Rousing Speech: Difference between revisions

{{quote|''We few, we happy few, we [[Band of Brothers]];''<br />

''For he to-day that sheds his blood with me''<br />

''Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,''<br />

''This day shall gentle his condition:''<br />

''And gentlemen in England now a-bed''<br />

''Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,''<br />

''And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks''<br />

''That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day!''|''King [[Henry V (Theatre)|Henry V]]'', Act 4 Scene iii, by [[William Shakespeare (Creator)|William Shakespeare]], giving us the [[Trope Codifier]]}}

And this is when the hero will step forward and make a pithy speech including at least one noteworthy [[One -Liner]] (similar to a [[Facing the Bullets One -Liner]]), to the effect of (or the specific phrase) "It's time to take the fight to them," (often followed by a [[One -Liner Echo]] or a [[Dramatic Gun Cock]]). This sometimes happens right after a sidekick has joined the choir invisible via a [[Heroic Sacrifice]]. Sometimes the characters are going [[Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death!]].

Usually, it's the leader of the heroes who delivers the [['''Rousing Speech]]''' signaling this transition, but a common variation is to have whichever character is typically most cautious (even cowardly) deliver it.

== '''Compare with: =='''

== '''Contrast with: =='''

* [[Go, Ye Heroes, Go and Die]]: Subversion of the Rousing Speech, in which the speaker is perhaps a little ''too'' anxious to see the heroes march off to certain death--errdeath—err, glory.

'''Because of the sheer volume of memorable [[Real Life]] [[Rousing Speech|'''Rousing Speeches]]''' that exist, please do not add them to this page, add them to the [[Rousing Speech/Quotes|Quotes page]].'''

{{quote| "To let such a sweet girl die befits a death worse than hell, am I right? [...] And if it comes down to that, all of your lives must be sacrificed. This is the place you shall be buried. Your fortress will become your grave. [...] You fellas came here to kill for chump change, same as me. You all chose the life of a mercenary. Let's go die like mangy dogs. Let's die, screaming "Fuck! Fuck!" Taking gut shots, and writhing on the ground in agony. Heh, heh, heh. What do you boys say to that?"}}

{{quote| "Sounds ''great'' to me."<br />

** But by far the most famous [[Rousing Speech]] to come out of ''[[Hellsing]]'' is [[Those Wacky Nazis|the Major's]] "I Love War" speech to the Last Battalion. Sure, a Nazi says it, but it's still rousing.

{{quote| "My friends, it has often been said that I like war. My friends, I like war. My friends, I ''love'' war."}}

* ''[[Pokémon]]''. Mewtwo plus an army of genetically altered (read: enhanced) Pokemon. Imminent extermination of the human race. [[Unflinching Walk|Enter Ash Ketchum with dozens of "ordinary" Pokemon in tow]]. Horribly outnumbered and outgunned. "You can't do this. [[ThisPunctuated! IsFor! SpartaEmphasis!|I. Won't. Let you.]]"

* In the last episode of ''[[Last Exile]]'', between the overwhelming enemy forces and {{spoiler|indiscriminate attacks of Exile}}, the final battle threatens to turn into a war of attrition. Sophia responds that this ''is'' a war of attrition, and lays out in no uncertain terms that no matter how much they have to throw into this battle, no matter how much they have to sacrifice, this is their last chance to overthrow the Guild. "[[Foe -Tossing Charge|TARGET]]: [[The Caligula|MAESTRO]] [[Big Bad|DELPHINE]]!"

* Parodied in ''[[Full Metal Panic!|Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu]]'' when Kaname inspires her fellow students to assault the booby-trapped hill where Sousuke is hiding because they need him as an artist's model. "For the sake of our lost comrades! For the sake of our own human dignity! And above all, for the sake of [[Serious Business|everybody's grades!]]" Kurz gives a similar speech when inspiring his comrades to assault a Sousuke-protected hill...in order to perv on the girls while they're [[Hot Springs Episode|naked in a hot spring]].

{{quote| '''Sousuke''': Listen up! As of this moment, you people are no longer lowly maggots! You are rugger men, do you understand?<br />

'''Rugby team''': '''[[Gratuitous English|SIR, YES SIR!]]'''<br />

'''Sousuke''': Now you are about to confront the greatest ordeal. The critical moment where you either win it all or fall to hell! So, '''ARE YOU HAVING FUN?!'''<br />

'''Team''': '''SIR, YES SIR!'''<br />

'''Sousuke''': '''NOW PREPARE FOR COMBAT!!!''' ''(team discard their clothing, changing into the team uniform)'' So, what's our specialty, ladies?!<br />

'''Team''': '''KILL! KILL! KILL!'''<br />

'''Sousuke''': And what is our goal in this game?!<br />

'''Team''': '''KILL! KILL! KILL!'''<br />

'''Sousuke''': Do we love our high scool?! Do we love our high school rugby club?!<br />

'''Team''': '''GUNG HO! GUNG HO! GUNG HOOOO!'''<br />

* Much, much lower stakes in ''[[Eyeshield 21]]''. In the regional championship game, Deimon is behind by 17 points when their seemingly invincible [[Magnificent Bastard|leader/quarterback]] gets crushed by one of the opposing players and is taken off the field with a broken arm. With no back-up quarterback, their strongest lineman in minute two of his [[Ten -Minute Retirement]] and the rest of the team totally shaken, the opposition asks if they're ready to forfiet the game. After a brief team meeting, the Devil Bats declare their decision in unison, "We will KILL them!"

* ''[[Kaiji]]'' gives a few of these to Furuhata and Andou on the many occasions when things look hopeless on the ''Espoir''.

* In quite possibly the most unorthodox example of the trope ''ever'', an episode of ''[[Gintama (Manga)|Gintama]]'' features Gintoki giving the now-fandom-infamous "truth of the strawberry milk" speech to justify going to find a missing person. Said speech is basically about how people that drink strawberry milk will wet the bed in their sleep, and ''everyone cheers him on for this.'' It's that kind of show. You can watch it in all its glory [http://youtube.com/watch?v=fvYudgaTeJI here].

{{quote| '''Shikamaru''': For as long as I've known him, Sasuke and I haven't exactly been close buddies. In fact, I don't really like him at all. All the same, Sasuke is a ninja belonging to the Hidden Leaf Village; he's a comrade, and I'll put my life on the line to help him. That's the way of our village. I know I usually seem like a pretty lazy guy, but not today... because now I'm responsible for your lives, too.}}

** Now that the series has been going towards end game territory (with [[The End of the World Asas We Know It]] at hand), former [[Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds]] {{spoiler|Gaara}} has been given supreme command of the entire Shinobi Alliance Army. So how does he defuse <s> xenophobia- and racism</s> generations of animosity fueled conflict between the united shinobi? Well, of course, by this gem:

{{quote| ''Three times now... we've fought world wars for our own nations, our own villages. We've hurt one another, we've hated one another. That hatred bred a lust for power, and that lust for power '''created ME'''. I was a jinchūriki, the '''embodiment''' of hatred and power. And I hated this world, and all the people in it... I wanted to destroy it with my own hands. The exact same thing Akatsuki is trying to do today. But one man, one ninja from Konohagakure stopped me. '''[[Messianic Archetype|I was his enemy, yet he wept for me! I hurt him, yet he called me his friend! He saved me! My enemy, my fellow jinchuriki... he suffered the same pain as me, yet bore me no ill will!]]'''<br />

* ''[[Skies of Arcadia (Video Game)|Skies of Arcadia]]'''s Vyse ''loves'' these, being the adventurous optimist incarnate.

* ''[[Higurashi no Naku Koro Nini]]'': Keiichi's rousing speech to Rena in Atonement Chapter, which not only helps her regain her sanity, but gives {{spoiler|Rika}} hope and renews her will to [[Screw Destiny|fight against fate]] and break the cycle of tragedy.

** Of course, later arcs make it clear that Rousing Speeches are [[Hot -Blooded|Keiichi's]] specialty. Mion doesn't call him "The Magician of Words" for nothing!

* In the ''[[Gundam Wing]]'' "Endless Waltz" movie, Dorothy Catalonia rouses the citizenry to openly protest Marimaia's coup d'etat. This can only be seen in the theatrical, not the 3-episode OVA cut.

