Memorable Lines from our
Cultural Heritage
Movies, Politics, and
Our Popular Culture
Movies fill our lives with entertainment and
fill our minds with unforgettable quotes.
Characters become icons of our cultural heritage, and
their finest (and weakest) moments on screen are
deeply implanted in our cultural memory.
Let’s conduct a little experiment—
Can you finish these memorable movie lines?

May the force….
…be with you.

Hasta ….
… la Vista, Baby.

Life is like…
…a box of
chocolates,
you never
know what
you’re gona’
get.

Show me..…the money.

Houston, we…
…have a problem.

If you build it…
…they will come.

Go ahead…
…make my day.
Now let’s try some classic movie lines.

Every time a bell rings…
...an angel gets its wings.

Here’s looking …
…. at you, kid.

Toto, we’re…
…. not in Kansas anymore.
Space. The final frontier.
These are the…
…voyages of
the star
ship
Enterprise.
Why do these phrases become
implanted in our cultural memories?

Believe it or not, these
one-liners contain
classic elements of
rhetoric.
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What is Rhetoric?
In it’s broadest terms,
rhetoric is the art of
speaking and writing
effectively.
More specifically,
rhetoric refers to the art
of persuasive speech,
that is, oratory.
All great speeches have an element of occasion—they
create just the right impact for that specific moment.


Look at “Hasta La Vista, Baby.”
This is a common Hispanic farewell that a
young man might say as he flirts with a pretty
young woman.
But when the Terminator says, “Hasta
La Vista, Baby…”
He means something quite different!
Using what is normally a casual farewell as a signal that
death is about to strike helps reveal the character’s attitude
toward his adversary.
Great speeches typically have
a persuasive element as well.
The Greek philosopher Aristotle, explained that
there were three key components to persuasive
speech.
 Pathos—emotion
 Logos—logic
 Ethos—worthiness of the
speaker
Examples of pathos:



When a student says to a teacher, “My grandmother died on
Friday, so I couldn’t get my homework done,” she is using
an emotional appeal to others for pity and sympathy.
In the days after September 11, 2001, there were many
images in the media that called up our emotions: flags
flying at half mast or waving in the rubble of what used to
be the World Trade Center. These were appeals to
patriotism.
When an advertisement shows a beautiful woman standing
beside a sporty car and gazing longingly at a beautiful
sunset, the ad is playing on buyer’s emotions by suggesting
that buying the car will help one get to know a beautiful
woman or go to a beautiful place.
Examples of logos



When a toothpaste commercial explains that 9 out of 10 dentists
recommend a particular brand, they are using a logical appeal
through statistics and expert testimony.
In an anti-smoking campaign, the narrator uses a logical appeal
when he quotes the World Health Organization: “Half of all
smokers will eventually die as a result of their smoking.” The
appeal uses statistics and the external authority of the World
Health Organization.
When Senator Edward Kennedy said, “in Georgia, blacks who
killed whites received the death penalty 16.7 percent of the
time, while whites who killed blacks received the death penalty
only 4.2 percent of the time,” thereby arguing that the death
penalty is unfair, he was using an inductive argument.
Examples of Ethos

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When the president stands in front of the presidential
seal and an American flag while speaking, he is
reminding your of his important position.
If a speaker introduces herself by explaining that she
has written two books on the topic she is speaking
about, she is reminding listeners of her expertise.
When John Walsh of America’s Most Wanted
explains that his own child was kidnapped, he is
letting audiences know that he had the same
experience as those he is trying to help.
Now let’s take a look at some
simple rhetorical devices that
writers use to add power and
eloquence to their words.
These rhetorical devices impact the
style and syntax of the speech.
They also impact the element of
pathos in a speech as well.
Many writers use purposeful
repetition of words and phrases.


“In 1931, ten years
ago, Japan invaded
Manchukuo—without
warning. In 1935, Italy
invaded Ethiopia—
without warning. In
1938, Hitler occupied
Austria—without
warning.”
--President Franklin Delano
Roosevelt, Pearl Harbor Speech
Some writers use purposeful repetition
of individual sounds.
"...the state of Mississippi, a
desert state, sweltering
with the heat of injustice
and oppression, will be
transformed into an oasis
of freedom and justice.”
--Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.,
the 1963 March on Washington
Alliteration &
Consonance
Even the movies can play around with
Alliteration &
repetition of sound.
Assonance
"Have you forgotten
you're facing the single
finest fighting force
ever assembled?"
--Dan Aykroyd in Dragnet

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"I feel the need,
the need for speed.”
--Goose & Maverick, Top Gun
Sometimes the grammatical structure is repeated to add
rhythm and a pleasing balance. This is called parallelism.

