Rhetorical Analysis

For 72 seconds, everyone in America was in exhilaration and joy as the brave crew of seven people was inching closer and closer into the space. Those seven people encountered countless tests and passed all of them with flying colors. All had aspiring dreams to become a prophecy walking on our Earth being one of the few people to ever experience the invigorating sights of our space. But no, disaster and tragedy struck the Challenger crew. On the ill-fated 73rd second of their trip, the O-Ring failure caused aerodynamic forces to break up the orbiter… And seven lives were immediately ruined along with their families, friends, and followers.

With the saddening incident of the Challenger Seven, Ronald Reagan hastily followed up with a piece that would forever be enriched in Americans who was deeply impacted by the event. The way that President Reagan opened up his address was almost perfect because he dismissed his original piece that he was supposed to present that night and instead turned his attention to the Challenger Seven. By doing so, the tactic of emotional appeal was used to make his audience feel like he truly cares about what has happened. Also, the position that Reagan was in at that time, the President of the U.S.A., obviously solidified his credibility among the readers.

I feel strongly that if not for the organization in the speech of Reagan, his message would not have been as powerful as it was. As I read through Reagan’s piece over and over again, I discovered that each sequence of his piece targeted different audience every time. In his introduction paragraph, all Americans were targeted as he brilliantly stated, “This is truly a national loss.” In the second paragraph, the same audience was targeted, except this time, background was provided about the three previous astronauts who like the Challenger Seven died trying to explore their own world. In the third paragraph, it is where it gets sensitive, as Reagan directed the family members of the Challenger Seven, “Your loved ones were daring and brave…” He knew how to pull the right chords and make the seven families feel like their loved ones died doing what they loved. In the next several paragraphs, children, NASA, and religion were involved; how Reagan organized his piece is what made his message stand out.

WE WILL NOT STOP EXPLORING OUR WORLD. That was the message I felt that Reagan tried to show beneath his lines of empathy and pity. As he powerfully indicated that Americans will not give up on exploring, “Nothing ends here; our hopes and our journeys continue.” I felt that this piece could not have been written any better.

Websites used:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Challenger_disaster
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/ronaldreaganchallenger.htm