Words of a Century

The Top 100 American Speeches, 1900-1999

Stephen E. Lucas and Martin J. Medhurst

Words of a Century

The Top 100 American Speeches, 1900-1999

Stephen E. Lucas and Martin J. Medhurst

Description

Boldly breaking the mold of previous anthologies, Words of a Century: The Top 100 American Speeches, 1900-1999 contains the complete--and authentic--texts of the best American speeches of the twentieth century as delivered to their immediate audiences. It features a remarkable array of speakers, from Woodrow Wilson, Clarence Darrow, and Carrie Chapman Catt to Martin Luther King, Ronald Reagan, John F. Kennedy, and Barbara Jordan.

As diverse in type as they are in subject matter, the speeches open a unique window on the twentieth century, and many continue to resonate in our own time. Each is preceded by a headnote with background on the speaker, the occasion, and the impact of the speech. More than 2,000 annotations identify people, events, and textual references that help bring the speeches to life for today's readers.

This exceptional anthology is ideal for courses in rhetoric, political communication, and twentieth century American history, as well as for anyone interested in the artistry and impact of the spoken word.

Words of a Century

The Top 100 American Speeches, 1900-1999

Stephen E. Lucas and Martin J. Medhurst

Alternate Table of Contents: Speeches by Rank
Introduction
The Century Begins
Russell Conwell, Acres of Diamonds
William Jennings Bryan, Against Imperialism
Theodore Roosevelt, The Man with the Muckrake
Eugene Debs, The Issue
Woodrow Wilson, First Inaugural Address
World War I, Dissent, and Woman's Suffrage
Anna Howard Shaw, The Fundamental Principle of a Republic
Carrie Chapman Catt, The Crisis
Woodrow Wilson, War Message
Emma Goldman, Address to the Jury
Robert La Follette, Free Speech in Wartime
Carrie Chapman Catt, Address to the Congress of the United States
Woodrow Wilson, The Fourteen Points
Eugene Debs, Statement to the Court
Woodrow Wilson, For the League of Nations
Woodrow Wilson, Final Address for the League of Nations
Crystal Eastman, Now We Can Begin
The Roaring Twenties and the Great Depression
Clarence Darrow, Plea for Leopold and Loeb
Margaret Sanger, The Children's Era
Franklin D. Roosevelt, Address to the Commonwealth Club
Franklin D. Roosevelt, First Inaugural Address
Franklin D. Roosevelt, The Banking Crisis
Huey Long, Every Man a King
Huey Long, Share Our Wealth
John L. Lewis, Labor and the Nation
Lou Gehrig, Farewell to Baseball
World War II and the Emergence of the Cold War
Franklin D. Roosevelt, The Arsenal of Democracy
Franklin D. Roosevelt, The Four Freedoms
Franklin D. Roosevelt, War Message
Harry S. Truman, The Truman Doctrine
George C. Marshall, The Marshall Plan
Hubert H. Humphrey, The Sunshine of Human Rights
Eleanor Roosevelt, The Struggle for Human Rights
Eleanor Roosevelt, Adoption of the Declaration of Human Rights
McCarthyism, Korea, and the Nuclear Era
Margaret Chase Smith, Declaration of Conscience
William Faulkner, Speech Accepting the Nobel Prize in Literature
Douglas MacArthur, Old Soldiers Never Die
Adlai Stevenson, Let's Talk Sense to the American People
Richard M. Nixon, Checkers
Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, Statement at the Smith Act Trial
Dwight D. Eisenhower, Atoms for Peace
Joseph Welch, Defense of Fred Fisher at the Army-McCarthy Hearings
The Age of Camelot
John F. Kennedy, Speech to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association
Dwight D. Eisenhower, Farewell Address
John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address
Newton W. Minow, Television and the Public Interest
Douglas MacArthur, Duty, Honor, Country
John F. Kennedy, Address on the Cuban Missile Crisis
John F. Kennedy, Speech at American University
John F. Kennedy, Civil Rights: A Moral Issue
John F. Kennedy, Ich Bin ein Berliner
Race, Poverty, and Dissension
Martin Luther King, Jr., I Have a Dream