* [[Complete Monster|A villainous example by Seiji]] in the ''Shin Hokuto no Ken'' [[OA Vs]]OAVs. His speech regarding the madness of living and of combat is so [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|godawful awesome it turns his milquetoast mercenaries who were about to break into crazed supersoldiers.]] He's like Evil Kamina or something. (And the milquetoastiest of them all, Chess, is instantly granted several hundred levels in badass by the speech alone, suddenly becoming as effective in combat as his master.) It turns the entire battle against the religious fanatics completely on its head. One wonders the kinds of [[Earthshattering Kaboom|world shaking power]] it would have upon being used on people who were empowered in some fashion, or already at [[Heroic Sociopath]] level. (And make no mistake that's what he sees himself as too.)

* Happens a few times in ''[[Monster (Animemanga)|Monster]]'', notably when Tenma has to talk Nina out of her suicidal BSOD, and when he needs to impress upon the Turkish immigrants to secure the neighborhood or else face the wrath of the pyromaniacal Neo-Nazis.

* Happens every now and then in ''[[Legend of Galactic Heroes]]'', with varying levels of cynism, demagogy and good old stuipdity. The undisputed king is Yang Wen-li, whose first [[Rousing Speech]] goes something like this: "Er... Giving our life for the fatherland... and stuff... um, I guess it's just that we can only drink good tea while we're alive so let's fight and not die!" Earned him an ovation and the undying loyalty of a fleet of [[Ragtag Bunch of Misfits]].

{{quote| "Look, you're always talking about our Saiyan race, how we're the last of a mighty people. Well it's time we accept we're starting a new race, one that can be just as strong, just as proud, but not if we're caught up in so much of our old birthrights to see what we have right in front of us - we've lost our old race, Vegeta! Let's not lose this one, too!"}}

{{quote| ''A fortress can be rebuilt. However... this is Marineford, an island situated almost exactly in the center of the entire world. To the people of the world, who live in fear of evildoers coming and going amongst them, the true meaning lies in our position in this place! Our universal justice will never fall! Don't talk big about things like sinking this place,'' '''you damned punk!'''}}

== [[Film ]] ==

* ''[[Newsies]]'' has a pretty epic one at the point when everything has fallen and the Newboys felt they had been betrayed by Cowboy and abandoned by Denton. You can watch it [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qI6h8SiWL3A here.] It is delivered as a pamphlet rather than a speech.

* ''[[Aguirre the Wrath of God (Film)|Aguirre, the Wrath of God]]'' ends with Aguirre giving one of these, combined with his mad vision to conquer the Spanish Empire, to his crew - who are either dead or insane - himself, and a swarm of tiny monkeys. There is also a Rousing Speech (or at least one ''intendend'' to be rousing) in the first phase of the movie, when Aguirre goads the soldiers to mutiny. But both speeches are subversions of the trope, because 1. Aguirre is the evil guy, 2. his speeches make no effort to hide or euphemize his and his listeners' selfish and non-sublime motives (they all are only out for money and fame), and 3. many of the soldiers are not actually "roused", but only follow Aguirre out of fear of him and his accomplices. The last "speech" is actually partly an inner monologue, partly an address to monkeys instead of people, which leads the trope to absurdity.

* Played straight in ''[[Airplane!]]!'' and subverted in ''[[Airplane!]] II: the Sequel''.

{{quote| '''Bluto:''' Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?<br />

'''Otter:''' Germans?<br />

{{quote| '''Otter:''' Ladies and gentlemen, I'll be brief. The issue here is not whether we broke a few rules, or took a few liberties with our female party guests. We did. But you can't hold a whole fraternity responsible for the behavior of a few, sick twisted individuals. For if you do, then shouldn't we blame the whole fraternity system? And if the whole fraternity system is guilty, then isn't this an indictment of our educational institutions in general? I put it to you, Greg - isn't this an indictment of our entire American society? Well, you can do whatever you want to us, but we're not going to sit here and listen to you badmouth the United States of America. Gentlemen!}}

* Beavis humorously inverts this in ''[[Beavis and Butt-Head|Beavis and Butthead]]: Do America]]''. The whole thing is played as a rousing speech complete with a motivational music in the background:

{{quote| '''Beavis:''' WE'RE NEVER GONNA SCORE! WE'RE NEVER GONNA SCORE! WE'RE NEVER GONNA SCORE...!<br />

* ''[[Back to School]]'' has Rodney Dangerfield reciting the Dylan Thomas poem "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" from memory after almost giving up during his oral exams. He then goes on to (barely) pass.

* Dan Aykroyd, in ''[[Blues Brothers]]|Blues Brothers 2000]]'', launches into a semi-inspiring speech (mostly about the many reasons that the Russian Mafia was ''not'', in fact, going to blow up Willy's Strip Club) -- but it consisted almost entirely of a history lecture on Russian politics that left everyone else entirely perplexed.

{{quote| '''Elwood Blues''': ''[addressing the rest if the band]'' You may go if you wish. But remember this...walk away now and you walk away from your crafts, your skills, your vocations; leaving the next generation with nothing but recycled, digitally-sampled techno-grooves, quasi-synth rhythms, pseudo-songs of violence-laden gangsta-rap, acid pop, and simpering, saccharine, soulless slush. Depart now and you forever separate yourselves from the vital American legacies of Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Willie Dixon, Jimmy Reed, Memphis Slim, Blind Boy Fuller, Louie Jordon, Little Walter, Big Walter, Sonnyboy Williamson I and II, Otis Redding, Jackie Wilson, Elvis Presley, Lieber and Stoller, and Robert K. Weiss.<br />

'''Donald "Duck" Dunn''': [[Development Gag|Who is Robert K. Weiss?]]<br />

[the rest of the band shrug]<br />

* Parodied in the Norm MacDonald movie ''Dirty Work'': after screwing over the residents of an apartment block by trashing their building, Norm's character and his accomplice are themselves screwed over by the slimy businessman who hired them to do so. Norm appeals to the residents to join him in a scheme that will enable everyone to get their revenge on the businessman with a stirring speech that climaxes with him yelling "Are you with me?"... and the response is a stony, hostile silence. He then tries "Okay, are you with me on the assumption that if we fail, you get to kick my ass?" -- and—and the crowd goes wild.

{{quote| '''Major Kong''': "(... ) [T]his thing turns out to be half as important as I figure it just might be, I'd say that you're all in line for some important promotions an' personal citations when this thing's over with. That goes for every last one of ya, regardless of your race, color, or your creed. Now, let's get this thing on the hump. We got some flyin' to do."}}

* Subverted with terrific cruelty in ''[[High Noon]]'', in the church.

{{quote| '''President Whitmore''': [...] This will be remembered as the day that the world declared with one voice: "We will not go quietly into the night! We will not vanish without a fight! We are going to live on! We are going to survive! Today! We celebrate! Our [[Title Drop|Independence Day]]!}}

{{quote| '''Jim Hawkins:''' "Kill Captian Smollett and you'll have to kill me."<br />

'''Gonzo:''' "Kill Jim and you'll have to kill me!"<br />

'''Squire Trelawney:''' "Kill Gonzo and you'll have to kill me! ''(to his imaginary friend)'' Oh, and you too, Mr. Bimbo!"<br />

{{quote| "Then what shall we die for? Now you will listen to me... LISTEN! The Brethren will still be looking here, to us, to the Black Pearl to lead. And what will they see? Frightened bilge rats aboard a derelict ship? No. No, they will see free men! And freedom! And what the enemy will see, they will see the flash of our cannons, they will hear the ring of our swords, and ''they will know what we can do!'' By the sweat of our brows, and the strength of our backs, and the courage of our hearts! Gentlemen...hoist the colors."}}

{{quote| "Are we not King's Men? I did not notice any fear in the hearts of the Spanish as they passed us by. So I ask you: are we not King's Men?!"}}

* Subverted and played straight (in that order) in ''[[Robin Hood]]: Men In Tights'', where a [[Rousing Speech]] by Robin (done in the style of Winston Churchill) bores the villagers to tears, by a [[Rousing Speech]] done by Achoo ([[Running Gag|bless you!]]) in the style of Malcolm X succeeds.

{{quote| "Now who can argue with ''that''?"}}

{{quote| '''Headmaster Trask''': ''Sir, you're out of order.''<br />

* ''[[Serenity (Film)|Serenity]]'' contains two versions of this trope: Once after The Operative destroys the group's safe havens, and once after the secret is found out. The latter is punctuated by Mal's [[Catch Phrase]], "I aim to misbehave".

{{quote| '''Mal''': You all got on this boat for different reasons, but you all came to the same place. So now I'm asking more of you than I have before. Maybe all. 'Cause as sure as I know anything, I know this: they will try again. Maybe on another world. Maybe on this very ground, swept clean. A year from now, ten, they'll swing back to the belief that they can make people... (looks directly at River) better. And I do not hold to that. So no more running. ''I aim to misbehave.''}}

* ''[[Star Trek: First Contact]]'': Picard's "The line must be drawn here!" speech (though partial subversion, as this move ultimately has more to do with Picard's personal relationship with the Borg than with the importance of doing what's right).

