Direct but Sophisticated

If you read presidential speeches from the early days of, you'll that their sentences can go on for days. Weeks, sometimes.

By the 1920s, writing styles had changed towards simplicity, and presidential speeches were being received by much larger audiences. By 1925, more people could vote (women got the vote in 1920), so you had to make sure your speeches would appeal to as many people as possible. Coolidge's Inaugural Address shows sophisticated language and syntax, but he doesn't use elaborate sentence structure.

He keeps the structure simple, but glams up the language enough to prove that he's a refined, well-educated man. Amherst, after all. Plus, it's a special occasion demanding some fancy language. You don't wear jeans and a hoodie to your inauguration.

Take for example, this quote: "Removing the burden of expense and jealousy, which must always accrue from a keen rivalry, is one of the most effective methods of diminishing that unreasonable hysteria and misunderstanding which is the most potent means of fomenting war" (7.1).

What he's saying here is that reducing economic and political tension between countries is a great way to stop them from going to war with one another. But he doesn't say "economic tension," he says "the burden of expense"; he doesn't say "cause war," he says "fomenting war." He doesn't go too crazy, he just finds more elegant ways to express ideas.

But later in the same paragraph he says: "America has taken the lead in this new direction, and that lead America must continue to hold. If we expect others to rely on our fairness and justice we must show that we rely on their fairness and justice" (7.6-7).

No SAT words or long sentences here. He keeps his syntax simple and clear, and even uses repetition ("fairness and justice") to emphasize his point and sound impressive doing it.

Another example is when he discusses his tax plans. First, he's explicit and clear in his views: "We do not any longer need war-time revenues. The collection of any taxes which are not absolutely required, which do not beyond reasonable doubt contribute to the public welfare, is only a species of legalized larceny" (16.4-5). Not much left to the imagination there.

But after explaining his views, he gets a little fancier: "The wise and correct course to follow in taxation and all other economic legislation is not to destroy those who have already secured success but to create conditions under which everyone will have a better chance to be successful" (17.8). Again, he's not going full-out Henry James on us, but he's pumping up the volume a bit.

Keeping his sentences relatively short and direct helps Coolidge get his message across. You'll read (or listen to) this speech and know what his views are without too much trouble. But he also makes sure to elevate his vocabulary, which helps make him look like an intelligent leader and makes the speech rise to the special occasion of an inaugural address.