The Presidents Response after Tragedy

A Rhetorical Look at President George W, Bushs Address to The Nation

TYLER LEWIS
ENGLISH 1010 April, 25, 2014

The Presidents Response after Tragedy

On September 11th 2001 at roughly 8:46 in the morning. The north world trade center was attacked via passenger plane in New York City. The coverage hit all of the major news agencies within minutes. Most Americans were glued to their television sets as the news anchors speculated on what had happened. Less than an hour later the south world trade center was hit by the second plane. About thirty minutes later a third plane was used to damage the pentagon. A fourth plane then crashed outside of Shanksville, Pennsylvania Less than thirty minutes after the third attack. These events shocked the American people and caused concern throughout the country, as no one knew what had caused this tragedy. These attacks resulted in George W Bush, the president at the time giving one of the most powerful speeches of his presidency. The speech was written by George W. Bushs chief speech writer Michael Gerson, and delivered by President Bush on September 11th 2001 at 11:14 P.M., in the oval office located in the White house. In this Address to the nation, President George W. Bush gave perspective to those Americans unaffected, while showing sympathy for those who lost someone. In the same breath, President Bush demonstrated strength through unity to the world and any opposing force that we may face, reassuring them that these attacks would not have the effects the terrorists desired. When the address to the nation began President Bush could be seen sitting in the oval office. Two of the most powerful symbols for American freedom draped on either side of him; the table placed behind him lined with pictures of his family. With these surroundings President Bush was able to establish his power and yet still connect emotionally with the men and woman of America before he spoke a word.

When George Bush began to address the nation the camera slowly panned in closer as he explained the reason for his appearance. Using the word our to establish the bond of unity the American people should have following the attacks, while clarifying the symbolism of the attack and who was directly affected. The description of the victims, Secretaries, businessmen, and women, military and federal workers. Moms and dads. Friends and Neighbors. Was aimed at the heart strings of everyone watching. The writer and president went on to show their disgust for the actions by describing them as Evil, despicable acts of terror. With this description of the attacks the president and the writer further built on how the American people were feeling at the time. As the speech progressed, imagery was used to make the audience re-experience that days events. By describing the planes and burning buildings, the speech writer was able to feed on the audiences emotions to prepare them for the presidents next steps. At the time little was known as to who carried out these attacks. Both the writer and president speculated on the terrorists logic and their goal of weakening our nation and without skipping a beat they then reinforce the idea that we remain unaffected and stand strong. This technique is effective at rebuilding the spirits and emotions of the people. The next section of the speech was constructed to reinforce the ideas stated in the previous sections. They were aiming to make the American people feel pride in their country. Drawing on metaphors to reinforce the idea that America and Americans are strong and will continue, and remain unaffected by these events. After they made an effective appeal to the audiences emotions, they shift their focus to demonstrate President Bushs leadership skills and ability. When they stated that Immediately following the first attack, I implemented our governments emergency response plans. Both the writer and the president were showing that the president took control of the situation and

responded in a logical way as the leader of America. The president goes on to explain that the people he deployed are doing their best at ground zero in rescue efforts. This statement is once again addressing the concern of the American people and reassuring them of his and our governments abilities. It is at this point of the speech that the writer and president start to shift their words to a larger audience. The tone shifts from that of a mourning American to a strong leader, who is Speaking to not only the American people, but the world. Reassuring the American people and the countries who have a vested interest in our economy and anyone who doesnt, that our financial intuitions remain strong. This was an important move for the president to make, as any panic regarding our financial intuitions could cause more damage than the attack its self. Then they state that our government will continue without interruption. By making this claim they are reaffirming the message that America is strong, sturdy and is unaffected, to both America and the world. The writer and president maintain a wide target audience and the tone of a leader who has a plan of action. Again they used an I statement to show the authority of the president when they state that the president has directed the full resources of our intelligence and law enforcement to bring those responsible to justice. Then they bring it back to a community statement by saying, We will make no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbor them. This is a statement with multiple audiences and multiple meanings. For the American people they are saying that, we are willing to do whatever it takes to bring those responsible for the attack to justice. Also by using the word we the writer and president are telling the American people that they will be involved in the future retaliations. To the world this statement is a warning and a threat. It is letting the countries of the world know

that if they do not comply with our search that they will be viewed as an enemy of America and not our allies. The third audience is the terrorist originations, for them this is a declaration of war. What President Bush is saying to the terrorists is that we will search them out at all costs and bring them to justice. As the speech progresses, President Bush and the writer go on to provide more evidence that the president is the one taking charge, by stating I appreciate so very much the members of Congress who have joined me in strongly condemning these attacks. And on behalf of the American people, I thank the many world leaders who have called to offer their condolences and assistance. This statement serves several purposes. First it tells the American people that the president is going through the proper steps when taking action against the terrorists. Second, it tells other countries that he is serious in his claims that as a nation we are ready to retaliate against those who attacked us, as well as those who harbor them. Third, He is letting any nations that may be involved know that we have allies who will assist us in our retaliation. In closing the president reverts back to a mournful tone when he asks for the peoples prayers. The president and the writer further establishes an emotional appeal when they reference the children affected by these horrible acts. This could be aimed and felt by anyone watching regardless of their place in the world. President Bush then makes a biblical reference that the writer laid out for him, as if to say they hope god will be on our side during this struggle and in our retaliation. The president then repeats the message of the whole speech being that we will not forget these attacks but we will move forward as a strong nation. At the time president Bush may have realized that this would be an important speech, but no one could predict the impact it would have on Americans and the world. This speech was effective in getting people who were not involved or affected by the attack to feel sympathy for

those who lost someone in the attack. It successfully united people from all walks of life within America, and provided a sense of pride and hope that may had otherwise been lost. With the powerful imagery created by the writer and president they successfully motivated other countries to get involved in our campaign, before it was declared a war against terror. By the end of this speech the American people knew that they were safe to go back to work and our government was working diligently to rectify the situation.