{{quote| '''Guile:''' "Troopers! I have just received new orders. Our superiors say the war is canceled, and we can all go home. Bison is getting paid off for his crimes, and our friends will have died here... will have died for nothing. But... we can all go home. Meanwhile, ideals like these - freedom, and justice - they get packed up. But... we can all go home. Well... I'm not going home. I'm gonna get on my boat, and I'm going up-river, and I'm going to kick that son-of-a-bitch Bison's ass so HARD... that the next Bison wanna-be is gonna FEEL it. Now who wants to go home... and who wants to go with ME?!"}}

{{quote| Cut it out! Cut it out! Cut it out! The hell's the matter with you? Stupid! We're all very different people. We're not Watusi. We're not Spartans. We're Americans, with a capital 'A', huh? You know what that means? Do ya? That means that our forefathers were kicked out of every decent country in the world. We are the wretched refuse. We're the underdog. We're mutts! Here's proof: his nose is cold! But there's no animal that's more faithful, that's more loyal, more loveable than the mutt. Who saw "Old Yeller?" Who cried when Old Yeller got shot at the end? I cried my eyes out. So we're all dogfaces, we're all very, very different, but there is one thing that we all have in common: we were all stupid enough to enlist in the Army. We're mutants. There's something wrong with us, something '''very, very wrong''' with us. Something seriously wrong with us - we're soldiers. But we're American soldiers! We've been kicking ass for 200 years! We're 10 and 1! Now we don't have to worry about whether or not we practiced. We don't have to worry about whether Captain Stillman wants to have us hung. All we have to do is to be the great American fighting soldier that is inside each one of us. Now do what I do, and say what I say. And make me proud!}}

* In ''[[Toy Story (franchise)|Toy Story]] 2'', Buzz Lightyear inspires the other toys to press on in their search for Woody, while working in a few [[Continuity Nod|continuity nods]]:

{{quote| '''Buzz:''' ''Come on, fellas. Did Woody give up when Sid had me strapped to a rocket? No! And did he give up when you threw him out of the back of that moving van? No, he didn't! We have [[The Power of Friendship|a friend in need]], and we're not going to rest until he's safe in Andy's room! Now, let's move out!''}}

* ''[[Transformers: theThe Movie]]''. Twice. With [[Theme Music Power -Up]]. "AUTOBOTS! Transform and roll out!"

** And in the recent [[Michael Bay]] [[Transformers (Filmfilm)|film]], Optimus gives a speech on their obligation to help the humans, before they do the car equivalent of the [[Power Walk]]. The Decepticons have a team-up montage at the same time, so you ''know'' it's on.

* Let's see, there's ''[[Braveheart]]'', ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]: The Return of the King'' (twice!), ''[[Gladiator (Filmfilm)|Gladiator]]'', ''[[Three Hundred|300]]'', the list goes on and on. This happens in pretty much every movie that features large-scale battles involving sharp objects. And if the guy is on a horse, riding up and down in front of his ranks while giving the speech, all the better.

** Selections from the ''[[The Lord of the Rings (Filmfilm)|Lord of the Rings]]'' trilogy:

{{quote| '''Theoden''': Forth, and fear no darkness! Arise! Arise, riders of Théoden! Spears shall be shaken, shields shall be splintered - a sword day, a red day, ere the sun rises! Ride now! Ride now! Ride! Ride to ruin, and the world's ending! ''Death! Death!'' '''DEATH! ''FORTH ÉORLINGAS!'' '''}}

{{quote| '''Eowyn''': "Courage, Merry. Courage for our friends.}}

{{quote| '''Aragorn''': Sons of Gondor! Of Rohan! My brothers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship. But it is not this day! An hour of wolves and shattered shields, when the Age of Men comes crashing down! But it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good earth, I bid you stand! Men! of the West!}}

{{quote| '''Theoden''': Let this be the hour when we draw swords together. Fell deeds awake. Now for wrath! Now for ruin! And a red dawn! ''FORTH ÉORLINGAS!''}}

*** [[The Lord of the Rings|Sean Astin]] from ''Two Towers'' on is an absolute master of these speeches.

{{quote| '''Frodo:''' "I can't do this, Sam."<br />

'''Sam:''' "I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here. But we are. It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand! I know now! Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't! They kept going! Because they were holding on to something."<br />

'''Frodo:''' "What are we holding onto, Sam?"<br />

* ''[[Knute Rockne, All- American]]'':

{{quote| '''Rockne:''' And the last thing he said to me, "Rock," he said, "sometime when the team is up against it and the breaks are beating the boys, tell them to go out there with all they've got and win just one for the Gipper. I don't know where I'll be then, Rock", he said - "but I'll know about it - and I'll be happy."<br />

** Parodied in ''[[Airplane! (Film)|Airplane!]]'' where Dr. Rumack gives Ted Stryker almost the exact same speech, except that it's about George ''Zipp'' so it ends "...and win just one for the Zipper."

{{quote| '''Coach Dan Devine''': No one--and I mean, ''no one''--comes into ''our'' house and pushes us around.}}

{{quote| '''Tony D'Amato''': You know when you get old in life, things get taken from you. That's part of life. But you only learn that when you start losing stuff. You find out life's this game of inches. So is football. Because in either game, life or football, the margin for error is so small. I mean...one half a step too late or too early and you don't quite make it. One half second too slow, too fast, you don't quite catch it. The inches we need are everywhere around us. They're in every break of the game, every minute, every second. On this team, we fight for that inch. On this team, we tear ourselves and everyone else around us to pieces for that inch. We claw with our fingernails for that inch. Because we know when we add up all those inches, that's gonna make the FUCKIN' DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WINNING AND LOSING! BETWEEN LIVING AND DYING! I'll tell you this - in any fight, it's the guy who's willing to die who's gonna win that inch. And I know if I'm going to have any life anymore, it's because I'm still willing to fight and die for that inch. Because THAT'S WHAT LIVING IS! THE SIX INCHES IN FRONT OF YOUR FACE!}}

* C'mon people, no locker room speech from ''[[Miracle (Film)|Miracle]]''?

{{quote| '''Coach Herb Brooks''': If we played 'em ten times, they might win nine. But not this game. Not tonight. Tonight, ''we'' are the greatest hockey team in the world. I'm sick and tired of hearing what a great hockey team the Soviets have! Screw 'em! This is ''your'' time! Now go out there and take it!}}

* ''[[The Goonies (Film)|The Goonies]]''. [[The Hero]], Mikey, gives a speech convincing the Goonies to continue following the [[Treasure Map]] after the [[Jerk Jock]] offers them a chance to be rescued.

{{quote| '''Mikey''': Chester Copperpot! Don't you guys see? Don't you realize? He was a pro. He never made it this far. Look how far we've come. We've got a chance.}}

* GLORIOUSLY subverted in ''[[Deep Blue Sea]]'' when [[Samuel L. Jackson]] gives a Rousing Speech (complete with a revelation of a [[Shameful Secret]]), only to be killed by a shark just as he's about to start rallying the characters to action.

** "Yea, [[As the Good Book Says...|though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil. For thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.]] Because I carry a big stick and I'm the meanest motherfucker in the valley!"

* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6wRkzCW5qI 40 Inspirational Speeches in 2 Minutes] is a [[Rousing Speech]] constructed by cutting together parts of famous monologues from many films (most of them [[Rousing Speech|Rousing Speeches]] in themselves).

* ''[[Master and Commander]]'' : "This Ship is England..."

{{quote| '''Lorna Campbell:''' What are you going to do, Johnny? Sit in this grotty flat feeling sorry for yourself, or are you gonna get out there and save your country?<br />

* Possibly the best example: Charlie Chaplin's speech at the end of ''[[The Great Dictator]]'' [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IvPIWzQcUY\] possibly made even stronger in that it's Chaplin, a man not known for his verbosity.