“We cannot dedicate—We
cannot consecrate—We
cannot hallow this ground.”

“…this nation of the
people, by the people, for
the people…”

“With malice toward none,
with charity for all.”
Parallelism can run in the family, too. Here the Kennedy
brothers each use a kind of parallelism called antithesis.
“And so, my fellow
Americans, ask not what your
country can do for you; ask
what you can do for your
country.”
There are those who look at
things the way they are, and
ask why... I dream of things
that never were, and ask why
not?”
—President John F. Kennedy
--Robert Kennedy
Even a television and movie series can get in on
the use of parallelism.
Space:
The final frontier.
These are the voyages of the starship, Enterprise.
Its five year mission
Parallelism
To explore strange new worlds
To seek out new life and new civilizations
To boldly go where no man has gone before.
Figurative language can be
rhetorical devices too.
Metaphor
 “…the torch has been
passed to a new
generation of
Americans…”
 “Those who foolishly
sought power by riding
the back of the tiger
ended up inside.”
--President Kennedy, Inaugural Address
Simile
"Charging a man with
murder in this place
was like handing out
speeding tickets at the
Indy 500. I took the
mission. What else
was I gonna do?“
--Martin Sheen in Apocalypse Now, a
movie set during the Vietnam War
Personification

"Such acts are
commonly stimulated
by forces of hatred and
malevolence such as
today are eating their
way into the
bloodstream of
American life."

-- USSC Justice Earl Warren,
Eulogy for John F. Kennedy
Look at these figures of speech from two of Tom
Hanks’ movies. What’s the technique here?

“Life is like a box of
chocolates, you never
know what you’re gona’
get.”
Simile

“Houston, we
have a problem.”
Understatement
As you listen to speeches in the movies or in real
life, remember to look for rhetorical devices.
Such devices add
 Rhythm
 Depth
 Eloquence
 Power
Such devices create
memorable phrases that
form a tapestry of our
culture and history.
Now let’s apply what we have learned to a
memorable speech from The Two Towers.
Here the weight of carrying the ring of power is
weighing on Frodo. Frodo and Sam have
reached Gondor, but how can they continue on
to Mount Doom? Here Sam finds the answer.
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Frodo: I can't do this, Sam.
Sam: I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here.
But we are. It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that
really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And
sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the
end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when
so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing,
this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And
when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the
stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you
were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do
understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of
turning back, only they didn't. They kept going. Because they were
holding on to something.
Frodo: What are we holding onto, Sam?
Sam: That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo... and it's
worth fighting for.
Now you will practice these skills with a partner.
Refer to your handout entitled “Characteristics of
Persuasive Speeches” to assist you in completing
your analytical chart.
Movie Title:
Speaker:
Plot Summary & Context of the Speech:
Logos
Overall Impact of this Speech:
Pathos
Ethos
Rubric:
Score
3
2
1
0
Description
Thorough & complete work that demonstrates
insightful reflection & analysis on all or nearly
all aspects of the task
Complete work that demonstrates adequate
reflection and analysis on most aspects of theScore
task
Complete or nearly complete work that reveals a
basic or partial understanding of the task
Largely incomplete work or work that reveals
little or no understanding of the task
Here are your movie speech choices.
Friday Night Lights
Remember the
Titans
We Were Soldiers
300
Independence Day
Return of the King
Created by Paula S. Brewer, Central Hardin High School,
Cecilia, Kentucky, February 25, 2012. Revised March 23,
2013.
Source:
American Rhetoric. Copyright 2001-2005. 22 October 2005.
http://www.americanrhetoric.com/
LOTR - Two Towers - Sam's Speech - Worth Fighting For. You.Tube
videoclip. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xDD7egEN2k.
J.R.R. Tolkien. GoodReads. http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/305555frodo-i-can-t-do-this-sam-sam-i-know-it-s.