The Architecture of a Speech
C2 · Grammar: Inversion after negative adverbials · Rhetoric and Persuasion
Extracts from speeches (adapted and invented)
A. “We will not tire, we will not falter, and we will not fail.”
B. “Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.” (John F. Kennedy, 1961)
C. “It is not a question of whether we can afford to act. It is a question of whether we can afford not to.”
D. “They promised growth. They delivered debt. They promised security. They delivered fear.”
E. “Some will say this is too ambitious. Some will say this is too expensive. Some will say this is impossible. They said that about the vote. They said that about the weekend. They said that about every right we now take for granted.”
Vocabulary
- tricolon — a series of three parallel elements
- antithesis
- chiasmus
- anaphora
- parallelism
Sample questions (6 questions)
- Which figure does extract B (Kennedy) use?
- chiasmus — the order of the terms is reversed (A-B / B-A)
- tricolon — three parallel items
- anaphora — a repeated opening
- Why is extract D rhetorically effective?
- Parallel structure pairs each promise with its contrasting result.
- It uses complex vocabulary.
- It contains statistics.
- In extract E, what is the rhetorical function of the historical examples?
- to imply that today’s objections will look as mistaken as past ones
- to give precise historical data
- to change the subject
Answers and hints from Migo appear when you do it online.