{{quote| '''Gene Kranz''': I want you guys to find every engineer who designed every switch, every circuit, every transistor and every light bulb that's up there. Then I want you to talk to the guy in the assembly line who actually built the thing. Find out how to squeeze every amp out of both of these goddamn machines. I want this mark all the way back to Earth with time to spare. We never lost an American in space, we're sure as hell not gonna lose one on my watch! Failure is not an option!}}

{{quote| '''Louis Winthorpe III:''' Think big, think positive, never show any sign of weakness. Always go for the throat. Buy low, sell high. Fear? That's the other guy's problem. Nothing you have ever experienced will prepare you for the absolute carnage you are about to witness. Super Bowl, World Series - they don't know what pressure is. In this building, it's either kill or be killed. You make no friends in the pits and you take no prisoners. One minute you're up half a million in soybeans and the next, boom, your kids don't go to college and they've repossessed your Bentley. Are you with me?<br />

* Mercilessly played for laughs in ''[[Team America: World Police]]'', when Gary convinces the audience to rise up against Kim-Jong Il by with a rousing speech about naughty bits.

{{quote| '''Lisa:''' You had me at dicks fuck assholes.}}

* ''[[Avatar (Filmfilm)|Avatar]]'': Jake's speech to the Omatikaya to unite the clans, with Tsu'tey translating for those who don't speak English. The film also implies similar speeches at the other clans, although they aren't heard.

{{quote| '''Jake:''' The Skypeople have sent us a message; that they can take whatever they want, and no one can stop them. But we will send them a message. You ride out as fast as the wind can carry you. You tell the other clans to come. You tell them Toruk Makto calls to them. You fly now, with me, my brothers, my sisters, and we will show the skypeople that they can not take whatever they want, and that this... [[ThisPunctuated! IsFor! SpartaEmphasis!|THIS IS OUR LAND]]!<ref>Fpole’ sawtutel ’upxaret ayoeri tsat new tsun mivunge. Slä awngal 'upxaret fpìye' for. Kämakto nìwin, ayngati spivule hufwel ayolo'ru alahe peng ziva'u. For peng syeraw Toruk Makto. Tswayon set oehu ma smukan, ma smuke! Sawtuter wìyintxu ayoeng ke tsun fo fìkem sivi, fìtsenge... lu awngeyä!</ref>}}

* In ''[[Harry Potter and Thethe Deathly Hallows|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows:- Part 2]]'', Neville gives a rousing speech after Voldemort's apparent victory. The speech replaces his much-beloved [[Pre -Ass -Kicking One -Liner]] ("I'll join you when hell freezes over! Dumbledore's Army!) from the book.

{{quote| '''The President:''' We watched as the bombs shattered the second comet into a million pieces of ice and rock that burned harmlessly in our atmosphere and lit up the sky for an hour. Still, we were left with the devastation of the first. The waters reached as far inland as the Ohio and Tennessee Valleys. It washed away farms and towns, forests and skyscrapers. But, the water receded. The wave hit Europe and Africa too. Millions were lost, and countless more left homeless. But the waters receded. Cities fall, but they are rebuilt. And heroes die, but they are remembered. We honor them with every brick we lay, with every field we sow, With every child we comfort, and then teach to rejoice in what we have been re-given. Our planet. Our home. So now, let us begin.}}

{{quote| Till shade is gone, till water is gone<br />

Into the [[Hell|Shadow]] with teeth bared<br />

[[Defiant to Thethe End|Screaming defiance with the last breath]]<br />

To spit in [[Satan|Sightblinder]]'s eye on [[The End of the World Asas We Know It|the last day]]. }}

* [[Terry Pratchett]]'s ''[[Discworld]]'', naturally enough, [[Playing Withwith a Trope|plays with this trope]] in a variety of ways.

** In ''[[Discworld (Literature)/Lords and Ladies|Lords and Ladies]]'', Shawn Ogg attempts and fails to give a [[Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night|St. Crispin's Day]] speech, after which his mother calmly informs the unimpressed crowd that anyone who ''doesn't'' follow him will have her to deal with.

** In ''[[Discworld (Literature)/Jingo|Jingo]]'' Carrot leads his small group against two battling armies with the cry "If we succeed, no-one will remember! And if we fail, no-one will forget!" ([[Double Subversion|double subverted]] in that they're still behind him). We are told of the only worse attempt, General Pidley's famous 'Let's all get our throats cut, boys'

** In ''[[Discworld (Literature)/Interesting Times|Interesting Times]]'' Rincewind gives a passionate speech ''against'' the concept, claiming the leaders making such speeches are usually the only ones with decent armour.

** In ''[[Discworld (Literature)/The Last Hero|The Last Hero]]'' the heroes who are going to the Hub to intercept Cohen have patches made up with a slogan in actually rather good Latin: ''Morituri Nolumus Mori''. Rincewind thought them up. With something between amusement and disdain, Lord Vetinari prompts him to translate: "We who are about to die, don't want to." (literally, "{the}About-To-Die We-Do-Not-Want To-Die")

** ''[[Discworld (Literature)/Night Watch (Discworld)|Night Watch]]'' also parodies ''[[Braveheart]]'' by taking the most remembered line -- "They may take our lives", etc. -- and having people react to it as if the speaker had just said something profoundly stupid.

** In ''[[Discworld (Literature)/Wyrd Sisters|Wyrd Sisters]]'', Hwel, the dramatist thinks that Tomjon, who's the greatest actor in the world, could make a bunch of drunkards in a pub to storm the Patrician's palace by giving a speech - and they'd probably succeed.

* In [[JKJ. K. Rowling]]'s first three ''[[Harry Potter]]'' books, Gryffindor Quidditch captain [[Harry Potter|Oliver Wood]] was fond of these. His team, not so much.

* Both King Theoden and Aragorn in [[JRRJ. TolkienR. (Creator)R. Tolkien|JRR Tolkien]]'s ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]: The Return of the King'', prior to the Battle of the Pelennor Fields. The speech Theoden gave in the movie, however, is given by Eomer in the novel, in despair after he sees Eowyn wounded.

** The Tolkien metal band ''Battlelore'' based the song ''The Great Gathering'' off of a [[Rousing Speech]] for the Last Alliance of Men, Elves and Dwarves.

* In the ''[[Silmarillion]]'', [[Magnificent Bastard|Fëanor]] manages to convince a almost all of the Noldor to [[Star Trek|boldly go where no elf has gone before]].

** [[Go, Ye Heroes, Go and Die|Subverted]] with his sons Celegorm and Curufin. They too are great orators -their speeches are compared to Fëanor's-, but they manage to convince a whole city ''not'' to follow their king, and make them so afraid that they refuse to go into open battle until a few decades later.

* Commissar Genadey Novobazky delivers one of these at the end of the ''[[Warhammer 4000040,000]] [[GauntsGaunt's Ghosts]]'' novel ''His Last Command''. {{spoiler|Colonel Wilder, Novobazky and A Company of the 81/1st (Recon) stay behind during the retreat from Sparshad Mons to fight a rearguard action and allow Imperial forces to withdraw from the city before it gets bombarded from orbit. This example is a [[Bolivian Army Ending]]. We never see what happens, but there are only two possible outcomes. The Belladon either get slaughtered by the Blood Pact, or vaporised by the orbital bombardment.}}

{{quote| "The safety of the Empire? Admiral, I'm sworn to serve the Empire, we both are, but I serve Master Rog. We all do. You'd have to have been there to understand. He's not...who he was. None of us are. We're Prince Roger's Own. Period. They call aides 'dog-robbers' because they'll rob a dog of its bone, if that's what the admiral wants. We're...we're pig-robbers. We'll steal slop, if that's what Roger wants. Or conquer the Caravazan Empire. Or set him up as a pirate king. Maybe Pahner wasn't that way, maybe he fought for the Empire, even to the last. But the rest of us are, we few who survive. We're Roger's dogs. And if he wants to save the Empire, well, we'll save the Empire. And if he'd told me to come in here and assassinate you, well, Admiral, you'd be dead."}}

{{quote| "Question, Commander. What do we do ''after'' lunch?"}}

{{quote| "He had village assemblies. Set up loudspeakers. Preached 'beans and bullets'. The duty of the people to the nation. The evil of neutrality. The evil of communism. Promised schools and electricity. New roads. Should have saved his breath."<br />

* Used irritatingly by Roran in ''[[The Inheritance Cycle]]'' to the entire village of Cavarhall in order to persuade them to abandon the town and join the Varden in Surda. Gloriously (and thankfully) subverted later on when the town needs to steal a boat. They turn to Roran, expecting another rousing speech, but he simply delivers the [[One -Liner]] "It's either this or walk," and goes to sleep.

* In [[The League of Peoples Verse]] novel ''Expendable'', the drunken old former Explorer Phylar Tobit manages to get a bunch of indolent aliens to help him out by firing them up with a rousing speech (which he then admits to loosely translating from [[Shout -Out to/To Shakespeare|Henry V]]).

