BACKGROUND STUDY GUIDE SPEECH VOCABULARY THEMES LITERARY TERMS READING A SPEECH OTHER FAMOUS SPEECHES

Robert F. Kennedy ( ) –“Bobby” Kennedy, as he was usually known, was the seventh of nine children. As a child, Kennedy traveled abroad with his father, Joseph P. Kennedy, received letters from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and he even met the Pope. Kennedy enjoyed proving himself by taking risks. When his older brother, John was elected President, he appointed Bobby his Attorney General. Robert Kennedy used this position to help further the cause of civil rights. After his brother’s assassination, he was elected Senator from New York. Many people believe he would have won the Democratic presidential nomination in 1968 if he had not been assassinated. Robert F. Kennedy ( ) –“Bobby” Kennedy, as he was usually known, was the seventh of nine children. As a child, Kennedy traveled abroad with his father, Joseph P. Kennedy, received letters from President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and he even met the Pope. Kennedy enjoyed proving himself by taking risks. When his older brother, John was elected President, he appointed Bobby his Attorney General. Robert Kennedy used this position to help further the cause of civil rights. After his brother’s assassination, he was elected Senator from New York. Many people believe he would have won the Democratic presidential nomination in 1968 if he had not been assassinated.

Robert and John Kennedy were personally supportive of Dr. King and his family. The Kennedys believed in Dr. King’s nonviolent desegregation efforts.

On April 4, 1968, Senator Robert F. Kennedy was in Indiana campaigning for the Democratic nomination for President when he learned that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., had been shot and killed. Just five years earlier, Kennedy had lost his brother, John, who was also shot and killed by an assassin.

That evening at a rally with a mostly black crowd, Robert Kennedy announced King’s death in the heartfelt speech that you will read. Kennedy went on to win the Indiana primary. On June 4, 1968, after he won the California primary, a man approached him as if to shake hands. A shot rang out, and Robert Kennedy crumpled to the floor. Two days later he, too, died. 17-year-old Juan Romero tries to hold Robert F. Kennedy after he was suddenly shot.

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Answer: Martin Luther King Jr., was shot. Evidence: “I have bad news for you, for all of our fellow citizens, and people who love peace all over the world, and that is that Martin Luther King Jr., was shot and killed tonight” (para. one, page 530).

Answer: This speech is given in second person point of view. Evidence: –“I have bad news for you…”(para.one, page 530). –“For those of you who are black and are tempted to be filled with hatred and distrust…”(para. five, page 530). –“So I shall ask you tonight to return home…”.(para. eight, page 531).

Answer: Martin Luther King Jr., worked for civil rights and achieving justice for all people. Evidence: “Martin Luther King dedicated his life to love and to justice for his fellow human beings, and he died because of that effort” (para. two, page 530).

Answer: Kennedy feared that the people would become hateful and violent. Evidence: “…-you can be filled with hatred, with bitterness, with hatred, and a desire for revenge. We can move in that direction as a country, in great polarization- black people amongst black, white people amongst white, filled with hatred toward one another (para. three, page 530)

Answer: Kennedy encourages people to continue to be hopeful, compassionate, sympathetic, similar to King’s response to people. Evidence: “Or we can make an effort, as Martin Luther King did, to understand and to comprehend, and to replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed across our land, with an effort to understand with compassion and love”(para. four, page 530)

Answer: Kennedy asks his audience to pray for Dr. King, for our country, and for understanding and compassion. Evidence: “So I shall ask you tonight to return home, to say a prayer for the family of Martin Luther King, that’s true, but more importantly to say a prayer for our own country, which all of us love- a prayer for understanding and that compassion of which I spoke” (para. eight, page 531).

Answer: Yes, Kennedy believes that the people in the United States want to have justice for all Americans. Evidence: “But the vast majority of white people and the vast majority of black people in this country want to live together, want to improve the quality of our live, and want justice for all human beings who abide in our land” (para. ten, page 531)

Answer: He refers to the assassination of his brother, John F. Kennedy. Evidence: “…I feel in my own heart the same kind of feeling. I had a member of my family killed, but he was killed by a white man. But we have to make an effort to understand, to go beyond these rather difficult times” (para. five, page 530)

Answer: The “savageness of man” refers to the cruel side of humankind, the side that would kill a peacemaker such as Martin Luther King, Jr. –“…to replace that violence, that stain of bloodshed that has spread across our land, with an effort to understand with compassion and love”( para. four, page 530) To “make gentle the life…” means to work towards living peacefully among all people. –“But the vast majority of white people and the vast majority of black people in this country want to live together, want to improve the quality of our life, and want justice for all human beings who abide in our land”(para. ten, page 531) Home Page

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COMPARE & CONTRAST Written Version Video Version Home Page

 dedicate v. to give up wholly to some purpose; devote  evidently adv. plainly; clearly  polarization n.breaking up or separating into two opposing sides  compassion n. sympathy or pity  abide v. live, reside  desegregation n. the elimination of laws, customs, or practices under which different races, groups, etc., are restricted to specific or separate public facilities, neighborhoods, schools, organizations, or the like. Home Page

A speech given at the signing of a peace treaty after a war would be very different from a speech at a memorial service for children who died in a fire. How a speech is written and delivered depends on its topic and purpose, the occasion, and the audience. The crowd that listened to Robert F. Kennedy’s speech undoubtedly heard the news of the death of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., with great sorrow and anger. The purpose of the speech was to persuade the crowd not to react to the terrible event with hatred and violence. What are Kennedy’s strongest statements? (DISCUSS) Identify the main feeling words: Home Page

Tone: describes the author’s or speaker’s attitude towards the subject and the audience, or reader. The tone of a speech or written work provides the mood, the atmosphere or feeling. The choice of details and words all contribute to create a specific mood. –Read each quote and identify the tone for those specific words. “I have bad news for you.” –mournful, sad “Martin Luther King, Jr., dedicated his life to love and to justice…” –respectful, hopeful “What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence or lawlessness…” –forceful

Repetition: word or phrase used over and over again for emphasis. What words and phrases does Kennedy repeat in his speech? –Possible Answers: “Let us dedicate….” “…want to live together, want to improve the quality of our life, want justice….” “What we need…” “We have to make an effort…”

Allusion- in literature, an implied or indirect reference to a person, event, or thing or to a part of another text. –Identify the allusions in the speech: Quote from Aeschylus: “ In our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.” Reference to the Greeks: “ to tame the savageness of man and to make gentle the life of this world.”

Imagery- concrete words or details that appeal to the senses of sight, sound, touch, smell, and to internal feelings. –What are some examples of imagery in this speech?

Theme: recurring idea or insight found in the story; also known as the HIDDEN MESSAGE. It can also be the lesson the character learns. What do you think the theme of Robert Kennedy’s speech is? Home Page

In our past, in our present, and in our future, many people have made, make, and will make powerful speeches that make powerful and emotional connections to their audiences. Home Page

. Theme #1 Overcoming Differences What did we learn? What is the moral/lesson? Theme #2 Dealing With a Loss What did we learn? What is the moral/lesson?