Devin's+Week+11

In Eisenhower’s farewell address, the tone of the piece is different than what one might expect. In a farewell address one might expect to see the speaker reminding their audience of their achievements and almost reminisce about the good times that had in office. Eisenhower seems to almost try and reassure the public that all his decisions were correct. He seems unsure of himself and his choices. He appears to be telling the public that he stands by what he did at this moment, even though he mulled over his decisions and second guessed himself prior to making said decisions. Of course his biggest decision relates to the Atomic bomb dropped on Japan. Despite his efforts, the regret about the devastation and destruction of the bomb, permeate his speech. You can see that he attempts to shift some of the weight of his decision on congress. Overall, Eisenhower just doesn’t want the public to remember him solely as “the man who dropped the bomb on Japan.” That’s why he speaks of his other achievements and the other people involved in his decision. There is no way that he could live the rest of his life unaffected by the massive loss of life that bomb caused.