Description:

John F. Kennedy's hand-annotated and corrected reading copy of his September 22 1960 campaign speech in South Dakota attacking Nixon's agricultural policies fighting communist expansion and expressing his hopes for world peace. With over forty words in his hand!

JOHN F. KENNEDY (1917-1963) The surviving pages of an original Typescript, 20 pages [pp. 1-4 & 9-23], [Sioux Falls, South Dakota], September 22, 1960, being Kennedy's heavily-edited final reading copy of a campaign speech with approximately forty-five words in his hand together with additional underlines and deletions. Some light marginal wear, some creasing and faint dampstains, else very good condition.

The wide-ranging speech to South Dakota farmers deftly places their specific interests in the context of the United States' leadership in world affairs. After demonstrating his command of complex economic policy, he appeals to that policy's place within the larger framework of national affairs "by stressing that this is not an issue for farmers alone. It is not an issue for the Farm Belt alone. This is a basic issue of American strength - and only a strong America can win the peace. For peace is our real goal. Peace overshadows every other effort. And those of you who fought in the South Pacific or in other theatres of war Europe - those of you who might have traveled, as I have traveled, to Poland and Eastern Europe and seen the despair of a people in chains - share my dedication to securing a just and lasting peace before it is too late. There are trouble spots all over the world today. They are increasing. The communists|grow bolder every day. Their respect for our power grows less. And unless we get moving and building and strengthening our country and our economy the peace we wseek will be in deadly peril. With God's help, let us act now to save the peace - not as farmers or businessmen or workers, not as spokesmen for any group or section, but as Americans devoted to freedom, and to the future of our children, and children around the world."

By this point in his political career, Kennedy had reached his rhetorical stride, as evidenced in the last-minute edits he made to this reading copy. In his speechmaking, Kennedy appreciated the use of repetition to drive home a point and honed the present speech to increase its power and effectiveness. On page three he takes a swipe at Nixon's policies, beginning three successive paragraphs with "But this is the same Mr. Nixon who..." Kennedy also understood the power of the active voice. Directly after those three paragraphs, Kennedy deleted an entire paragraph written in the passive voice: "The Republican party's failure to tell the truth to the American farmer can be seen in the promises which have already been made -- and in the record which as already been compiled." (This is a marked change from the long-winded speeches that Kennedy was delivering during his first run for Congress in 1946). Directly after this deleted passage, he continues in his use of repetitive language, but this time beginning the passages with "Today the Republicans promise," repeating the thought twice more to drive the point home.

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June 21, 2016 10:30 AM EDT
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