From First Inaugural Speech
March 4, 1933
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
More important, a host of unemployed citizens face the grim problem of existence, and an equally great number toil with little return. Only a foolish optimist can deny the dark realities of the moment.
Yet our distress comes from no failure of substance. We are stricken by no plague of locusts. Compared with the perils which our forefathers conquered because they believed and were not afraid, we have still much to be thankful for. Nature still offers her bounty and human efforts have multiplied it. Plenty is at our doorstep, but a generous use of it languishes in the very sight of the supply. Primarily this is because the rulers of the exchange of mankind's goods have failed, through their own stubbornness and their own incompetence, have admitted their failure, and abdicated. Practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men.
1
Select the correct answer.
In Roosevelt's address, he wanted to assure American citizens that they would persevere through the Great Depression. What rhetorical device does Roosevelt use to convince Americans?
A.
He uses repetition to emphasize America's distress.
B.
He compares the goods of mankind to incompetence.
C.
He personifies nature's bounty found within America.
D.
He points out the adaptability of the business owners.