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Rhetorical Analysis Speech (Public Speaking Class)

RHETORICAL ANALYSIS

JOSEPH R. MCCARTHY

Address Delivered

February 9, 1950

Wheeling, West Virginia

(Introduction)

"I have in my hands 57 cases of individuals who would appear to be either card‑carrying members or certainly loyal to the Communist Party, but who nevertheless are still helping to shape our foreign policy." With that unsubstantiated claim as a key element of a speech given on February 9, 1950 in Wheeling, West Virginia, Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin initiated an era in American history. The era is known as the McCarthy Period. And the methods McCarthy employed have also been given his name, McCarthyism, a term defined as being "the practice of making unsupported accusations of disloyalty in order to restrict dissent or criticism."

How did he do it? How did it happen that a little known senator was able to dominate American politics for several years in the early 50s? It was because McCarthy was a master of playing to the fears and prejudices of the people. He knew how to rouse emotions with rhetoric, and he knew how to manipulate both people and the system to achieve power and influence. Joseph McCarthy was a demagogue, one of the worst sorts of perils a democracy ever encounters.

Before we can understand why this speech was so effective, we need a quick summary of the political climate of the times. It was 1950. World War II had ended five years before and the so‑called "cold war" had commenced shortly thereafter. Simply stated, the cold war was a struggle between communism and democracy to determine which system would dominate the planet. Immediately following the war, Russia had greatly expanded its sphere of influence. During that same period, 1945 to 49, China was experiencing a civil war that was destined to end with that nation being added to the list of communist countries.

The American people, who wanted to believe they'd fought a terrible war to achieve lasting peace, found themselves threatened by this communist expansion. Compounding their concerns was the fact that the Russians had gained nuclear capability during this same period. The American people were confused as to how all this could have happened so quickly, and they were apprehensive for their own security. They were ready for a demagogue, and here he was ‑ Joseph McCarthy.

(Subtopics here: ethos, pathos, logos)

Utilizing the classical approach to rhetorical analysis, let's see how McCarthy's speech employs ethos to gain speaker credibility, pathos to make emotional appeals, and logos to demonstrate logical reasoning. First, Ethos.

(End of introduction, begin body of speech)

At the beginning of his speech, McCarthy makes an obvious attempt to associate himself with Abraham Lincoln. He says: "As we celebrate the birth of this man who with his whole heart and soul hated war, I would like to be able to speak of peace in our time, of war being outlawed, and of world wide disarmament. These would be truly appropriate things to be able to mention as we celebrate the birthday of Abraham Lincoln.( McCarthy makes no other serious attempt at the use of ethos except to punctuate his speech with other references to Lincoln.

(Signpost to second subtopic, Pathos)

Let(s next consider McCarthy's primary mode of persuasion, which was his use of pathos. He relied on his ability to "rouse the rabble" by portraying the government, especially the State Department, as being infiltrated with communists. Let's look at how McCarthy played on the emotions of his audience, particularly on the emotion of fear:.

"The one encouraging thing is that the 'mad moment'

has not yet arrived for the firing of the gun or the

exploding of the bomb which will set civilization

about the final task of destroying itself."

There's little doubt that phrases such as these are intended to induce fear. McCarthy continued his onslaught of emotional rhetoric with a quote from Joseph Stalin, the Russian dictator. He quotes,

"The existence of the Soviet Republic side by side

with Christian states for a long time is unthinkable.

One or the other must triumph in the end. And before

that end (arrives), a series of frightful collisions

... will be inevitable."

Finally, let(s consider McCarthy(s use of Logos, or logical arguments. McCarthy does make one attempt at the employment of logos, although even it is not substantiated. He says,

"Six years ago... there was within the Soviet orbit

180 million people. Today, only six years later, there

are 800 million... an increase of over 400%"

Clearly, McCarthy's version of the facts describes a bleak future for the world's democratic nations.

(End of Body, move to Conclusion)

McCarthy's speech was effective. Its effectiveness, however, had little to do with the presentation of factual evidence. Rather, the success of his speech may be attributed to its timeliness and to McCarthy's expert use of rhetorical sensationalism. Obviously, McCarthy's goal in giving the speech was to gain political influence and power. He achieved that goal and became a dominant force in domestic politics for the next several years. It should be noted, however, that no one was ever convicted of any treasonous activities as a result of McCarthy's accusations. Rhetorical analysis serves an invaluable function in a democratic society. As people like McCarthy enjoy freedom of speech as they should and must ‑ it is imperative that audiences learn the art of effective listening.