Rhetorical situation

Speaker

John F. Kennedy, the 35th American president, delivers his Moon Speech in 1962, to the audience present at Rice Stadium, on the Rice University Campus. The speech is officially known as the Address at Rice University on the Nation’s Space Effort. 

Kennedy delivers his speech from the position of “an honorary visiting professor” (ll. 5-6), but also from the position of president of the US. Note, however, that Kennedy appears humble and respectful, as he bases his speech on scientific and historical facts. Throughout the speech, he accentuates the work of scientists and does not promote himself on an individual level.

Kennedy associates himself with the American citizens through the use of “we”: “Yet the vows of this Nation can only be fulfilled if we in...