Evil Empire Speech: Analysis

Evil Empire Speech: Analysis

Symbols, Motifs, and Rhetorical Devices

Rhetoric

Pathos When Ronnie took the stage at the convention of the National Association of Evangelists in 1983, his metaphorical gloves came off, and he was ready to get down and dirty talking about the st...

Structure

Rear-View Mirror: Objects May Be Closer Than They Appear No matter your opinion of our 40th president, you can't deny Ronald Reagan was a smart dude, and it's super obvious he ate his Wheaties the...

What's Up With the Title?

"The Evil Empire" refers, first and most obviously, to the Soviet Union. The government killed millions of people in the twentieth century—not to mention how few citizens enjoyed basic human righ...

What's Up With the Opening Lines?

Those of you in the National Association of Evangelicals are known for your spiritual and humanitarian work. And I would be especially remiss if I didn't discharge right now one personal debt of gr...

What's Up With the Closing Lines?

Yes, change your world. One of our Founding Fathers, Thomas Paine, said, "We have it within our power to begin the world over again." We can do it, doing together what no one church can do by itsel...

Tough-o-Meter

(6) Tree LineAt first glance, Reagan's address seems rather straightforward—he doesn't use crazy $15 words, and there are probably only a couple of historical figures and terms that'll be unfamil...

Shout-Outs

In-Text ReferencesLiterary and Philosophical ReferencesMarxist-Leninists (112)C.S. Lewis, Screwtape Letters (151)Charles Dickens (148)Whittaker Chambers (161)Historical and Political ReferencesAbra...

Trivia

Reagan can make a joke—even if it sounds more like gallows humor. (Source) Ronnie played a villain in what was supposed to be the first made-for-TV movie, but he was just sooo good at being all v...