Malcolm X, Message to the Grassroots
Lyndon B. Johnson, Let Us Continue
Malcolm X, The Ballot or the Bullet
Lyndon B. Johnson, The Great Society
Barry Goldwater, Speech Accepting the Republican Presidential Nomination
Ronald Reagan, A Time for Choosing
Mario Savio, An End to History
Lyndon B. Johnson, We Shall Overcome
Robert F. Kennedy, Day of Affirmation
Stokely Carmichael, Black Power
Vietnam and Other Discontents
Martin Luther King, Jr., Speech at Riverside Church
Cesar Chavez, Speech on Ending His Fast
Lyndon B. Johnson, Address on Not Seeking Reelection
Martin Luther King, Jr., I've Been to the Mountaintop
Robert F. Kennedy, Statement on the Assassination of Martin Luther King
Edward M. Kennedy, Eulogy to Robert Kennedy
Edward M. Kennedy, Chappaquiddick
Richard M. Nixon, The Great Silent Majority
Spiro T. Agnew, Television News Coverage
Richard M. Nixon, Address on the Cambodian Incursion
Shirley Chisholm, For the Equal Rights Amendment
John Kerry, Vietnam Veterans Against the War
Watergate and Its Aftermath
Barbara Jordan, Statement on the Articles of Impeachment Against Richard M. Nixon
Richard M. Nixon, Address Resigning the Presidency
Gerald R. Ford, Our Long National Nightmare Is Over
Gerald R. Ford, Address on Pardoning Richard M. Nixon
Barbara Jordan, Who Then Will Speak for the Common Good?
Jimmy Carter, Energy and the Crisis of Confidence
Edward M. Kennedy, The Dream Shall Never Die
Conservatism, Liberalism, and the End of the Cold War
Ronald Reagan, First Inaugural Address
Ronald Reagan, The Evil Empire
Ursula K. Le Guin, A Left-Handed Commencement Address
Edward M. Kennedy, Tolerance and Truth in America
Ronald Reagan, Address on the Fortieth Anniversary of D-Day
Mario Cuomo, A Tale of Two Cities
Jesse Jackson, The Rainbow Coalition
Geraldine Ferraro, Speech Accepting the Democratic Vice Presidential Nomination
Mario Cuomo, Religious Belief and Public Morality
Ronald Reagan, Address on the Challenger Explosion
Ronald Reagan, Speech at the Brandenburg Gate
Ann Richards, Keynote Address at the Democratic National Convention
Jesse Jackson, Common Ground and Common Sense
The 1990s
Barbara Bush, Choices and Change
Anita Hill, Statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee
Elizabeth Glaser, AIDS: A Personal Story
Mary Fisher, A Whisper of AIDS
Bill Clinton, Speech for Victims of the Oklahoma City Bombing
Hillary Rodham Clinton, Women's Rights Are Human Rights
Elie Wiesel, The Perils of Indifference

Words of a Century

The Top 100 American Speeches, 1900-1999

Stephen E. Lucas and Martin J. Medhurst

Author Information

Stephen E. Lucas is Evjue-Bascom Professor in the Humanities, Department of Communication Arts, at University of Wisconsin.

Martin J. Medhurst is Distinguished Professor of Rhetoric and Communication at Baylor University.

Words of a Century

The Top 100 American Speeches, 1900-1999

Stephen E. Lucas and Martin J. Medhurst

Reviews and Awards

"Words of a Century is simply the best anthology of its kind. It is edited by two of the best rhetorical critics in the business, and the speeches were chosen on the basis of their artistry and impact through a survey of 137 communication scholars. The headnotes are insightful and historically accurate, and the texts have been painstakingly authenticated--a rarity in such works. There is no comparable collection of great American speeches. No serious student of rhetoric should be without it."--J. Michael Hogan, Pennsylvania State University

"Moments of political crisis beget some of the best and most memorable instances of political oratory. This magnificently researched and carefully annotated collection reminds us just how close the connection is between our shared political life and our public speech. This volume is a unique and invaluable resource for students and scholars alike on the history, politics, and oratory of the twentieth century."--Mary E. Stuckey, Georgia State University