President Ronald Reagan's Farewell Address to the Nation on 1/11/89 Cindy Mohr Business & Professional Commun (ENGL-207-NA) Speech Evaluation

The great communicator He was a strong leader because he communicated great things. That's what separated Reagan from so many others who try to compare themselves to him. His faith in the American people. He was believable because he believed. That's what made Reagan the Great Communicator.

He sets the tone by making it personal “One of the things about the Presidency is that you're always somewhat apart. You spent a lot of time going by too fast in a car someone else is driving, and seeing the people through tinted glass -- the parents holding up a child, and the wave you saw too late and couldn't return. And so many times I wanted to stop and reach out from behind the glass, and connect. Well, maybe I can do a little of that tonight.”

He uses eye contact perfectly There is something about Ronald Reagan that makes him stand out from most other speakers, his eye contact; he makes you look into his eyes to see the caring he feels when speaking of our nation. Some say it was because he was previ0usly a successful actor, while others feel it was because he wrote his own speeches that were heart-felt.

The main point of this speech is to say farewell to his presidency, the American people being the audience. What makes his message so powerful is that he not only speaks of the people he speaks directly to you. President Reagan uses key words such as “our”, “us” and “we” to include everyone, as to not take credit for himself as shown in an example here: “The lesson of all this was, of course, that because we're a great nation, our challenges seem complex. It will always be this way. But as long as we remember our first principles and believe in ourselves, the future will always be ours. And something else we learned: Once you begin a great movement, there's no telling where it'll end. We meant to change a nation, and instead, we changed a world”.

The strong points His tone is even, and his voice somewhat soothing. He has a way of turning a normally boring speech into a storytelling experience. He portrays subtle humor at appropriate times as to not lose the audience’s interest. He projects pride in our country and the people.

He bid farewell to the nation and thanked them for their trust in him He bid farewell to the nation and thanked them for their trust in him. Reagan also provides hope for a great future as long as we follow our hearts and keep faith in our country’s ability to improve and help others.

Wonderful speech Even those who may not agree with Ronald Reagan’s political views, have expressed their admiration and his unique ability to capture an audience.

References http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKVsq2daR8Q http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/ronaldreaganfarewelladdress.html http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/made-ronald-reagan-great-communicator-u-s-senator-fred-thompson-reflects-article-1.133489