“Speech in the Virginia
Convention”
Patrick Henry
About the Selection
• Patrick Henry’s speech in the
convention played a key role in turning
colonial sentiment against negotiation
with England and toward armed
rebellion.
• He begins the speech with a respectful
rebuttal to the previous speeches, but
then he defends his call for
independence.
About the Selection
• Henry argues that colonists have tried
every argument but discussion is
useless in averting the coming conflict.
• By establishing that the British are
preparing for war, he asserts the war
has already begun, undercutting any
arguments for peaceful compliance.
Speech
• Speeches are written works that are
delivered orally.
• Effective speeches include
• Restatement – repeating an idea in a
variety of ways
• Repetition – repeating an idea using the
same words
• Parallelism – repeating grammatical
structures
• Rhetorical questions – asking a question
whose answer is self-evident
Diction
• Diction is the choice and arrangement
of words
• Denotation is the dictionary definition
of the word.
• Connotation is the set of associations
implied by a word in addition to its
literal meaning.
Persuasive Appeal
• When reading a persuasive speech,
one must evaluate the persuasive
appeals that the speaker makes.
• Does the speaker appeal to emotion?
• Does the speaker appeal to reason?
Elevated Diction
• What phrases in the opening of the
speech indicates Henry’s sophisticated
diction?
• “No man thinks more highly than I do
…”
• “I shall speak forth my sentiments…”
• “… in proportion to the magnitude of
the subject ought to be the freedom of
the debate.”
Purpose/Audience
• What is Henry’s purpose?
• He is trying to persuade listeners to
fight for independence.
• Who is Henry’s audience?
• His audience is made up of Virginia
statesmen; therefore, his diction would
most likely be formal and
sophisticated.
Content
• Does Henry agree or disagree with
those who spoke before him?
• Henry disagrees with them.
• How does the audience know this?
• “But different men often see the same
subject in different lights…”
Rhetorical Questions
• Asking a rhetorical question is one
technique a speaker can use in a
speech.
• Because the answers to rhetorical
questions are evident, they often stir
up the emotions of listeners.
• Read the last paragraph on p.188
where he uses many rhetorical
questions.
Rhetorical Questions
• What is the effect of the rhetorical
questions Henry uses?
• These questions counter any possible
argument from those who still hesitate
about going to war.
• They also help to stir up the
indignation and frustration of the
listeners.
Persuasive Appeals
• “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.”
• Henry argues that God, who is on the
side of the just, will favor their cause.
Persuasive Appeal
• How well does this religious appeal suit
Henry’s audience and occasion?
• Listeners who foresaw the
establishment of a new nation would
have responded well to Henry’s appeal.
Allusions
• “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.”
• In Homer’s Odyssey the enchantress
Circe transforms men into swine after
charming them with her singing.
Allusions
• “Are we disposed to be of the number
of those who having eyes see not, and
having ears hear not, the things which
so nearly concern their temporal
salvation.”
• Ezekiel 12:2 – “Son of man, thou
dwellest in the midst of a rebellious
house, which have eyes to see, but see
not, who have ears to hear, but hear
not…”
Allusions
• “Suffer not yourselves to be betrayed
with a kiss.”
• Luke 22:47-48 – “And while yet he
spoke, behold a multitude, and he that
was called Judas, one of the twelve,
went before them, and drew near unto
Jesus to kiss him. But Jesus said unto
him, Judas, betrayest you the Son of
Man with a kiss.”M
Allusions
• “The battle, sir, is not to the strong
alone…”
• Ecclesiastes 9:11 “The race is not to
the swift, nor the battle to the strong.”
Content
• What measures, short of war, have the
colonists tried?
• They have tried organizing protests
and petitioning the king for justice.
Strong Closing
• “I know not what course others may
take; but as for me, give me liberty or
give me death!”
• Henry was deeply committed to the
cause of independence. He was
bringing a death sentence on himself if
the colonists failed to win the war. He
was a man of courage who was willing
to risk all for his beliefs.
Rhetorical Devices
• Problem-solution Argument
• Charged words
• Allusions – biblical and mythological
• Elevated diction
• Rhetorical questions
• Strong concluding thought (modernday sound bite)