So we have come to a time for choosing.".
What did Reagan attack in his speech?
Reagan swung into an attack on the government’s farm program, whose cost had doubled in a decade. The three-quarters of farmers who were not on the federal dole were more productive than those who were at the government trough. Reagan was seven minutes into his speech before he used Goldwater’s name.
What was the venue for Reagan's speech?
The venue for Reagan’s speech was an anonymous ballroom, full of Goldwater partisans, seated in rows of folding chairs. These were middle-class Americans, young and old. Many men were in short sleeves, some with thin black ties; a few were in sport coats and even fewer wore suits.
What did Reagan mock the Agriculture Department for?
Reagan then mocked the Agriculture Department for having one employee for every 30 farmers “and still they can’t tell us how 66 shiploads of grain headed for Austria disappeared without a trace and Billie Sol Estes never left shore.” This reference to a Texas crony of LBJ’s involved in a commodities swindle drew applause and laughter. This seemed to put Reagan more at ease. His pace slowed and he began pausing at moments when applause and audience reaction seemed appropriate.
How much did Reagan spend on Harvard?
Harvard cost only $2,700 a year, he declared, provoking more applause. “Don’t get me wrong,” he said. “I’m not suggesting Harvard is the answer to juvenile delinquency.” The crowd roared its agreement to his populist thrust.
What color was the Reagan campaign?
Only a handful of shows were then broadcast in color, and only infrequently. Most TV fare was in black-and-white, as was this campaign special. So while Reagan appeared at a podium festooned with patriotic bunting, viewers didn’t see red, white, and blue but only shades of gray, broken by white. Behind him was a monochromatic curtain of uncertain color with folds in the cloth streaking its surface. On the side wall to the left was a large portrait of Goldwater, which could be seen in the occasional shot from the camera at the room’s back-right corner or from the camera over the candidate’s right shoulder. Otherwise, TV watchers saw only a close-up of Reagan on the platform, the monotony of this view interrupted by occasional even closer shots of him and, in the broadcast’s 29 minutes, ten cutaways to the crowd on the auditorium floor, twelve feet or so below the podium.
Why did Reagan tell the story of a young woman with six children in southern California who divorced her husband to get?
Reagan told the story of a young woman with six children in southern California who divorced her husband to get a bigger welfare benefit. His point was that government programs often hurt the people they claim to serve by providing perverse incentives. Yet when “you and I question the schemes of the do-gooders, we’re denounced as being against their humanitarian goals,” he acknowledged. “Well, the trouble with our liberal friends is not that they’re ignorant; it’s just that they know so much that isn’t so.”
When was Ronald Reagan's library opened?
Former president Ronald Reagan speaks at the opening of his library in Simi, Calif., 1991. (Gary Cameron/Reuters)
When was the Goldwater speech?
Almost fifty years ago on October 27, 1964, Ronald Reagan delivered a televised address on behalf of the Goldwater Presidential Campaign. So effective was it, it has become known as “The Speech.”
What did the Founding Fathers want to minimize?
But beyond that, “the full power of centralized government” —this was the very thing the Founding Fathers sought to minimize. They knew that governments don’t control things. A government can’t control the economy without controlling people. And they know when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose. They also knew, those Founding Fathers, that outside of its legitimate functions, government does nothing as well or as economically as the private sector of the economy. . . .
What did Alexander Hamilton say about the threat of the bomb?
We cannot buy our security, our freedom from the threat of the bomb by committing an immorality so great as saying to a billion human beings now enslaved behind the Iron Curtain, “Give up your dreams of freedom because to save our own skins, we’re willing to make a deal with your slave masters.” Alexander Hamilton said, “A nation which can prefer disgrace to danger is prepared for a master, and deserves one.” Now let’s set the record straight. There’s no argument over the choice between peace and war, but there’s only one guaranteed way you can have peace—and you can have it in the next second—surrender. . . .
How long was Reagan's speech?
His inspirational style facilitates him to engage with the American citizens. “A Time For Choosing” was a fairly long speech nearly thirty minutes.
What is the main goal of Regan's speech?
It is clear that a main goal of his speech is to portray good character. With direct description, religious and moral references, or an obvious tone thrown over a moral statement, Regan uses this appeal throughout his speech and he uses it well.
What is Reagan's closing sentence about Barry Goldwater?
Reagan constructs the case for Goldwater and states in his closing sentence “We will keep in mind and remember that Barry Goldwater has faith in us.
How does Reagan communicate to the American people?
Reagan is able to effectively communicate to the American people that the nation is in dire financial straits. Reagan’s focus on the issues makes him seem to the people both logical and intelligent. An effective tool Regan uses to sell his ability is his ethos appeal. It is clear that a main goal of his speech is to portray good character. With direct description, religious and moral references, or an obvious tone thrown over a moral statement, Regan uses this appeal throughout his speech and he uses it well. A major theme in this speech entertains a concern for the general direction of the nation in terms of foreign affairs.
How does Reagan use pathos?
The audience will react positively to the emotional story because they can empathetically connect to the struggles of our nation’s military families. Reagan’s use of pathos allows him to connect to his audience. It makes them understand that he has the same concerns about foreign policy as average Americans.
Why did Reagan say Kansas was depressed?
One minute he informs them that Kansas had been “declared a depressed” area due to financial crisis, thus tugging on the audiences’ heartstrings. The next minute he has the audience crying from laughter while belittling the government, saying, “When the government tells you you’re depressed, lie down and be depressed. ” Towards the end of the speech, Reagan uses repetition to emphasize a connection between himself and his audience. In the last three paragraphs of the speech, Reagan uses “You and I” four times.
