2001: A Year of Tragedy and Unity
2001 was a year in which the United States experienced unprecedented confusion, rage, and grief. Al-Qaida Muslim extremists launched a terror attack, injuring the majority of people and killing others. People urgently sought assistance in whatever way they could to avoid the atrocities of the time. President George W. Bush was in office at the time, and he took advantage of the opportunity to address the country.
A Message of Reassurance and Unity
Following the most recent terrorist attack, President Bush spoke from the statehouse to calm his people and reassure them that all will be fine. Through this speech, he sought to accomplish one agenda which was to persuade his people that everything would be fine and they could be avenged from their attackers. More so, it was a Cairo's moment for the president to prove his loyalty to the people by making rhetorical appeals and providing a sense of security through the problematic situation. It was a day through which all the people in America needed to be united as they upheld justice and stood down their enemies.
Addressing the Joint Session of Congress
During this day, the president addressed the joint session of Congress by using various steps in his speech. First, he explained and provided a brief overview of the events of the day, September 11th, 2011. He did this to clarify to all people that he was aware of the events that conspired the whole time and was not just silent about it. Second, he made it clear that they would not use the opportunity to blame the Muslims for all that had happened in that season. He acknowledged that there was only a small portion of the extremists in the population that were not concerned about the life of others and did not, therefore, hold all Muslims responsible. In this way, it gave an opportunity to this religious group to feel part of the American Citizens that were also in danger and felt threatened by the things that conspired during that day. Third, he discussed the issue based on the challenges that America was facing as they tried to deal with the enemy they had not yet identified. The people had to keep calm as they waited for the government to take the necessary caution and prevent any future attacks. As such, he affirmed that the situation was under control and that they would use all the essential ways to deal with the situation as a nation. In this regard, he gave orders for the Americans to go back to their usual activities as they prayed for the US military and families of the victims. Finally, he led his people in declaring that they would move on with their lives by stating, "In our grief and anger we have found our mission and our moment."
Lessons Learned
The speech has distinct lessons that provide an excellent opportunity to learn. First, through this speech, I identify that there is a certain way through which it needs to be handled, it requires to include beginning and closing statement while addressing all the aspects that people are ready to hear. The starting statement should be in such a way that attracts the attention of the audience as they understand the cause of the situations. Second, the speech needs to be clear and concise without being too long or very short. Next, it has to address the main agendas of the topic without wandering off to other areas that do not affect the day. Finally, the speech needs to end with an encouraging message that provides hope to the people by assuring them.
Creating Hope in a Time of Crisis
I agree with the thesis of the speech in offering hope to the people and assuring that there was peace while trying to make them believe in the credibility of his position as American president. It is through this speech that he creates another opportunity for the people to believe in his skills and devices to deal with the situation of the day. He created the speech immediately after the attack to assure his people that he was concerned about the things that disturbed their peace and was ready to offer all the help needed. The event created an opportunity through which the president could be remembered for the courageous step he took surrounding the terror attacks of September 11th. He showed a patriotic step when he established and strengthened the security department ready for any other offense that would occur.
Justified Agreement
The position in agreement to the thesis of the speech is justified by the receptiveness of the Americans towards the speech and the hope it produced in them. They felt that their president was concerned about the issues that affected them and ready to take up a bold step to ensure that they remained safe in their country. Furthermore, the speech did address most of the issues that affected Americans at that moment and therefore offered hope as stated in the thesis.
Work Cited
http://edition.cnn.com/2001/US/09/11/bush.speech.text/
