Neo-Aristotelian Criticism
The Five Canons
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Invention: Logos, Ethos, Pathos |
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Organization |
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Style |
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Delivery |
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Memory |
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Rudy Giuliani’s Opening Remarks to
the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on Terrorism
Giuliani’s speech
to the United Nations after the attacks of September 11th was extremely
powerful. Giuliani’s speech is
like many leaders before him in that his speech was the result of a situation. This situation was completely warranted, like
FDR’s response to Pearl Harbor or Bobby Kennedy’s response to the death of
Martin Luther King. With the analysis used
in Neo-Aristotelian criticism, we can why Giuliani used the techniques he did,
and if the audience responded the way he hoped.
The
first canon used to analyze this speech is invention. This canon is concerned with the speaker’s
major ideas. The first category is
logos. Giuliani very logically explained
what happened. He tells the members of
the United Nations that the United States was attacked by terrorists. Next is the category ethos. As mayor of New York City, Giuliani had a
great deal of credibility. He is noted
for turning the city around and getting it cleaned up. So of course he has credibility when it comes
to this matter. The last category of
invention is pathos. Giuliani tries to
generate many emotions from his audience.
He evokes compassion, unity and determination.
The
second canon is organization. The speech
is very organized. It starts off in
chronological order of what happened and what will happen. There is also some explanation of certain
things, such as terrorism and what can be done to stop it. It flows very well. Each sentence fits together with the next.
The
third canon is style. The words and
style of the speech are very strong and powerful. The overall tone is not meant to sound arrogant,
but rather hopeful and determined.
Giuliani uses words that show confidence and encouragement, because that’s
what the people of New York and the United States needed at the time.
The
fourth canon is delivery. Giuliani,
being a public figure for many years, is an experience public speaker. He has always had great presence and this
speech is no exception. In fact, this
may have been the most important and most influential speech of his career. Giuliani knows how to relate to his audience,
and that is what makes him such an engaging speaker.
The
last canon is memory. This is not always
important in the Neo-Aristotelian process.
It is important for a speaker to know what they are talking about, but
very rarely do you have a speaker forget what they are talking about. Giuliani knew his speech; he just glanced
down every now and then to check his place.