* Wedge Antilles has one in ''[[X Wing Series|Starfighters of Adumar]]'', before launching the united Adumari nation. The Adumari [[Planet of Hats|hat]] is [[Proud Warrior Race Guy]], but that just gets them killed, so he speaks about keeping their minds on the task at hand, not on glory. Before he starts, he thinks that he's not one of those people who needs a rousing speech to fight at his best, and he's a little iffy on the idea of someone who does.

{{quote| "I'm not going to give you some sort of stirring, half-witted speech about why we're here. They're for crowds, not for fighter pilots."}}

{{quote| "Herald of Burgundy, in God's name and the king's, I bid you go back to your master and say this: Kings are great in the eyes of their people, but the people are great in the eyes of God, and it is the people of France who answer you in the name of this epitome. The people of Paris are not so poor of spirit that they fear the croak of the Burgundian ravens. We are well victualled, we are well armed; we lie snug and warm behind our stout walls; we laugh at your leaguer. But when we who eat are hungry, when we who drink are dry, when we who glow are frozen, when there is neither bite on the board nor sup in the pitcher nor spark upon the hearth, our answer to rebellious Burgundy will be the same. You are knocking at our doors, beware lest we open them and come forth to speak with our enemy at the gate. We give you back defiance for defiance, menace for menace, blow for blow. This is our answer--this and the drawn sword. God and St. Denis for the King of France!"}}

* Robert "Bobby" Pendragon in ''[[The Pendragon Adventure|Pendragon 10: The Soldiers Of Halla]]'', before the final fight, says "This is the beginning of a new history... The way it was meant to be."

* In [[James Swallow]]'s ''[[Blood Angels (Literature)|Deus Sanguinius]]'', at the climax, Rafen gives a rousing speech, reminding his fellow Blood Angels that their primarch died at the hands of Chaos and calling on them to renounce their allegiance to {{spoiler|the false Reborn Angel}}.

* Deeba gives one in Chapter 81 of ''[[Un Lun Dun]]''.

* In ''[[The Pale King]]'', one is given by a substitute teacher on the final review day of the Advanced Tax class. {{spoiler|It motivates Chris to clean up his life.}}

* ''[[Sharpe]]''

{{quote| ''You don't see a battle. You hear it. Black powder blasting by the ton on all sides. Black smoke blinding you and choking you and making you vomit. Then the French come out of the smoke - not in a line, but in a column. And they march towards our thin line, kettledrums hammering like hell and a golden eagle blazing overhead. They march slowly, and it takes them a long time to reach you, and you can't see them in smoke. But you can hear the drums. They march out of the smoke, and you fire a volley. And the front rank of the column falls, and the next rank steps over them, with drums hammering, and the column smashes your line like a hammer breaking glass... and Napoleon has won another battle. But if you don't run - if you stand until you can smell the garlic, and fire volley after volley, three rounds a minute - then they slow down. They stop. And then they run away. All you've got to do is stand, and fire three rounds a minute. Now, you and I know you can fire three rounds a minute. But can you stand?''}}

* ''Dracula'' contains an [[Crowning Moment of Awesome|absolutely epic]] speech from the Count himself. Though the context is wrong for this trope, the content is certainly worthy of a particularly good one. Plus, after the [[It Was His Sled|discovery]] that Dracula used to be a human lord who was also a great general, one can very easily imagine him giving a true [[Rousing Speech]] that could have said many of the same things.

== [[Live -Action TV ]] ==

{{quote| Sgt. Maj. John Sixta:<br />

* ''[[Babylon Five|Babylon 5]]'' practically uses rousing speeches as motor fuel.

** Right before the Battle of the Line -- theLine—the last, desperate battle in the Earth-Minbari war -- thewar—the Earth President gives one.

{{quote| '''BlackadderHarry''': Now, "I'm afraid not.there's Thegoing gunsto have stopped because we're about to attack.be Nota evenbit ourof generals(''unhappily'') are mad enough to shell their own menviolence. They(''Brightly'') thinkBut it'sat farleast morewe sportingall toknow letits thefor Germansa do'''good itcause'''."<br />

{{quote| ''What's this? Sittin' around watching the telly while there's evil still afoot? It's not very industrious of you. I say we go out there and kick a little demon ass! What? Can't go without your Buffy, is that it? Too chicken? Let's find her. She is the chosen one, after all. Come on! Vampires! Grrr! Nasty! Let's annihilate them, for justice, and for... the safety of puppies... and Christmas, right? Let's fight that evil! Let's kill something!'' [Credits start running.] ''Oh, '''come on!'''''}}

{{quote| '''Buffy:''' Hey, everybody knows their jobs. Remember, the ritual starts, we all die. And I'll kill anyone who comes near Dawn.<br />

'''Spike:''' Well, not exactly the St. Crispin's Day speech, was it?<br />

'''Giles:''' (Wryly) "We few, we happy few..."<br />

{{quote| '''Buffy:''' Hello! All I ''do'' is look at the big picture. The other day, I gave an inspirational speech to the telephone repair man.<br />

* ''[[Doctor Who (TV)|Doctor Who]]'' contains a memorable one in the story 'Earthshock', in which the Doctor confronts the [[Straw Vulcan|completely emotionless Cyberleader]] with the limitations of their existence, pointing out that small, beautiful things - which they cannot appreciate - are what make life worth living.

{{quote| '''Col. Mace:''' The Sontarans might think of us as primitive, as does every passing species with an axe to grind. They make a mockery of our weapons, our soldiers, our ideals, but no more. From this point on it stops. From this point on, the people of Earth fight back. And we show them, we show the warriors of Sontar what the human race can do.}}

{{quote| '''Ninth Doctor''': Right now, not very far from here, the German war machine is rolling up the map of Europe. Country after country, falling like dominoes. Nothing can stop it. Nothing. Until one, tiny, damp little island says 'no'. 'No'. Not here. A mouse in front of a lion. *smiles* You're amazing, the lot of you. Dunno what you do to Hitler, but you frighten the hell out of me. Off you go then... do what you've gotta do. Save the world.}}

{{quote| '''Frobisher''': They have called this day the eleventh of March. And whom-so-ever of you gets through this day, unless you are shot in the head or somehow slain, you will stand a hipnal when e'er you hear the name again, and you will get excited at the name March the eleventh. We happy few, we few, we band of brothers our names will be as like household names. Those who are not here be they sleeping or doing something else, they will feel themselves - sort of crappy. Because they are not here to, to join the fight. On this day, March the eleventh!}}

* While ''[[Farscape (TV)|Farscape]]'' didn't have any speeches in the direct sense, a good portion of the final season had Crichton convincing his alien friends (and often himself) that this was the only course of action left: Stop running, make a stand, end this madness once and for all. In the final episode, Crichton {{spoiler|goes back to Earth one last time, calls his father from the moon and tells him that he's sealing up the wormhole to Earth (to keep it safe from the Scarrans) and isn't coming back.}} The 'speech' ends with an endearing father/son moment.

{{quote| '''Jack:'''"You tell my grandkids about me."<br />

'''John:'''"Ha, that's a no-brainer. They gotta know who my hero is."<br />

'''Jack:'''"You're going to find, when you have your own, you want them to surpass you. Be better. Climb higher. I guess if that's the measure, I'm the greatest Dad on Earth."<br />

'''John:'''"I love you, Dad."<br />

'''Jack:'''"You're the heart and soul of my life, son. I love you."<br />

* ''[[Lexx]]'': "Brigadoom". Usually cowardly Stan delivers the relevant speech, with the [[One -Liner]] delivered as the last line of a song: "If this should be our final stand / Then we stand together with pride / We will honor the past / And fight to the last / It will be a good way to die."

* ''[[Red Dwarf (TV)|Red Dwarf]]'': "Out of Time". Shocked at the decadent attitude of their future selves, the crew refuse to hand over the Time Drive to them, and are delivered an ultimatum: hand it over or be destroyed.

