Jade 1

Taylor Jade
Dr. Jenel Cope
American Civilizations 1700
12 December 2015
The Manipulation of a Country
On December 8, 1941, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave his Infamy Speech to
Congress, declaring war with Japan in World War II. His emotive words labeled Japans actions
as unprovoked and dastardly treachery. These words were not, as was written, directed to the
bodies of the House of Representatives and the Senate, but to the American people, designed to
incite them and bring them to his side. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was ready to enter the
war, to help the economy and to fully help the Allies. While saying he knew what the American
people wanted, he was molding their emotions to his cause.
He starts immediately into the recent attack from the Empire of Japan. Given the United
States history of breaking away from Britain, they do not look kindly at proclaimed empires.
The very word is small, seeming innocuous, yet it strikes an emotional chord within the
subconscious. Empires, simply put, are the bad guys, the ones who domineer and take away
freedoms. Then the president presents the good guys: mentioning how their common nation
was looking toward a maintenance of peace, while generously answering Japans solicitation
in a gracious light. The attack, set so dissonantly against these innocent words, makes out Japan
to be a wicked, conniving, traitorous snake who strikes while his friends backs are turned.
Indeed, he offers proof that Japan is truly so evil as he says, leading right into Japans great
deception of hiding their treachery while already having attacked America not one hour earlier.

Jade 2
President Roosevelt then with solemn sincerity declares wicked Japans crimes: because
of the distance from Japan to Hawaii, the attack was deliberately planned many days or even
weeks ago, and that they had deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false
statements and expressions of hope for continued peace. With these statements, he further draws
the line between who is innocent and who is guilty, who is good and who is bad. With these
statements, he labels Japan as the deliberate enemy, drawing his words tighter, leaving the only
visible option to be retaliation. And because they are crimes, and American is the great world
police force, it truly is a noble and justified cause.
In case this hysteria seems a little far-fetched, or the distance of this enemy too far to
matter, his next words take away Americans doubt. I regret to tell you that very many American
lives have been lost, Franklin Roosevelt says, hinting that the war has already hit home, and
worse, lives and loves have already been lost to this unexpected and cruel enemy. Playing on this
established fear, he tells the people of U.S. ships having been attacked in proximity to San
Franciscothe mainland! A very populous and very well-known part of the mainland.
Mentioning deaths feeds on the emotions of sensitive hearts; mentioning proximity feeds on the
fear of people losing who they love to a bigger enemy.
Then he drives in the reminder, the very list of wrong-doings that makes Japan an enemy
of the world, and now a personal enemy: Yesterday, it was Malaya. Last night it was Hong Kong,
then Guam, the Philippine Islands, and Wake Island. This morning, it was Midway Island. The
list is long and growing, all surprise attacks within a day, and the fear that citizens are to be the
next target is real, because the enemy has already attacked Oahu.

Jade 3
But should they fear? Alas, no. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt sets himself up as
their champion, Commander-in-Chief of the Army and the Navy, already taking measures for
our defense. He declares goodwill over the feelings that hes been manipulating of his citizens,
trusting that their formed opinions understand the implications to the very life and safety of our
nationsuggesting that if they do not believe in this enemy, they must be very foolish, indeed
casting away not only their lives, but selfishly risking others, and an entire future. He
admonishes the whole nation to remember the character of the onslaught against them, that
snake betrayer hes set up to knock over, and in doing so, puts himself and his cause as
courageous and selfless in contrast to this dark, life-stealing force for evil. And in this contrast is
when he announces his cause: No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated
invasion, the American people, in their righteous might, will win through to absolute victory.
Americans and their cause are righteous. And Japan is unprovoked and dastardly, a
treachery endangering them, their territory, and their interests. America is on one side: A
president, the Congress, and all the people are her citizens, and good Mr. President speaks for
them all, and to the American in them, no matter their status. This is whom he is speaking to
when he asks Congress to accept his heart spoken plea for war against this empire. And the
Americans, having been manipulated by fear, sorrow, history, and strategy, having been beguiled
into thinking an island could be an enemy to a great world power, rally to his cause of worldpolicing righteousness, and charge into another World War.