Blood, Toil, Tears and Sweat

“On Friday evening last I received His Majesty’s commission to form a new Administration. It is the evident wish and will of Parliament and the nation that this should be conceived on the broadest possible basis and that it should include all parties, both those who supported the late Government and also the parties of the Opposition.”

Churchill’s phrasing here implies that he has been thrust into the role of prime minister by the will of the King and the country without any self-interested desire on his part. He claims that it is on the “wish and will” of both Parliament and the people that his coalition government has been formed. The effect is a suggestion that there is already a universal consensus on these matters.

“A War Cabinet has been formed of five Members, representing, with the Opposition Liberals, the unity of the nation. The three party Leaders have agreed to serve, either in the War Cabinet or in high executive office. The three Fighting Services have been filled.”

Churchill again emphasizes the Importance of National Unity and lists his actions in rapid succession so that the litany builds up a sense of urgency and conveys how swiftly events are developing—encouraging a swift and positive resolution to the motion. The War Cabinet he mentions is a small committee formed by a wartime government in order to enable efficient and effective decision making while conducting the business of war. The Fighting Services are the Royal Navy, the Royal Air Force, and the British Army.

“It was necessary that this should be done in one single day, on account of the extreme urgency and rigour of events.”

Churchill alludes to the rapidly unfolding succession of events in Europe; the first three days of his premiership saw the German invasion of the Low Countries and the opening stages of the Battle of France. He uses emphatic phrasing like “one single” and “extreme” to stress the urgency of his response and to encourage his audience not to impede further decisive action by drawing out the debate or quibbling over whether to support the government or not.

“I considered it in the public interest to suggest that the House should be summoned to meet today.”

The invocation of the public interest as motivation for his actions is a repeated theme in Churchill’s speeches and later writings. This invocation lays the foundation of the image that Churchill paints of himself as a hardworking statesman whose determination to lead the nation stems not from ego or self-interest but from a will to serve.

“I now invite the House, by the Motion which stands in my name, to record its approval of the steps taken and to declare its confidence in the new Government.”

Churchill again employs the formulized traditional phrasing of Parliament, inviting the representatives to vote. However, instead of ceding the floor immediately, he uses this moment as a pivot to refocus on presenting the bulk of his argument in favor of the motion.

“[…] we are in the preliminary stage of one of the greatest battles in history […]”

As a historian, Churchill was very aware of the historical significance this period would one day have. Consequently, he evokes the theme of The Historical Significance of Current Events explicitly so as to galvanize his listeners to behave in a way that lends itself to lasting glory. The grandiose nature of this claim also lays the foundation for the dichotomy that he is about to establish, one that casts his nation as representing the forces of good and Germany as representing the destructive forces of evil.

“In this crisis I hope I may be pardoned if I do not address the House at any length today. I hope that any of my friends and colleagues, or former colleagues, who are affected by the political reconstruction, will make allowance, all allowance, for any lack of ceremony with which it has been necessary to act.”

There is pathos in Churchill’s repeated pleas for clemency and pardon here; the humble and self-effacing tone aims to stir pity and empathy in an audience that was previously less than sympathetic to him. Preempting and undermining any potential criticisms of his conduct, he encourages a bigger picture perspective that highlights the need for haste over convention.

“I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat.”

This iconic line not only provides the speech’s title but also, as one of Churchill’s most famous quotes, sits beneath his portrait on the British five-pound note. The line “blood, toil, tears and sweat” has its origins in antiquity and has been used with minor alterations throughout scripture, speeches, and commentaries for centuries. With his classical education, Churchill would have been well aware of that. The simplicity of the statement, the listing of monosyllabic nouns, and the alliteration of plosive sounds—two Bs followed by two Ts—make the phrase rhythmic and striking, and thus extremely memorable. Furthermore, the visceral language inspires pathos and paints Churchill as a sympathetic figure, preemptively undermining any criticism of him with the claim that he is already giving his all.

“We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many long months of struggle and of suffering.”

These lines are an allusion to the hardship and horrors of war that were still very fresh in the nation’s collective memory after the First World War mere decades earlier. A desire to avoid a repetition of such suffering governed much of Britain’s pacifistic foreign policy in the interwar years. By invoking these fears, acknowledging their validity, and then immediately countering them with further arguments in favor of war, Churchill preemptively counters any opposition on these grounds.

“You ask, what is our policy? I can say: It is to wage war, by sea, land and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against a monstrous tyranny, never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of human crime. That is our policy.”

Churchill uses hypophora and diacope to emphasize the importance of this topic. Rather than providing detailed information about the policies his new government will champion, he is instead making a rhetorical point about the necessity of war. This perspective is in complete contrast to the policy of appeasement that Chamberlain and his government followed years prior, which sought peaceful resolution above all else.

“You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in one word: It is victory, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival.”

Churchill again uses hypophora—posing and answering his own question—and diacope, or repetition of a word that is interrupted by intervening words, for emphasis. This time, these rhetorical devices focus on the necessity of “victory” regardless of the cost.

“[...] without victory, there is no survival. Let that be realised; no survival for the British Empire, no survival for all that the British Empire has stood for, no survival for the urge and impulse of the ages, that mankind will move forward towards its goal.”

There is an immediate and striking juxtaposition here of the two extremes: victory, and defeat so absolute as to preclude survival. Such an absolute dichotomy is typical of the style of wartime propaganda, which is characteristically lacking in nuance. The repetition and emphasis of “no survival” here creates a sense of rhythm and musicality, making this passage more memorable and persuasive. The diacope builds urgency as the dire consequences seem to build on each other with each repetition, inciting fear at the looming threat of defeat. Additionally notable here is the reference to the British Empire. Churchill was a staunch imperialist who firmly believed the traditional narrative that the British Empire was a benevolent and civilizing force. The idea that the entire empire, a symbol of Western supremacy and strength, could be wiped out would have been jarring to Churchill’s audience.

“But I take up my task with buoyancy and hope. I feel sure that our cause will not be suffered to fail among men.”

This quote marks a sudden about-face in the tone of Churchill’s argument. The optimism of the words “buoyancy and hope” is juxtaposed with the dire and foreboding warnings of defeat in prior sentences, ending the speech on an uplifting and inspirational note.