An Excerpt from Patrick Henry’s, “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death”
“Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged! Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston!”
Henry, Patrick. “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death.” 2 Sept. 1999. 9 April 2008 <http://www.liberty-page.com/foundingdocs/givemeliberty/main.html>
Henry, Patrick. “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death.” 2 Sept. 1999. 9 April 2008 <http://www.liberty-page.com/foundingdocs/givemeliberty/main.html>
Self-Reflection
The speech given by Patrick Henry evokes a sense of patriotism towards one’s country in order to be freed from the ruthless taxes and abominations enforced through the British Parliamentary system. As I initially chose this piece of work, I was amazed at the language Patrick Henry incorporated throughout his speech and the smooth rhythmic manner in which it was expressed. Through the use of his words, it was remarkable to understand the deepening message Henry brought across towards the British without any hesitance. After reading the speech, it could be inferred that Henry’s main goal was to attain freedom from the British in order for the Americans to gain full control over the new lands without being taxed harshly. Such a piece of work exemplifies the many hardships white settlers during the Puritan Era were to encounter, as they were to face the many taxes and regulations brought by the British Parliament. Therefore as a result, this piece of work truly inspired me to prevent others from deterring me from my true goals whether it is by words or actions. Within his speech, Patrick Henry made use of logos by appealing to the audience about the severity of taxation from Great Britain. In order to develop ethos, Henry makes use of high level of vocabulary in order to justify a main point the audience. Finally, Henry makes use of pathos as he uses a variety of different connotations in order to exemplify a sole point. Additionally it was amazing to understand the deepening message in which Henry was trying to imply throughout his phenomenal speech. However, as I read the play I was angered at the mentality that the British presented as they believed it was their authority to command the new white settlers and impose taxes on them. Many similar events occur without our government today, as families are to pay income taxes and other expenses in order to provide a stable economy to the government. Overall, this piece of work truly inspired me as a student to achieve my goals without the interference of other actions.
Dear Diary,
February 29, 1622
The speech given by Patrick Henry evokes a sense of patriotism towards one’s country in order to be freed from the ruthless taxes and abominations enforced through the British Parliamentary system. As I initially chose this piece of work, I was amazed at the language Patrick Henry incorporated throughout his speech and the smooth rhythmic manner in which it was expressed. Through the use of his words, it was remarkable to understand the deepening message Henry brought across towards the British without any hesitance. After reading the speech, it could be inferred that Henry’s main goal was to attain freedom from the British in order for the Americans to gain full control over the new lands without being taxed harshly. Such a piece of work exemplifies the many hardships white settlers during the Puritan Era were to encounter, as they were to face the many taxes and regulations brought by the British Parliament. Therefore as a result, this piece of work truly inspired me to prevent others from deterring me from my true goals whether it is by words or actions. Within his speech, Patrick Henry made use of logos by appealing to the audience about the severity of taxation from Great Britain. In order to develop ethos, Henry makes use of high level of vocabulary in order to justify a main point the audience. Finally, Henry makes use of pathos as he uses a variety of different connotations in order to exemplify a sole point. Additionally it was amazing to understand the deepening message in which Henry was trying to imply throughout his phenomenal speech. However, as I read the play I was angered at the mentality that the British presented as they believed it was their authority to command the new white settlers and impose taxes on them. Many similar events occur without our government today, as families are to pay income taxes and other expenses in order to provide a stable economy to the government. Overall, this piece of work truly inspired me as a student to achieve my goals without the interference of other actions.
Dear Diary,
February 29, 1622
Hello, this is Edward Sumner; I have found many fliers exposing the goals and future ventures set by Patrick Henry. I have recently visited the town in which Patrick Henry performed his speech, “Give Me Liberty or Give me Death”. I was amazed at the vocabulary in which this man used within his empowering speech which last almost over an hour. I cannot disagree with any word he said, as I am being taxed heavily by the British. How can they have the authority to control my lifestyle and charge me for the products in which my fellow settlers produce? These are our lands, products, and dreams in which are being controlled by the corrupt British Parliament! Therefore I do hope the words of Patrick Henry to come into play and expose the British Parliament for their corrupt methods. This powerful man, who I have heard for the first time, has truly inspired me to boycott against that many evils in which the government has brought within our hard-earned lands. I hope one day, to acquire the power of his words in order to speak for my family and friends in order to earn respect for ourselves.
Patrick Henry has inspired we the, “white settlers” to fight against Great Britain in order to liberate ourselves from the harsh taxation and regulations enforced by such a corrupt parliament. I will stand side by side with my friend Patrick whether I die or not in order to achieve proper freedom for my family and friends. I will protect my lifestyle and hard-earned freedom and therefore I will always follow a great leader such as Henry. I truly hope that god will stand by my side in my strive to accomplish freedom for this new settlement as I truly believe it is one that will prosper significantly within the near future. It is in my heart, that I believe it is god’s will for us to be successful in defeat the British Parliament. It is solely our right to maintain and keep these lands in which we have tried so hard!
-Edward Sumner-
Patrick Henry reciting, "Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death"
2 comments:
Nikhil, I found it very interesting in way you analyzed the speech of Patrick Henry. I felt that you gave a clear analysis on the mindset of Patrick Henry during the time and you were able to captivate the reader such as myself into the blog. On the contrary I would however advise you to give a little more emotion in your diary entry, in order for it to stand out as a Patriot. Your image of Patrick Henry was intriguing as it caught my eye in the way Henry delivered his speech. Overall you did great work and you truly caught my attention on your views on Henry’s “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” speech.
Thanks for your opinions Samer; I concur with your comments upon my blogspot and therefore I added an extra sense of emotion to my reflections. I also incorporated logos, ethos, and pathos into my dissection of the speech as I believed it would truly help to seperate the different aspects of the speech. Similar to your response, I also enjoyed reading your comments as I believed they were truly beneficial into giving me an insight into the revelutionary period.
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