Place yourself in pre-Revolutionary America. Blood and suffering resulted from Henry’s famous impassioned cry “Give me liberty, or give me death!” yet his words generate pride to this day. Write a paragraph about what liberty means to you.

From Speech to the Second Virginia Convention  Born May 29, 1736 in Hanover County, Virginia  Protested British tyranny  Symbol of American struggle for liberty  Served in the Virginia House of Burgesses and the Continental Congress  Five-term governor of Virginia  Delivered the famous "Give me liberty or give me death!" speech.

Would you be willing to risk your life to preserve your freedoms?

1. Why is Patrick Henry a symbol of the American struggle for liberty? 2. What rhetorical techniques does Patrick Henry utilize in his “Speech to the Virginia Convention” to convince his audience to declare war?

 Speeches are written works that are delivered orally.  Effective speeches include Rhetorical devices: techniques the speaker/writer uses as a means of persuasion. 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 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.  Allusion: reference to famous person, event, or idea

The Shorthand Version:  Ethos: the source's credibility or authority  Logos: the logic used to support a claim; can also be the facts and statistics used to help support the argument.  Pathos: the emotional or motivational appeals; vivid language, emotional language and numerous sensory details.

 Determine his call to action.  He is calling on the patriots of Virginia to arm themselves in order to be prepared to fight the British if they do not yield to some of their demands  Who is his audience? The members of the Virginia Convention  What is the occasion of the speech? The meeting of the Convention  Determine Patrick Henry’s tone in this speech. Urgent, pleading, inflammatory

 With a partner, complete the handout.  These questions will be the basis for our class discussion.  Participation is required!

1. In the beginning of his speech, how does Patrick Henry immediately establish ethos? 2. He states, “This is no time for ceremony” (147). How does this line establish the overall tone? 3. Defend your opinion of whether or not Henry commits a logical fallacy when he states “For my own part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom or slavery” (148). 4. Henry illustrates his points with allusions to mythology and the Bible. Locate and explain two allusions he uses on page “I have but one lamp by which my feet are guided; and that is the lamp of experience” (148). Explain how this is an example of ethos.  6.How does Henry establish logos with his reference to the presence of the British army in the colonies?  7.Connotation: Rather than calling military action “war,” Henry calls it a “struggle for liberty.” What is the effect of Henry utilizing connotative language in his speech?  8.According to Patrick Henry, what have the colonists done to maintain good ties with the British?  9.Henry urges the colonists to fight. How does he appeal to his audience on an emotional level, or pathos?  10.Explain what Henry implies with the five rhetorical questions he asks his audience.  11. Consider the following statement: “Sir, we are not weak, if we make a proper use of the means which the God of nature hath placed in our power” (149). What means is Henry referring to? Discussion Questions