Quotes and speeches of the month
Logos Pathos Ethos, September 2017
Dear speech-fans and -friends,
Over the summer, two major European figures
passed away: Helmut Kohl and Simone Veil. Their lives inspired eulogies that
stand out as they provide an opportunity to stand back and reflect on what
ultimately matters, celebrate values and achievements, and share a vision of
what unites us. Little surprise that several quotes in this selection come from
these epideictic speeches.
Our shared interest for great speeches has found an unusual space on TV this summer. The European TV channel Arte has a special series on great speeches, available en français : Les grands discours und natürlich auch auf Deutsch: Grosse Reden.
You will find more quotes, tips and books on: logospathosethos.eu
Isabelle
Vision
The history of
her life is the history of our continent, the history of a continent torn
apart, lost, which experienced the worst atrocities of which humanity is
capable, but which, like her, found the strength to rise up again, to rebuild
itself and to be reborn.
In her inaugural
speech, which she gave on 17 July 1979, she showed that she grasped the true
nature of the responsibility on her shoulders.
This is what she
said: ‘For this is the first
time in history, a history in which we have so frequently been divided, pitted
one against the other, bent on mutual destruction, that the people of Europe
have together elected their delegates to a common assembly . Let there be no
doubt, these elections form a milestone on the path of Europe, the most
important since the signing of the Treaties’.
In a 23-minute
speech, she set out, with exceptional clear-sightedness, a vision for the
development of our Parliament over the next 40 years.
I urge you to
read the speech, if you have not already done so, because it seems to me to be
remarkably topical. You will find in it enthusiasm, hopes, expectations, the
ambitions of a whole generation of men and women who sat on these benches
before us and who we should all take as our inspiration.
Read the speech (available in 20 languages): Antonio Tajani, Formal European Parliament ceremony in honour of Simone Veil, 4 July 2017
As the President of the European Parliament urges us to read Simone Veil’s inaugural speech, you can read here the original in French, and here in English. You can also watch her delivering this speech.
The
power of the ‘Why’ question
I ask you to think about something not in
my notes. I was looking around this crowd today, and all of us who used to be in
office, all of us who came. Why ?
Because Helmut Kohl gave us the chance to
be involved in something bigger than ourselves, bigger than our terms of
office, bigger than our fleeting careers, because all of us, sooner or later,
will be in a coffin like that.
Watch the speech: Bill Clinton, Personal farewell to Helmut
Kohl, 1 July 2017
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Quotation of the day
« We will try to talk in a language that everyone can understand. And we will listen, too, and hear people’s concerns. -- Christine Lagarde, Frankfurt and Europe in a new decade, 16 January 2020. ... »Christine Lagarde
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