A Rhetorical Evaluation of Claiborne Fox Jackson's Speeches on Slavery and States' Rights, 1847-1861

Date of Graduation

Fall 1984

Degree

Master of Arts in Communication

Department

Communication

Committee Chair

Donal Stanton

Abstract

Governor Claiborne Fox Jackson assumed office at a critical time in Missouri history. Elected governor at the onset of the Civil War, his techniques at dealing with the crisis in Missouri as well as his entire career have met with critical appraisal by numerous historians. His rhetorical hesitation and indecision has been regarded as a major factor in allowing Missouri to remain in the Union. Employing classical forms of rhetorical evaluation, this study examines Jackson's speeches and documents and the types of ethical, logical and emotional proof he selected to deal with the secession crisis from 1847 to 1861. His speeches indicated a weak development of logical proof that was enhanced by excellent use of ethical and emotional proof. His indecision resulted from an inability to deal with the wide diversity of opinion in Missouri in 1860.

Subject Categories

Communication

Copyright

© Joseph A Igel

Citation-only

Dissertation/Thesis

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