{{quote| '''Rimmer:''' Do we have any chance of winning?<br />

'''Kryten:''' Their craft is greatly upgraded. We have no chance whatsoever.<br />

'''Rimmer:''' Then I say Fight.<br />

'''Kryten:''' (shocked) Sir?<br />

'''Rimmer:''' Better dead than smeg.<br />

'''Lister:''' All ''right''! Cat?<br />

'''Cat:''' Better dead than sofa-sized butt.<br />

'''Lister:''' Kryten?<br />

** Facing an overwhelming Klingon force in an alternate timeline, ''[[The Next Generation]]'''s alternate timeline captain gives the speech, ending,

{{quote| '''Picard:''' "Let us make sure history never forgets the name ... ''Enterprise''."}}

{{quote| '''Sisko:''' (...) We all know that's exactly what's going to happen if the Dominion takes over the Alpha Quadrant!...You say you don't want me to sacrifice my life - well FINE! Neither do I. You want to be gods? Then BE gods!...I need a miracle. Bajor needs a miracle...STOP THOSE SHIPS!!!"}}

{{quote| '''Omet'iklan:''' I am First Omet'iklan, and I am dead. As of this moment, we are all dead. We got into battle to reclaim our lives. This we do gladly, for we are Jem'Hadar. Remember, Victory is Life!<br />

'''Assembled Jem'Hadar:''' Victory is Life!<br />

* ''[[3rd Rock Fromfrom the Sun]]'' episode "36! 24! 36! Dick!". After a group of hot Venusian women fail in their plot to steal everything of value from Earth, Dick cheers them up by telling them how they can make something of their lives by becoming supermodels.

* In ''[[Torchwood (TV)|Torchwood]]'', medic Owen Harper, trapped in a nuclear bunker which will shortly fill with radiation, begins to shout and run around and smash things, insisting that he will "rage his way to oblivion". {{spoiler|He stops, though- it wasn't accomplishing anything except hurting Tosh's feelings.}}

* Dramatic example: ''[[The West Wing]]'': "Shutdown", when President Bartlet decides to stand up to Congress (also a [[He's Back]] moment). The speech was more impressive, but the context less seasons earlier when something similar happened in "Let Bartlet Be Bartlet", which employed a [[One -Liner Echo]] with "I serve at the pleasure of the President."

* ''[[Firefly (TV)|Firefly]]'' ''ruthlessly'' subverts this in the pilot episode, where Mal delivers a quick, rousing speech to his troops, only to have one of them clam up in terror, another get killed while trying to call in air support, and at the end of the entire scene, the Allaince coming in to obliterate the entire Independent army, [[Despair Event Horizon|utterly crushing]] both the Browncoats and Mal's spirit.

* Peter gives one to his fellow <s>mutants</s> <s>superhumans</s> "[[Not Using the Z Word|people with abilities]]" when they're being pursued by the government in the ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]'' episode "Trust and Blood."

{{quote| '''Jon Stewart''': You're going ''Richard II'' on us?<br />

* Abby likes to deliver these on ''[[Survivors (TV series)|Survivors]]'', especially when her groups cohesion is hanging by a shred.

* In ''[[Merlin]]'', Arthur, being the future [[King Arthur]], occasionly gets to do a [[Rousing Speech]]. The first example of this is to the villagers in ''The Moment of Truth'', and the best so far has to be the one he gives to the soon-to-be Knights of the Round Table in ''The Coming of Arthur, part two''.

* [[Robin Hood (TV series)|Robin Hood]] loves doing that, some of which are also episode titles, such as "Will You Tolerate This?" and "We Are Robin Hood".

* ''[[Stargate SG -1]]'' has a notable subversion of this trope in "The Serpent's Lair":

{{quote| '''O'Neill:''' I suppose now is the time for me to say something profound. ''[pauses]'' Nothing comes to mind. Let's do it.}}

* What happens when one person writes the [[Rousing Speech]], and somebody else ends up reading it out (from ''[[The Legend of Dick and Dom (TV)|The Legend of Dick and Dom]]'')

{{quote| '''Prince Dick''':Be brave, [[Blah Blah Blah|blah blah blah]], [[Braveheart|never take our freedom]], blah blah blah, [[Oh Wait, This Is My Grocery List|two lemons, a pint of milk and some loo roll]], blah blah blah, zero chance of success- don't read that bit out, blah blah blah, good luck. Let's go!<br />

* "Rise" and "Ten Thousand Fists" by [[Disturbed (Music)|Disturbed]]. The band's concerts sometimes contain sections in the set reserved for speeches by the lead-singer designed with this in mind (that and getting the crowd more pumped up).

* This might possibly be one of the oldest tropes in all of Western entertainment, as revealed in ''[[The Iliad (Literature)|The Iliad]]''. As the Trojan War is going on, Achilles, the strongest member of the Greek army, refuses to get involved. This changes when his friend and possible love interest dies, causing him to go berserk on the Trojan Army, ultimately helping to win the war, but resulting in his death at the hands of Paris.

* This was the entire basis of Teutonic mythology. Even the gods were ultimately doomed and what mattered was to die bravely. [[JRRJ. TolkienR. (Creator)|JRRR. Tolkien]], andan expert in Northern mythology, tried to invoke this spirit in ''[[The Lord of the Rings (Literature)|The Lord of the Rings]]''. Being doomed was no reason not to fight.

== [[Tabletop Games ]] ==

* The flavor text of the ''[[Magic: theThe Gathering]]'' card [httphttps://ww2web.wizardsarchive.comorg/gathererweb/CardDetails20200122094021/https://status.aspx?&id=5110wizards.com/ Awakening].

* Apply this concept to entire species, and you'll have an idea what life for the Eldar and Imperium of Man in ''[[Warhammer 4000040,000]]'' is like. As one might expect, such speeches are commonplace.

** This also applies to its sister setting in ''[[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]]''. The dwarfs have lost their empire, their numbers are dwindling, the craftsmanship and skills of the past are being lost, and one by one their last remaining strongholds are falling to the grobi or rat-men or other nasties that inhabit the ''Warhammer'' world. But they keep fighting, out of sheer, stubborn, dwarfish bloody-mindedness. The high elves have a similar situation regarding their dark kin and the forces of Chaos, but are naturally more stuck-up about it. Oddly enough, the human Empire is a bit more optimistic, due to spanking Chaos in a recent campaign a few years back.

{{quote| "If it ain't green, belt it 'til it stops moving. Then belt it again, just to be sure."}}

** A bard in ''D&D'' 3rd edition who specializes in oration provides combat or skill buffs through rousing speeches. There's even a feat in an issue of ''[[Dragon (magazine)|Dragon]]'' magazine named "We Few, We Happy Few" that enhances this ability.

* Subverted in ''[[Antony and Cleopatra (Theatre)|Antony and Cleopatra]]''. Before one of the battles, Mark Antony gives an incredibly depressing speech ("Haply you shall not see me more; or if,/A mangled shadow: perchance to-morrow/You'll serve another master.") This is the only battle in the play that Antony actually wins.

* In ''[[Julius Caesar (Theatretheatre)|Julius Caesar]]'', he manages to entirely turn the public opinion about Caesar with a speech that he gives on his funeral, and makes the people revolt against Caesar's killers.

* RatherIn the play ''[[Richard III]]'', rather surprisingly, despite his [[Designated Villain]] status, [[RichardofRichard of Gloucester|Richard III]] gives a very good one in the play ''[[Richard III]],'' while his opponent, Henry Tudor, gives a rather lackluster speech at best.

== [[Video Games ]] ==

{{quote| [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v{{=}}6I6bjxElM6o "The Prince is dead!" *clang* "LONG LIVE THE PRINCE!"] (from 5:40)}}

* Commander Shepard of the ''[[Mass Effect (Video Game)|Mass Effect]]'' series has a penchant for rousing speeches, such as the one given upon taking command of the ''Normandy'' in ''[[Mass Effect 1 (Videovideo Gamegame)|Mass Effect 1]]'', which was real nifty since you choose your speech piece by piece, and unlike ''Knights of the Old Republic'', your character ''does'' talk. You also give one in ''[[Mass Effect 2 (Video Game)|Mass Effect 2]]'', at two stages during the [[Suicide Mission]]. Again, you choose how the speech unfolds, and it really takes on a different tone in the second speech--atspeech—at that point, more than half Shepard's team can have been killed. It's either "one final effort, and then we can all go home" or "don't let their sacrifices be in vain". In ''[[Mass Effect 3 (Video Game)|Mass Effect 3]]'', however, Shepard delegates the honor to [[Supporting Leader|Admiral Hackett]] before the [[Final Battle]], which is just as good.

* [[Badass Longcoat|Auron]], from ''[[Final Fantasy X (Video Game)|Final Fantasy X]]'': "Now! This is it! Now is the time to choose! Die and be free of pain, or live and fight your sorrow! Now is the time to shape your stories! Your fate is in your hands!"

* [[StarcraftStarCraft|"...because some things, are just worth fighting for."]]

