Directions:​ Use your annotated copy of Patrick Henry’s “Liberty or Death” speech (reproduced

again for you below) and answer the following questions. Use complete sentences and
evidence from the text to support your analysis:

1. What is the historical context of Henry’s speech? What is the basic question being
debated at the Virginia Convention? ​The historical context was the Virginia Convention
and he basic question was when will they have independence from britain and create
their own country
2. What evidence does Henry provide to support his claims? How effective would this
evidence be to his audience? ​An example of supporting evidence would be seen where
Henry says “Ask yourselves how this gracious reception of our petition comports with
those warlike preparations which cover our waters and darken our land. Are fleets and
armies necessary to a work of love and reconciliation? Have we shown ourselves so
unwilling to be reconciled that force must be called in to win back our love? Let us not
deceive ourselves, sir. These are the implements of war and subjugation; the last
arguments to which king’s resort.” which shows that if the colonies were going to
separate from Britain they would do so in a war, his thesis was that the British were
stronger than the colonies and they could not be trusted but they must fight because
their situation will get worse if they don't
3. How does Henry refute the counterargument? Be specific and detailed. ​The
counterargument of his speech was to use peaceful methods and use speeches to get
their way, i.e talking out their problems, to which in response Henry says, “Sir, we have
been trying that for the last ten years. Have we anything new to offer upon the subject?
Nothing. We have held the subject up in every light of which it is capable; but it has been
all in vain.” he believes that we’d already wasted too much time trying to talk our way
through and now it is time for action
4. Observe the length of the sentences in the first and last paragraphs of the speech. What
differences do you find? How do these differences affect the tone of the speech? ​In the
first paragraphs, we see long sentences separated by multiple commas, these
sentences are used to bring up a single main idea with deviations that support the claim.
The long sentences give off a calmer tone with worried/anxious undertones of what is
ahead. The last paragraphs have shorter lengths with multiple types of ending
punctuation. His structure gets more animated with his use of punctuation such as
exclamation marks and question marks that urge the reader to think
5. In the third paragraph, Henry uses a string of verbs: petitioned, remonstrated,
supplicated, implored. They are arranged in a climactic order, flowing from the mildest to
the strongest. What is the effect of this structure on the audience? Find four synonyms
for these verbs, and rewrite Henry’s sentence using your choices. Are they as effective
as Henry's choices? Why or why not?​ Beg, implore, plead, urge: “We have begged; we
have pleaded; we have implored; we have prostrated ourselves before the throne, and
have conjured its interposition to arrest the tyrannical hands of the ministry and
Parliament.” They are as effective as Henry's choices because they all mean the same
thing but the connotations of the different words invoke stronger emotions, playing on
pathos.
 6. In a detailed paragraph, explain the overall effect of Henry’s structure and how it
advances his argument. Be sure to discuss the following:
● Introduction and Conclusion
● Paragraph Topics
● Method of Development
● Tone Shifts

The overall effect of Henry's structure was very convincing and argumentative, having utilized
the Aristotelian Argument style, and was especially effective in explaining his stance on the
future of the colonies, and how they should attain their future. In his introduction, he uses a
sentence structure indicative of a calm and peaceful speech, making claims as well as showing
the evidence for them within one, long sentence. However, In his conclusion, Henry uses
shorter, choppy sentences, often completed with more animated punctuation such as
exclamation marks or question mark to emphasize his claims. Henry also changes topics when
he writes a new paragraph, as in the first paragraph, he talked about giving his view on how the
Virginia Debate played out. In the second paragraph he talks about the morality of knowing the
truth and taking action. The third paragraph, he stays on topic, writing mainly about Britain’s
wrongdoings toward the colonies, when all they’ve done is asked for their rights. In the fourth
paragraph, he talks about how strong the colonies will be once free from Britain because they
have God on their side. His concluding paragraph is about how much he longs for liberty. He is
very animated in describing his desire for the independent colonies and a successful rebellion.