Read the following excerpt from a 1775 speech by Patrick Henry in which he presents his ideas concerning the American colonists' relationship with Great Britain:

Let us not, I beseech you, sir, deceive ourselves longer. Sir, we have done every thing that could be done, to avert the storm which is now coming on. We have petitioned; we have remonstrated; we have supplicated; we have prostrated ourselves before the throne, and have implored its interposition to arrest the tyrannical hands of the ministry and parliament. Our petitions have been slighted; our remonstrances have produced additional violence and insult; our supplications have been disregarded; and we have been spurned, with contempt, from the foot of the throne!
What is most likely the author's purpose in this section of the speech?
A. To suggest the need to sue for peace
B. To build a sense of trust with his audience
C. To rationalize the need to resort to war
D. To reflect upon the challenges endured

The best answer is C. Patrick Henry, a rich slaveholder, is known in the textbooks for defending the liberties of the common people. He is among the few of the Founding Fathers that actively worked for independence from the Crown. His speech tells about the rebuffed petitions made by his colleagues for dialogue and representation in the British parliament.

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holesstanham holesstanham · Answer 2 · 2018-12-11T02:03:59+01:00

Answer: C. To rationalize the need to resort to war.

Patrick Henry was an American attorney and orator who served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia.

In this excerpt, Patrick Henry claims that the Patriots have tried everything they could to stop the tyranny of the British government. The government, on the other hand, has ignored them. The conclusion they have reached is that there is no hope for the two sides to be reconciled. Patrick Henry is trying to give us his reasons for reaching this conclusion, hoping that this would make us agree with him about the need to resort to war.