U.S. Presidents as Orators: A Bio-Critical Sourcebook - Hardcover

by Halford R. Ryan (Editor)

This first systematic critique on the rhetoric of 21 presidents shows how political constraints shaped rhetoric and how oratory shaped politics. An introduction places American public address in the context of classical rhetorical practices and theory and sets the stage for the bio-critical essays about presidents ranging from Washington to Clinton. Experts analyze the style and use of language, important speeches and their impact, and their ethical ramifications. Each essay on a president also keys major speeches to authoritative texts and offers a chronology and bibliography of primary and secondary sources. For students, teachers, and professionals in American public address, political communication, and the presidency.

Author Biography

HALFORD RYAN, Professor of English and Public Speaking at Washington and Lee University, is well known for his many books and articles dealing with presidential rhetoric and the history and criticism of American public address. His recent works published by Greenwood Press include The Inaugural Addresses of Twentieth-Century American Presidents (1993), American Orators of the Twentieth Century: Critical Studies and Sources (1987), American Orators Before 1900: Critical Studies and Sources (1987) coedited with Bernard Duffy, Harry S. Truman: Presidential Rhetoric (1992), Franklin D. Roosevelt's Rhetorical Presidency (1988), and Oratorical Encounters: Selected Studies and Sources on Twentieth Century Political Accusations and Apologies (1988). He also serves as Adviser for Greenwood's Great American Orators Series.