Alliteration, one of the popular rhetorical devices usually used in poems and songs, is very rich in this inaugural address. Alliteration is the most frequently used in Kennedy’s speech based on this encapsulation. In several phrases, there occurred repetitions of the same initial sounds in sequence consecutively, found in paragraph 4, paragraph 27 paragraph 22 and in several portions throughout the speech.

Antithesis is very evident in John F. Kennedy’s statements throughout the inaugural address. Contrasting points and ideas are very noticeable in this portion of the speech: “Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us” in paragraph 15.  Paragraph 24, sentence 2, paragraph 6, sentence 2 and  paragraph 8, sentence 2 can also be considered as statements reflecting antithesis.

The speech also contains several anaphora, or the repetition of the same words at the beginning of a phrase, clause or sentence. These can be seen in the two succeeding one-sentence paragraphs 15-16 which both begins with phrase “Let both sides… “. Other examples of anaphora found in the text can be found in paragraph 13 wherein the word ‘both’ is repeated a number of times,  and in paragraph 20, sentence 2 wherein the word ‘nor’ is repeated at the beginning of sentences.

Parallelism is also dominant in the text and can be seen in the some portions of the speech. Some of the parallel  grammatical structures can be found in paragraph 19, paragraph 22, and paragraph 3, sentence 2.

Other rhetorical devices are also evident throughout the speech. Metaphor can be found in paragraph 24, sentence 4. Diacope, or the manner of repeating a word or phrase after an intervening word or phrase can be noticed in paragraph 12, sentence 2  at which point the phrase ‘beyond doubt’ is repeated in a sentence. Asyndeton, described as the non appearance of conjunctions between consecutive phrases or words can be noticed in the sentence in paragraph 4 where a conjunction, supposedly, ‘and’, is absent in between phrases.  Polysyndeton, or the continual use of a conjunction between each word, phrase, or clause  can be observed paragraph 19 where the conjunction ‘and’ is used in between phrases repetitively. An example of anadiplosis, or the rhetorical device in which the last word of a clause or sentence is repeated at the beginning of the next clause or sentence is used by Kennedy in paragraph 2, sentence 2, where the word ‘belief’ is magnified. Hyperbole or the exaggeration for emphasis or aesthetic effect is located in paragraph 4, where the former president declared that the Americans shall pay any price, bear any burden and meet any hardship, which might be not feasible in all circumstances.

The trademark line, “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country” in paragraph 25 which is usually considered as the most quotable, is an antimetabole, described as repetitive use of words, in consecutive clauses, in reverse grammatical order, and is sometimes regarded as chiasmus.Also, amplification, a way of repeating a word or expression while adding more detail to it, in order to emphasize something is seen in the famous lines in paragraphs 15-17, in which the phrase “Let both sides” leads each paragraph.

In some cases, the lines used are encompassing in terms of the type of rhetorical devices. For example, paragraph 14, sentence 2-3, wherein ‘negotiating out of fear’ ‘and never fear to negotiate’ was artistically used, can be considered as both a chiasmus and an antithesis, since it is both a statement of contrasting ideas and a reversal in grammatical order. In the same way, the lines in paragraph 8, sentence 2 is both employing antithesis and parallelism because it states two contrasting ideas presented in a balanced grammatical structure.

In essence, with the encapsulation of findings presented, John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address is a great example of a piece to be studied if one wants to explore various rhetorical devices in a single piece. This rich speech, aided with rhetorical devices are written, delivered and communicated so effectively, which is always proven in history. Due to its prominence and lasting effect to the people, not just in America, but in the whole world, this one-of-a-kind piece reinforces the principle that truly, using rhetorical devices can actually bring about effective and eloquent communication.