20 pages 40 minutes read

Elizabeth I

Speech to the Troops at Tilbury

Nonfiction | Essay / Speech | Adult | Published in 1588

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Essay Topics

1.

How would you characterize the tone of Elizabeth’s “Speech to the Troops at Tilbury”? What words or phrases in your opinion contribute to the tone? How so? Why do you think she chose that tone to speak to her troops before a battle?

2.

How does Elizabeth address the issue of her gender? How does she defy (or go against) the gender expectations of her time? How does she meet those expectations?

3.

How does Elizabeth persuade her audience that she is suited to be the monarch of England? Name four rhetorical devices she uses in her speech. How might these literary devices influence an audience?