Speeches of the Sixties

There’s a mist of myth and misunderstanding surrounding the 1960s. One way to poke through that mist to probe this decade is by looking at something tangible, like the speeches. There were lots of significant speeches because the times and the conditions demanded them. And, thanks to television, videotape, and YouTube, we have recordings to look at and learn from. Join me on this journey back to a tumultuous but also triumphant decade—through the great speeches of the 60s.

—Buck Benedict

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Introduction

No decade stands alone. The 60s grew out of and were a reaction to the post-World War II 1950s. There was a strong economy. There was a new, hefty middle-class. The US became a world leader because it was spared the devastation of Europe and Japan and was blessed with wealth, resources, and resourcefulness. 

But there was a “Cold War” between ourselves and the other leading military power, the Soviet Union. And we can’t look at anything in the 60s without looking at it through a Cold War lens: the standoff between two nuclear powers; and the fear that nuclear weapons might be used. That fear would reach its apex during the Cuban missile crisis—the face-off between the United States and Russia over the latter’s placement of offensive nuclear weapons in Cuba in 1962.

There were other crises. Russia was constantly threatening to cut off Berlin from the West. There were wars of liberation in countries in Africa seeking to throw off colonialism. There was Cuba which had overthrown its dictator only to become a communist state—much to the chagrin of the United States and, particularly, the Kennedy administration. And there was the ongoing problem of racial injustice in the United States which, thanks to television and the courage of nonviolent civil rights leaders to protest against it, became a national issue that finally sparked some long-delayed, national responses. Finally, there was Vietnam. A small problem at the beginning of the decade and an all-consuming conflagration by the end—with as many as half a million American troops fighting there. It left the country deeply divided—for and against the war. 

Most of the speeches we will be looking at are by politicians. And the vast majority of them are by men. But that’s the 60s; that’s what we have available.  There is also a large Jack Kennedy presence, considering how short his tenure in office was. That’s a reflection of several things: the fact that he had some major crises to contend with and needed to speak about; his speaking ability and the beauty of his words; and the fact that he is still a powerful, mythic figure in the American psyche.  

Finally, as we saw in 2020, with all of the people, young and old, black people and white people marching to strike down racism once and for all in this country, we are still feeling the aftershocks of the earthquakes that shook this country in the 60s. 

Background

I wrote my first speech for someone in 1982. Like anyone doing something for the first time, I looked for books and I looked for teachers. I found a book and I also listened to and read the speeches of the 60s to learn from them. That’s when my love of speeches began. And for about 30 years I’ve been thinking about creating a course called The 60s Through the Great Speeches of the 60s. But, as John Lennon said, life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.

So, I did other things. It wasn’t until retirement (in 2018) and the pandemic that I got the time and the opportunity to develop the course. Besides, there wasn’t the internet and YouTube and this treasure trove of speeches available 30 years ago.

I began teaching the course in the summer of 2020 at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at the University of Southern Maine (USM) and I’ve been teaching it continuously since then. Over Zoom at OLLI, but also at the Duxbury Senior Center in Massachusetts. And I have learned a lot from and about the people who have taken the course. And I look forward to sharing this learning with you.

A disclaimer before we begin. I am not a historian. My background is in English literature, corporate communications, speechwriting, and teaching public speaking which I did at the University of Pennsylvania for sixteen years and two other schools for a few years before that. But I came of age in the 60s–graduating from high school and college, serving in the Navy, marrying, and starting work during the decade. It’s my generation. And I love the well-spoken word and sharing this passion with others.

A Few Words About Speeches

A speech is something special. It’s part poetry and part prose; part song and part sermon. A speech sounds good, but can’t be so smooth and slick that it doesn’t stick. 

A speech is a communication from one person to a group of other people. The speaker has something to say or he or she shouldn’t be up there talking. The subject can be anything, but it should be something that this particular audience needs to hear, something that the occasion or setting demands be said.

There is no special “speech” language. In fact, to sound “conversational”, you have to use everyday language. A good part of Abraham Lincoln’s success as a speaker and a leader was that he used simple words and spoke the language that everyone spoke. And he was a great storyteller.

For me, the essential ingredient in a good speech is truth: speaking from your heart, and being authentic. It’s the heart that persuades people, moves people, and lifts people. An example of speaking from the heart is Bobby Kennedy’s impromptu eulogy the night Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated.

Finally, a speech is written for the ear, not for the eye. That means you have to pay attention to the sound that the words make, not just the sense that they make. It means that if a speaker wants to move people with their words, they have to have an uplifting message. It means that if they want their words to sink in, they’ve got to create a rhythm, use repetition, and develop a theme. And it means that the speaker has to create images with their words and give people visuals that they can walk away with, instead of abstract concepts. And perhaps the best way to be remembered is to share stories. Stories allow speakers to show, not just tell.

Five Criteria 

In this course, we will be examining speeches using five criteria:

• Context—the occasion, setting, and situation.
• Audience—the people the speaker is addressing.
• Content—the message and the language used to communicate it.
• Delivery—how the speaker uses his/her voice and body to get the message across.
• Results—did the speaker say what needed to be said to that audience on that occasion?

One other observation: we wouldn’t have most of the speeches or the programs that we study if it wasn’t for television. The medium had been around for a while, but it really took off in the 1960s. Television enabled us to witness history as it was being made. We saw triumph as well as tragedy, horror as well as heroics. Its influence on our lives cannot be overstated. 

How the Course is Organized

The course consists of eight classes. Each class contains links to programs and videos that provide background on the specific years being covered that week as well as the speeches being examined. I also include resource material that helps provide context for, and some analysis of, the speeches. In a sense, these are like “liner notes” you might find in CDs or albums.

The Course

To access all eight classes of the course, visit The Course. I’ve provided additional helpful material in the Key Events of the 60s, Selected Bibliography, and the Annotated Glossary of Terms pages.