Patrick Henry Essay

Patrick Henry Essay

“Give me Liberty or Give me Death”, such a well known phrase amongst Americans yet, the man, Patrick Henry, behind the words and his role in the road to the american revolution, is not as well known. His knowledge of what gets the masses riled up was outstanding and his auditory skill were unsurpassed. The words that inspired a nation were apart of the speech he made in the House of Burgesses on March 23, 1775, in Saint John's Church in Richmond, Virginia. With the House indecisive on whether to mobilize for military action against the infringing British military force, Henry argued in favor of mobilization and ended his speech with the phrase that like the shot heard around the world would be one of the stepping stones to the revolution. The phrase itself is one of the key points in the speech that stood out for the patriots, to inspire courage in their hearts. Though it gave the people of that time the temerity needed to overthrow the British rule, it had an effect that endures till this day, inciting the same feeling from so long ago to the freedom fighter of today. Though it was George Washington who lead the revolution with his armies, it was Patrick Henry who fueled the army's morale and spirit, considered by all to be a great american hero.

The concepts and ideas put forth by Henry are the reason that is instigated the colonists, the wording and “challenging to the masses and the British, bolstered its validity. “For my own part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom or slavery; and in proportion to the magnitude of the subject ought to be the freedom of the debate.” is a prime example of this, here it is shown that Henry is challenging the masses, by comparing them to slaves, which was highly offensive during those times, pressuring them to act out to prove their superiority to the slaves. He is trying to persuade them into fighting for their freedom to be shown better than the slaves. Henry also uses the idea of God and the...

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