Winston Churchill
About Churchill
 Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill
 (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965)
 served as Prime Minister twice (1940–45 and 1951–55)
 Churchill was also an officer in the British Army, a
historian, a writer, and an artist
 the only British prime minister to have received the
Nobel Prize in Literature
Background
 This speech was given by Winston Churchill, on his
very first entrance into the House of Commons as
Britain’s new Prime Minister with the presence of the
outgoing prime minister.
 The speech came on May 13, 1940 at the beginning of
the World War II when the armies of Adolf Hitler were
roaring across Europe conquering country after
country for Nazi Germany, . .
 When the existence and embellishment of Great
Britain itself looked dim and uncertain.
About
 WWII is beginning
 Churchill is warning the citizens of Great Britain to be
prepared for battle
 It is imperative that Great Britain is victorious
 Without victory, Great Britain will not survive
 Without survival, Great Britain’s goals cannot be
reached
SOAPSTone –technique for analysis
 Subject:
 Occasion:
 Audience:
 Purpose:
 Speaker:
 Tone:
Persuasive Diction Used
 Intense diction:
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“…we are in the preliminary stage of one of the greatest
battles in history,”
“We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind”
“We have before us many, many long months of struggle and
of suffering”
Note:
Allusion and Analysis
 “…we are in the preliminary stage of one of the greatest
battles in history, that we are in action at many points
in Norway and in Holland, that we have to be prepared
in the Mediterranean, that the air battle is continuous
and that many preparation have to be made here at
home.”
NOTES:

Additional Rhetorical Devices
 Synecdoche and Parallelism: figure of speech in which
a part stands for the whole

“I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat.”
Analysis
 “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and
sweat.”
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Churchill is committed
Churchill doesn’t want the British people to expect great or
super-human things out of him.
He does want them to know he is dedicated to serving his
country and that he will match the efforts of every citizen to
accomplish the difficult task ahead.
Churchill is going to give this war his all
Churchill wants to win no matter what it takes
Term refers to hard work or effort put into a project (WWII)
Note:
Devices
 Anaphora: no survival . . . British Empire
 Random Repetition: forms a stronger and more meaningful
message

“…victory; victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory,
however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no
survival.”
 Metonymy: Come then, let us go forward together with our
united strength.”
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If everyone works together, Britain will be stronger and more powerful
NOTES:
Analysis of Anaphora
 “Let that be realized; no survival for the British
Empire, no survival for all that the British Empire
has stood for, no survival for the urge and impulse of
the ages, that mankind will move forward towards its
goal.
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
NOTES:
Devices
 Rhetorical Questions: Churchill asks these questions
to get his audience to agree with him.
“What is our policy?”
 “What is our aim?”
The answer is obvious to the audience, but Churchill is making
sure the audience is aware and truly believe the answer.

Analysis
 “What is our aim? I can answer in one word: victory;
victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory,
however long and hard the road may be; for without
victory, there is no survival.”

NOTES:
Ethos, Logos, Pathos
 Churchill uses strong ethos by speaking honestly and
telling the truth.

“I now invite the House…to record its approval of the steps taken and
to declare its confidence in the new Government.”
 Note:
 Churchill uses logos by making sure his argument was
clear, concise, and organized

“Let that be realized; no survival for the British Empire, no survival
for all that the British Empire has stood for…that mankind will move
forward towards its goals.”
 Note:
 Churchill uses pathos by making sure the audience felt the
passion in his words

“I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears, and sweat.”