** An excelent one in Modern Warfare 2: The real [[Big Bad]] is only revealed after his plan has allready succeed, {{spoiler|[[Monumental Damage|Washington]]}} lies in smoking ruins, {{spoiler|[[EverybodysEverybody's Dead, Dave|the entire team]]}} was killed, and Price and Soap are [[Clear My Name|hunted as traitors and terrorists]]. But there's still one thing left to do:

{{quote| "The healthy human mind doesn't wake up in the morning thinking this is its last day on Earth. But I think that's a luxury. Not a curse. To know you're close to the end is a kind of freedom. Good time to take . . . inventory. Outgunned. Outnumbered. Out of our minds. On a suicide mission. But the sand and the rocks here, stained with thousands of years of warfare . . . They will remember us. For this. Because out of all our vast array of nightmares, this is the one we choose for ourselves. We go forward like a breath exhaled from the Earth. With vigor in our hearts and one goal in sight: We. Will. Kill him."<br />

[[Title Drop|"This is for the record.]] [[Arc Words|History is written by the victor.]] History is filled with liars... <Another minute and a half of non-intrestinginteresting speech>." }}

** A speech along the lines of the first, but a bit more heroic, comes from Call of Duty: Finest Hour. As our rookie protagonist looks on at the hell that is Stalingrad, Commissar Viktor Durasov speaks to his men, accompanied by some serious [[Crowning Music of Awesome|Crowning Music Of Awesome]]:

{{quote| "Welcome to Stalingrad. You're about to begin the greatest moment of your life. The Germans have lost hundreds of tanks and planes. Hitler's brutalized hordes are now advancing toward Stalingrad over mountains of their own dead bodies! Our Bolshevik party, our nation, our great country, have given us the task not to let the enemy reach the Volga, and to defend the city of Stalingrad. Forward against the enemy! Up into the unremitting battle, comrades! For Stalingrad, for our great country, '''not one step back!''' Cowards and traitors will be shot! Do not count days, do not count miles; count only the number of Germans you have killed! Kill the German; this is your mother's prayer! Kill the German; this is the cry of your Russian earth! Do not waver! Do not let up! Kill! Death the the German invader!"}}

** Reznov gives an epic [[Rousing Speech]] in the [[Call of Duty: Black Ops (Video Game)|Call of Duty Black Ops]] mission "Vorkuta":

{{quote| "Brave comrades of Vorkuta, the time has come to rise against our oppressors! Today, we show them the hearts of true Russians! We have all given our blood for the Motherland. We have answered her calls without question. We gave our youth, our hearts, our very souls for her protection..As brothers, we fought side by side against the German fascists. We crawled through dirt and blood and sand to achieve our glorious victory..Not for medals, or glory...but for what was right. We fought for revenge...When Berlin fell, how did our leaders repay us? We returned not to the rapturous welcome...but to suspicion and persecution. In the eyes of our leaders we were already tainted by the capitalist West. Torn from the arms of our loved ones, we found ourselves here... this place... this, this terrible place. Here we have languished, with no hope for release... No hope for justice. We have toiled in Dragovich's mines until the flesh peeled from our bones... We have watched our comrades succumb to sickness and disease... We have been starved. We have been beaten. But we will not be broken! Today, we will send a message to our corrupt and arrogant leaders. Today, my comrades... Vorkuta - BURNS!!!"}}

* [[The Stoic|Squall]], of all people, gives one of these speeches during the Battle Between the Gardens in ''[[Final Fantasy VIII (Video Game)|Final Fantasy VIII]]'':

{{quote| "SeeD was formed to fight the sorceress; at least, that's what I heard. And Garden was created to train SeeDs. So this battle is Garden's destiny and also our destiny. It's a grueling battle, and I'm sure you guys are all exhausted. But I don't want to have any regrets. I don't want anyone to look back and regret this day. So just this once, I want you guys to give everything you've got! For yourselves and for me!"}}

* Before the final chapter of ''[[Fire Emblem]] 9'' Ike gives one of these speeches, one noteable bit is he states that he finaly understands the meaning behind [[True Companions|TrueCompanions]].

* Malfurion Stormrage, just before the last mission of the regular game in ''[[War CraftWarcraft]] III'', sounds a battle call to the allied forces -- theforces—the Horde, the human Alliance, and the Night Elves -- asElves—as they face down an endless army of undead and demons, not even trying to win, just trying to hold them back.

* [[Command and& Conquer|General Sheppard, the GDI commander]](not to be confused with [[Mass Effect]]'s Commander Shephard), gives one of these as the final mission briefing.

{{quote| We've found it, Commander - Kane's temple and base of operations. This field operative's covert transmission came to us live just five minutes ago, so there's no doubt that Kane's inside. He's surrounded himself with his own crack militia. Getting to him... won't be easy. Ironic, isn't it? Kane's planted his temple just outside of Sarajevo. If that sounds familiar, it's because that's where another madman started [[World War OneI]]. And here we are, trying to stop this madman from doing it again. Commander, there is to be no quarter given. No leniency in dealing with Kane and his zealots. Wipe his temple off the face of the earth. Destroy the bastard!... Or prepare to die trying.}}

{{quote| "Nod is rumored to have developed its own nuclear weapons, so it's do or die this time. Let's do it."}}

* At the end of ''[[Final Fantasy XII (Video Game)|Final Fantasy XII]]'', {{spoiler|Vayne}} gives a very rare ''villainous'' [[Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night]] speech as [[Final Boss|he faces the protagonists in battle]], realising that he will probably not live through this.

* ''[[World of Warcraft]]'': behold the pure awesome that is ''High Overlord Saurfang'':

{{quote| ''This is our final stand. What happens here will echo through the ages. Regardless of outcome, they will know that we fought with honor. That we fought for the freedom and safety of our people. Remember, heroes, fear is your greatest enemy in these befouled halls. Steel your heart and your soul will shine brighter than a thousand suns. The enemy will falter at the sight of you. They will fall as the light of righteousness envelops them! Our march upon Icecrown Citadel begins now!''}}

* Ezio delivers a combination of this, [[World of Cardboard Speech]] and [[The War Has Just Begun]] to the people of Florence at the end of the War of the Vanities DLC of ''[[Assassin's Creed II (Video Game)|Assassin's Creed II]]''.

{{quote| "Don't follow me. Don't follow anyone!"}}

* ''[[Warhammer 4000040,000]]: [[Dawn of War]]'' has several, the most notable being Governor-Militant Lucas Alexander's speech when an army invades Victory Bay in ''Dark Crusade''. If [[Demonic Invaders|Chaos]] is the attacker, Chaos Lord Eliphas the Inheritor even notes "What a rousing little speech, Governor..."

{{quote| [[Memetic Mutation|"SPESS MEHREENS, TODEH THE ENEMEH IS AT OUR DOAR..."]]}}

* Subverted in ''[[Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies]]''. One of these is made near the end; unfortunately, it's made as you select your plane for the final mission, not with a dedicated cutscene, and no subtitles are provided, so it's possible to never notice it if the [[Nothing Is Scarier]] doesn't compell you to listen more closely, and thus it loses quite a lot of impact. Here's the transcribed version.

{{quote| "Good morning, troops. I have an important announcement. In one hour, each one of you will take part in the most important mission in our history. A mission that will result in the defeat of the vile enemy who has brought chaos to our continent. Although we are from different nations, and of different races, we have fought, suffered and died together, fighting for what we believe in, fighting for freedom! Today, we shall gather for our final battle, to liberate our beautiful continent and restore freedom to our people, our friends, and our families. Our victory will herald the beginning of a new era of prosperity for the Usean continent. Victory will be ours! We shall return peace to our people, and win back our freedom, and our future! The skies belong to everyone! Now, let us take back our [[Title Drop|Shattered Skies]]!"}}

* "You represent what is greatest in us all, and all our hopes go with you. [[StarcraftStarCraft|En Taro Adun, brave sons of Aiur]]!"

{{quote| Strength in unity!<br />

Faith before fear!<br />

* Prior to the [[Final Battle]] of ''[[Dragon Age: Origins]]'', depending on how you resolved the Landsmeet, either Alistair or Anora will deliver a [[Rousing Speech]] to the army you gathered. A speech that uses ''you'' as a source of inspiration.

{{quote| '''Senator Bail Organa''': It is settled then. My wealth will fund the Rebellion, while Garm provides our fleet, and Mon Mothma our soldiers. And with you leading us, we have the power of the Force on our side. Therefore let this be an official declaration of rebellion! Today, we all vow to change the galaxy, and one day the galaxy will indeed be free!}}

* ''[[City of Heroes]]'': In [[Evil Tower of Ominousness|Grandville]], [[Big Bad|Lord Recluse]] has a villainous [[Rousing Speech]] on loop in the main courtyard.