What is the purpose of repetition in Reagan's speech?
His use of repetition conveys to us that we “have the ability and the dignity and the right to make our own decisions and determine our own destiny”. Repetition is a powerful rhetorical technique that Reagan exercises to emphasize unity among the American people. Reagan kept his audience eager for more.
What was Reagan's speech about?
Reagan delivered a deeply ideological speech, with strong attacks on liberalism and its vessel, the Democratic Party of LBJ’s Great Society era. “In this vote-harvesting time,” Reagan said early in the speech, “they use terms like the ‘Great Society,’ or as we were told a few days ago by the president, we must accept a greater government activity in the affairs of the people.”
What did Ronald Reagan think of the narrative?
Reagan’s rhetoric represented a potent shift. After a blizzard of numbers about government profligacy, he turned to a vivid story:
Who was Ronald Reagan's campaigning for?
Ronald Reagan’s campaigning for Barry Goldwater paved his own entry into electoral politics. (AP) Steven F. Hayward is the Ronald Reagan distinguished visiting professor at Pepperdine University’s School of Public Policy. There are perhaps four speeches in American history that so electrified the public that they propelled their orators to ...
Which president gave the Cross of Gold speech?
There are perhaps four speeches in American history that so electrified the public that they propelled their orators to the front rank of presidential politics overnight: Abraham Lincoln’s Cooper Union Address of 1860, William Jennings Bryan ’s “Cross of Gold” speech at the 1896 Democratic convention, Barack Obama’s keynote address to the 2004 Democratic convention and Ronald Reagan’s “ A Time for Choosing ” speech 50 years ago.
Was Reagan a Teflon president?
The simplest explanation, and a favorite of the critics who later dubbed Reagan the “Teflon president,” is that he was just a better messenger than Goldwater. His familiar image — good looks, a smooth delivery, a honeyed voice and appeals to emotion — no doubt counted for a lot.
Was Ronald Reagan a Democrat?
Although most Americans were familiar with Reagan from his movies, this was the first many had glimpsed of his politics. A Democrat for most of his life, he had only recently switched to the Republican Party, and he agreed to try to help rescu e the doomed Barry Goldwater campaign in the final weeks before the election.
Did Ronald Reagan divide Americans?
Reagan didn’t divide Americans along the typical interest group or class lines. Unlike Mitt Romney’s “47 percent” remark or the “makers and takers” theme popular with many conservatives today, Reagan portrayed big government as opposing the interests of all Americans, not just the entrepreneurial or property-owning class that forms the GOP’s core constituency.
Why did Ronald Reagan use logos in his speech?
By using these rhetorical devices, he states key phrases more than once to create an urgency and therefore grab listener’s attention. To present his main points he will put into action during his presidency, Reagan uses logos on several occasions in his speech. Logically structured sentences that show his stance on the old government and a renewed one helps the audience to better understand why he believes what he does. For example, Reagan states, “Those who do work are denied a fair
Who was Ronald Reagan?
Ronald Reagan Paper The fortieth president of the United States of America. Before he was president, Reagan was the 33rd Governor of California, During Reagan’s first term he temporarily stopped all of the government hiring to slow the growth of the state workforce, but he had also approved tax increases to balance the state budget because before the state budget was off balance. Ronald Reagan was inaugurated on the day the Iran hostages were released after 444 days of captivity. Ronald Reagan had ran against Walter Mondale in the presidential election in 1981 .In the first 69 days Reagan was elected he had survived an assassination attempt. John Hinckley had attempted to assassinate him while he was delivering a speaking engagement.
What was JFK's purpose in his inaugural address?
JFK’s purpose was to not only demonstrate his amity towards the world, but also encourage his people to devote themselves to America. He used repetition and parallelism as his rhetorical strategies in order to convey to his audience, which includes both Americans and international people, the idea that America needs them to create a peaceful world in a nuclear age. After emphasizing the importance of freedom to America, JFK demonstrated his friendly attitude by using repetition to list his position toward some large or important organizations in the
Who made the speech to re-elect Obama?
This speech is made by Bill Clinton for the audience to re-elect the Democratic candidate, Barack Obama. Clinton talked about Obama’s contributions and ideas that helped America during Obama’s term. The audience of such speech would most likely be the Americans interested in electing a president. Bill Clinton himself was a former president, which boosted ethos; he was once an expert authority on this field, so his words seem trusted. Still the main appeal to ethos in the speech isn’t for Clinton, but for Obama instead.
Who was the Republican presidential candidate in 1964?
He represented Arizona senator and Republican presidential candidate, Barry Goldwater. Reagan was previously a democrat but had since shifted to a Republican. In his speech he emphasized his certainty in the importance of a less intrusive government. He is extremely articulate as he adopts a resolute tone to convey to his listeners the significance of his subject. The speaker has a contemporary yet conventional philosophy style.
Was Ronald Reagan a liberal?
In the 1930s, Reagan had been a liberal Democrat who was a supporter Frank lin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945) and his New Deal programs. But in 1962, Reagan switched sides to the Republican Party and helped Richard Nixon (1913-1994) in his unsuccessful campaign for the California governorship. In 1966, Reagan ran for governor of California on a platform that called for the downsizing of the California state government. He won easily.In 1968, he made an unsuccessful attempt for the Republican presidential nomination, but was reelected to the California governor 's office in 1970.
