Testing the Strength of Supporting Material: George Bush 9/11 Speech

On September 11th, 2001 America experienced one of its most devastating terrorist attacks in history. Al Qaeda a terrorist group based in the Middle East had executed some simultaneous attacks on American soil. The most destructive of the attacks was the crashing of two Boeing aeroplanes into the twin towers of the World Trade Centre resulting in loss of American Lives and destruction of property worth hundreds of millions of dollars. President George W. Bush speech to the nation on September 20, 2001, was not only a warning to terrorists, but it was also a message meant to unite Americans at a time of peril ("Washingtonpost.com").

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During his Address to the Nation, President Bush declared war on terrorism and also rallied Americans to be united and committed to the cause, which was the elimination of terrorism within and without America. In a call for action, H.E George Bush uses rhetoric, testimony and a conversational tone to not only calm Americans on the wake of the attacks nine days later, but he also rallies Americans to rise and take action against terrorism. By referring to America as the world's beacon of freedom and opportunity, the president makes the nation aware of the privilege they possess and the value of protecting it ("Washingtonpost.com").

In his speech President Bush also mentions that America has known a lot of wars and also participated in them. However, he insists how dire the situation was considering that American had not experienced war on its soil in 136 years except in the year 1941. President Bush also mentions that America never had before experienced war on a peaceful morning in a great city such as New York. All of these pathos and rhetoric are mean to waken American people on the direness of the attack; the speech is meant to inspire a spirit of patriotism and action be it pacifist or forceful against action ("George W. Bush, Address to the Nation-September 20, 2001").

By referring to pictures and video of planes crashing into buildings, fires burning and structures collapsing as rescue operations are underway, the President can reach and resonate with his audience. Apart from calling for action, the speech was also meant to answer the many questions that Americans had after the attacks ("Washingtonpost.com"). The questions in the speech were elaborately chosen to allow the president to steer the speech in a way that it would not only shed light to the mystery behind the attacks but also to justify the immediate action that would be taken by his administration.

The president while answering the question on who masterminded the attacks incriminates Al Qaeda ("George W. Bush, Address to the Nation-September 20, 2001"). Moreover, he also provides statistics on the number of casualties from the attack mentioning the number of countries from which some of the victims originated from. For example, while mentioning America's remembrance of the victims, he says that more than 130 Israelis and 250 Indian citizens were among the victims of the attack. The statistics were meant to disseminate information to the Media as well as Americans and also evoke feelings considering how devastating the attack was concerning these numbers.

Another way that President Bush employed pathos in his speech was in the use of people's names. For example, he mentions a man called Todd Beamer a passenger who heroically rushed the terrorists to save people on the ground. The use of names helped the president in personifying the sorrow that the entire nation was feeling. Moreover, using names helped symbolize individual losses that were as a result of the attack.

The President's speech on 20th September 2001 was issued with the intent of calling Americans to action while at the same time sharing George Bush's sorrow with fellow Americans. President Bush's speech to the nation involves the use of pathos, sympathetic and personified language to show his remorse while at the same time evoke feelings from his audience. At one point, the president even quotes the bible, all these to evoke emotions, inspire action, show sympathy and remorse and also shed light on the mystery behind those responsible for the attack.

Works Cited

"George W. Bush, Address to the Nation-September 20, 2001." Www.PresidentialRhetoric.com, presidentialrhetoric.com/speeches/09.20.01.html.

"Washingtonpost.com." Washington Post: Breaking News, World, US, DC News & Analysis - The Washington Post, www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/nation/specials/attacked/transcripts/bushaddress_092001.html?noredirect=on.