Historical Speech Essay

Speech

For the first part of this exercise, I will dwell on Lou Gehrig's speech. The speech in question has featured prominently in quite a number of speech collections as a truly historical speech, alongside those given by the likes of Martin Luther King and Winston Churchill. Commonly referred to as the Iron Horse due to both his commitment and durability as far as baseball is concerned, Gehrig was at the prime age of 36 when he was struck by what has now come to be referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease. The disease effectively ended his long and illustrious career in baseball. This speech, which I will rewrite to convey the opposite message, was delivered by Gehrig during a ceremony held in his honor by his friends and team mates. Given his circumstances at the time, one would have expected the speech to be self-defeating and perhaps full of pity. Gehrig instead chose to speak of all those things he was thankful for and why he regarded himself lucky.

The Speech: My Version

"Ladies and gentlemen, wonderful fans, it is with great sorrow that I wish to confirm what you have been reading in the dailies for the past two weeks. It is true, ladies and gentlemen, that I got a bad break. To me, this is the lowest point of my career spanning over seventeen years. I have had wonderful experiences in the past; but I have had my share of misfortunes too. I regard the unfortunate situation in which I now find myself one of the misfortunes I have suffered in the recent past.

Look at my team mates.All this are people of great ability. I would give anything to join them again. But as they say, if wishes were horses, beggars would surely ride.

I have been lucky in the past. However, it is now obvious that I have run out of luck. It is with great pain that I accept a sendoff gift from my former team mates. It is with nostalgia that I remember all those trophies and the precious moments we have shared in the past.

Sometimes, I keep reminding myself that regardless of the fact that things seem to be headed downhill; as far as I am concerned, at least I haven't lost everything - if that is some consolation. I have a family. I have caring parents, an understanding mother-in-law, and a beautiful wife. But family too has its own unique challenges; this I must say.

I must now close by saying; my career is now officially over. I wish I could turn back the clock, but then again, if wishes were horses (stares at the audience)

Thank you."

Speech 2

In this section, I develop a speech I would like….....