Extra Credit Essay

The Space Shuttle “Challenger” Tragedy Address

Ladies and Gentlemen, I'd planned to speak to you tonight to report on the state of the Union, but the events of earlier today have led me to change those plans. Today is a day for mourning and remembering. Nancy and I are pained to the core by the tragedy of the shuttle Challenger. We know we share this pain with all of the people of our country. This is truly a national loss.

Nineteen years ago, almost to the day, we lost three astronauts in a terrible accident on the ground. But we've never lost an astronaut in flight. We've never had a tragedy like this.

And perhaps we've forgotten the courage it took for the crew of the shuttle. But they, the Challenger Seven, were aware of the dangers, but overcame them and did their jobs brilliantly. We mourn seven heroes: Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair, Ellison Onizuka, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe.

We mourn their loss as a nation together.

For the families of the seven, we cannot bear, as you do, the full impact of this tragedy. But we feel the loss, and we're thinking about you so very much. Your loved ones were daring and brave, and they had that special grace, that special spirit that says, "Give me a challenge, and I'll meet it with joy." They had a hunger to explore the universe and discover its truths. They wished to serve, and they did. They served all of us.

We've grown used to wonders in this century. It's hard to dazzle us. But for twenty-five years the United States space program has been doing just that. We've grown used to the idea of space, and, perhaps we forget that we've only just begun. We're still pioneers. They, the members of the Challenger crew, were pioneers.

And I want to say something to the schoolchildren of America who were watching the live coverage of the shuttle's take-off. I know it's hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this happen. It's all part of the process of exploration and discovery. It's all part of taking a chance and expanding man's horizons. The future doesn't belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave. The Challenger crew was pulling us into the future, and we'll continue to follow them.

I've always had great faith in and respect for our space program. And what happened today does nothing to diminish it. We don't hide our space program. We don't keep secrets and cover things up. We do it all up front and in public. That's the way freedom is, and we wouldn't change it for a minute.

We'll continue our quest in space. There will be more shuttle flights and more shuttle crews and, yes, more volunteers, more civilians, more teachers in space. Nothing ends here; our hopes and our journeys continue.

I want to add that I wish I could talk to every man and woman who works for NASA, or who worked on this mission and tell them: "Your dedication and professionalism have moved and impressed us for decades. And we know of your anguish. We share it."

There's a coincidence today. On this day three hundred and ninety years ago, the great explorer Sir Francis Drake died aboard ship off the coast of Panama. In his lifetime the great frontiers were the oceans, and a historian later said, "He lived by the sea, died on it, and was buried in it." Well, today, we can say of the Challenger crew: Their dedication was, like Drake's, complete.

The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and "slipped the surly bonds of earth" to "touch the face of God."

Thank you.

Natalia Wingo

Mr. Jorgenson

Writing 1010

11/3/15

“The Space Shuttle ‘Challenger’ Tragedy Address” Rhetoric Review

Though President Reagan’s rhetoric wasn’t nearly as great as Martin Luther King Jr.’s, I still caught quite a bit in his address to the country after the space shuttle “Challenger” exploded during lift-off. Also, even though there is a lot of controversy that surrounds Reagan, I still think this was a really well thought out speech. In this speech, though, I did not happen to find any repetition; but I did find allusions, an understanding of his audience, and some metaphors.

Some examples of the allusions I found in this speech are as follows. “Nineteen years ago, almost to the day, we lost three astronauts in a terrible accident on the ground.” (Reagan 1) This speech was not about the accident on the ground, but rather the one in the sky. But they do relate because they both have to do with astronauts. The next quote is, “On this day three hundred and ninety years ago, the great explorer Sir Francis Drake died aboard ship off the coast of Panama.” (Reagan 1) It’s glaringly obvious that this quote isn’t talking about the astronauts aboard Challenger, but he does round back and say “In his lifetime the great frontiers were the oceans, and a historian later said, "He lived by the sea, died on it, and was buried in it." Well, today, we can say of the Challenger crew: Their dedication was, like Drake's, complete.” (Reagan 1)

Reagan also showed a very large understanding of his audience. Which only makes sense, being as he was the President of the United States at this time. But a few quotes that prove my point are, “...we share this pain with all of the people of our country.” (Reagan 1) He knew that the explosion affected all Americans in some way, even if it didn’t directly have to do with them. At one point, he also mentions the families of the astronauts on Challenger by saying, “For the families of the seven,...” (Reagan 1) After this he expresses his condolences. He knows that the families are hurting more than other Americans can imagine. Then, he continues by saying, “And I want to say something to the schoolchildren of America…” (Reagan 1) With this quote, he’s showing that he knows the children are there, watching his speech. Though it is probably because they’re being forced to, he still addresses them in his speech. After that, he also mentions, “I wish I could talk to every man and woman who works for NASA,...” (Reagan 1) This shows, that he knows that this is a devastating blow to the scientists of NASA, and he wants them to know that he still has faith in them.

Lastly is the literary imagery that Reagan scattered throughout his short speech. The first quote I’d like to point out is “They had a hunger to explore the universe and discover its truths. They wished to serve, and they did. They served all of us.” (Reagan 1) He used the metaphor of hunger to express the dire need that the astronauts had for wanting to go to space. Food is a necessity in life, and Reagan compared that food to exploring the universe. He also made it seem as if these astronauts were servers in a restaurant; except they didn’t serve food, they served the secrets of space. The next quote is, “We’re still pioneers.” (Reagan 1) It’s a short one this time, but he is explaining that, even though we are settled in the country of the United States, we are still pioneers exploring the farther places. The places we never dreamed possible. This last quote is more like Reagan quoting someone else, but I think it still fits well in the literary imagery aspect of this assignment. “We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and "slipped the surly bonds of earth" to "touch the face of God."” (Reagan 2) Which is basically just a fancy way of saying they left gravity and went to Heaven.

Works Cited

Reagan, Ronald. “The Space Shuttle “Challenger” Tragedy Address”. Americanrhetoric.com. 28 Jan 1 1986. Web. 3 November 2015.

Reflection

Though this was just an extra credit assignment, I felt like it would be best to make this as good as possible. Though it's not perfect and just an analysis of rhetoric, I definitely tried my best while writing it.

#English #Fall2015