A Revolution: Patrick Henry

Henry, Patrick. "Give me Liberty, or give me death"
09 April 2008. < http://www.liberty-page.com/foundingdocs/givemeliberty/main.html >


Reflection: In his famous "Give me Liberty, or Give me death" speech, Patrick Henry utilizes the three methods of persuasion, which are ethos, logos, and pathos in order to convince colonial America to stand up and fight against Great Britain's tyrannical rule. Henry makes well use of God in the three methods since almost everyone was a Christian considering the church ran most of the city affairs. Ethos means ethical appeal. Henry believes that it is ethical to go to war; however, such brutality war holds can not ethical, so what is his purpose? First of all, Henry says, "I know of no way of judging of the future but by the past" before the outbreak of war America was taxed by Britain constantly and had no voice of opinion. So all the people could do was stick their heads in the ground and hope for a reform, but that never happened. It was ethically wrong and unjust for Britain to have a rule over the colonies when they promised the American people their freedom. It was also unjust for people to convince themselves of such false hope, for Britain wouldn't change. Also, Henry makes note that God sees the injustice in this and commands that we must take back what is ours. Cowering away from the situation would bring dishonor to the colonies, yourself, and more importantly God. Henry makes his logical appeal by reminding them the economic crisis Britain has brought upon the colonies. How could a man make a living if all mighty Britain taxed him for every breath? Logically it was right to declare war to achieve true freedom and independence from Britain just as the pilgrims sought to in 1620. Finally Henry appeals emotionally to the public. Like the ethos, Henry uses God once again as a method for persuasion. Since colonial America didn't have much of an army, navy, or any allies how would they defeat Britain? However, it was not to worry since God would take care of plight of the situation and punish Britain's wickedness for lying to the colonies. What better way to stir the spirits of the population than to appeal to their religious beliefs? Allusion is also a key method in his speech of eloquently portraying America's strangled position. For example, "it is natural to man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts. Is this the part of wise men, engaged in a great and arduous struggle for liberty?" therefore the siren is one his symbols in which it represent false hope. Just like the soothing song of the siren, it is comforting to feel safe and believe everything will untwine in our favor. Yet this was not the case, as time went on Great Britain was able to seize America piece by piece likewise any action would not be passed without the approval of Britain. It was easy to be told what to do instead of standing up and fighting for what they wanted.


What about the Dream? (EQ)

Through their inspiring words, Patrick Henry and Thomas Paine successfully appealed to the colonial peoples to gain independence from Britain's tyrannical rule. Although colonial American had formed an army, their numbers would never match against the British's mighty masses of soldiers. So just how did they hope to win? For one thing, they did have the morale to fight, but their lack of proper training and arms still cut their chances of victory. Not only did America have a small army, but many loyalists to Britain. These loyalists were a hated group and a prime target for the government. If caught during the war, they would more than likely be executed or shot on the spot for treachery. With 30% of the population consisting of loyalists, the colonial government was caught up in war that had to be fought internally and externally. It was hard to safeguard the idea that there was a chance for us to win this war especially since the army itself was not in tip top shape. Without Paine and Henry's voice, it would be hard to imagine if the war could have been won.