{{quote| '''Lord Recluse''': "I must therefore rely on all of you to spread the word of Lord Recluse's vision. A vision of a glorious future, in which man is not encumbered by the desire for truth, peace, or justice. A future where you no longer must obey others, where you must no longer bow down to those who deem themselves your superiors, a world in which you can finally say "No more." No longer will you have to listen to those who tell you that you must earn what you wish, that you must work hard to achieve your goals. You will have the strength to take what you desire. Through my way, the way of villainy, you can have what you want now. You can leave the weak lying in your wake as you grasp with both hands the glorious future of havokhavoc. The heroes are doomed! Join me now, or you will suffer the same fate that awaits all those who defy me. I, Lord Recluse, shall cover this world in darkness!"}}

* In ''[[Disgaea 4: a Promise Unforgotten (Video Game)|Disgaea 4 aA Promise Unforgotten]]'', [[The Hero|Valvatorez]] has a habit of giving these, whether they be about the importance of keeping one's word, [[The Power of Friendship|the strength of comradery]], or... sardines.

* In ''[[Freedom Fighters (Videovideo Gamegame)|Freedom Fighters]]'', after the {{spoiler|rebels take the Soviet-controlled tv studio.}}

{{quote| '''Chris Stone''': New Yorkers, fellow Americans...I am Chris Stone, the so-called "Freedom Phantom". I stand before you today a free man and I vow to die a free man. Like you, my world was shattered eight long months ago. I watched as my family and friends were tortured, captured, and killed. I have nothing left of my former life...except the hope for a better future...a better future for our children - the American dream. I for one still believe in that dream. We've read this in our schoolbooks as children, now is the time for us to embrace those ideals and stand up against the weight of tyranny. We have a duty to ourselves to throw off our oppressors. When I look around this city, I do not see smoldering ruins...no, instead I see a sleeping army, ready to awaken. The world is watching us now...how we respond will prove our claim. I stand before you now to reaffirm the pledge our forefathers made to each other, and for each of us - to protect our lives, our fortunes, and our self-worth. So I ask you now to take up arms against the evil invaders and yell in their faces that they will never take our freedom!}}

* ''[[Fire Emblem Tellius (Video Game)|Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn]]'' has a villainous [[Rousing Speech]], given by [[Disc One Final Boss]] Jarod as your troops close in on his position.

{{quote| “Listen up, all of you. This is our last chance to die as we've lived. As proud soldiers of the empire. If we survive this fight, imprisonment and a hushed-up execution await us. If we run from this fight, dishonor and pursuit will dog our miserable days. So I say, let's give those Daein curs a fight to remember, and let the glory of our deaths light our way! We've lived as proud soldiers of the empire! Let us die as proud soldiers of the empire! Now GO!”}}

* Who can forget Sergeant Johnson from the ''[[Halo]]'' games?

{{quote| '''Johnson''': Dear humanity, we '''regret''' being [[Aliens Are Bastards|alien bastards]], We '''regret''' [[Alien Invasion|coming to earth]], and we most definitely '''regret''' that the [[Space Marine|Corps]] just blew up our raggedy-ass fleet. Oorah! **[[What Do You Mean ItsIt's Not Awesome?|To a random pilot.]]}}

== [[Web Comics ]] ==

* Subverted hard in ''[[Goblins]]'' when a guard gives this speech...to a lynch mob.

{{quote| Guard: But above all else...they are a level 1 encounter. And we will ''not'' allow our city to fall to a ''level 1 encounter''!}}

* At the end of the main story of the first run of [[Fans|Fans!]], Rikk, Kath and the assembled geek armies of the world [http://www.faans.com/books1-6/index.php?p=1570 recite Aragorn's speech] ''in unison'', ''to each other'', before going to war with the God Machine.

* During GPF's mammoth 'To Thine One Self...' arc, the Grey Drone, Pi, attempts to rouse his fellow aliens into revolt against [[The Empire]], in a classic [[Rousing Speech]] playing on morality and justice. And fails utterly. Then his comedic sidekick, Planck, steps up, after having serendipitously ended up with a fairly decent Braveheart costume through a series of improbable mishaps - and successfully rouses the drones into revolt with a [http://www.gpf-comics.com/archive.php?d=20060623 mishmashed speech] combined from various real and fictional Rousing Speeches, and some general-purpose silliness. (Though the ending isn't as crazy at it would appear to the uninitiated - earlier comics revealed that the Greys find cheese to be both delicious and addictive.)

* In ''[[Punch an Pie]]'', right after one of the employees at the toy shop quits, another [https://web.archive.org/web/20110810094755/http://www.punchanpie.net/cgi-bin/autokeenlite.cgi?date=20090114 gives a speech along these lines]:

{{quote| '''Aaron''' (wrapping up): And we all knew that one day, one of us would crack under the pressure. So her time was now. So what? The rest of us are here, for you, and we will continue to fight for our cause till we cease to be!!!<br />

''[[[Beat Panel]]]''<br />

'''Angela:''' ...and this cause would be?<br />

* Remember [[Hellsing|the Major's "I Love War" speech mentioned in Anime and Manga?]] ''[[And Shine Heaven Now (Webcomic)|And Shine Heaven Now]]'' cranks it [[Up to Eleven]]. Gentlemen, the ''fandom'' [http://hellsing.comicgenesis.com/d/20090629.html version].

* ''[[Bug (Webcomic)|BugMartini]]'' gives us an example of this... [httphttps://www.bugcomicbugmartini.com/comicscomic/playing-the-percentages/ kinda.]

* ''[[Freefall (Webcomic)|Freefall]]'' parodied this sort of speech with Sam Starfall "the larcenous squid" [http://freefall.purrsia.com/ff1700/fc01669.htm addressing] several thousands of ''crickets'' he was going to send into an attack. DoS attack on an alarm system.

{{quote| "Ready to save the world, you post-ironic, post-yuppie?"}}

* The Cirbozoid leader in [[Starslip Crisis]] gives on [https://web.archive.org/web/20101128235449/http://starslip.com/2007/06/12/starslip-number-538/ here] however the fact that most proper nounds in the Cirozoid language are Cirbozoid is comes out rather strange.

* Grace of ''[[El Goonish Shive (Webcomic)|El Goonish Shive]]'' delivers one [http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2012-02-07 here]. It would take a while to quote in full, but the first line forms a pretty neat summary:

{{quote| '''Grace:''' Someone has to try.}}

{{quote| '''Nostalgia Critic:''' Are you Nazis?<br />

'''Everyone:''' *boos*<br />

'''Nostalgia Critic''': OR ARE YOU NAZIS?!<br />

{{quote| Critics, reviewers, my brothers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me. Unlike all the other times we've ever done this, this time we're really fighting for something! A day may come when a dark mage threatens to throw us back into the stone age. A day may come when the cult of an unwitty hack actually allows him to do it. A day may come when the courage of critcs fails, and we break our oath of snark and irony. But it is not this day! Sure, we may have abused science. Really abused it! But that doesn't mean we still can't learn from it! There may be no more shows, when the age of technology comes crashing down, but it is not this day! This day we fight! So by all the cool gizmos and technological toys that you hold dear on this good earth, stand, reviewers of the Internet!}}

* Parodied in the web video series ''[[Knob Hockey]]'', with several caricatures of real-life hockey players giving out some... interesting motivational speeches. "Ryan Smyth" rambles on about [http://youtube.com/watch?v=8Qa86rLGXmc being an] [http://youtube.com/watch?v=H079KmVZwTE Edmonton Oiler], while "Rod Brind'amour" [http://youtube.com/watch?v=1t92VxUzn6Q rips off] ''[[Braveheart]]'' much to the disdain of his Carolina Hurricane teammates ("Oh god, it's the f* cking Braveheart speech."). The [httphttps://wwwweb.archive.org/web/20170614092714/http://heavy.com/channel/2468/ second season] has "Daniel Alfredsson" taking a cue from Brind'amour, much to the confusion of his teammates, and "Chris Pronger" inspiring his teammates by reminding them what city they play for ("We are bringing the Cup to the home of hockey, the twelfth-largest hockey market in the continental United States... I am talking about Anaheim, California!").

* [https://web.archive.org/web/20130922211923/http://www.cracked.com/funny-1069-united-states-america/ ThisThe USA topic page] on ''[[Cracked]].com]]'' starts out as a [[Hot -Blooded]] parody of American patriotism, but ends with a legitimately moving speech on what it means to be an American.

{{quote| "Inspiring final lines of a speech that douchebags will quote in their Facebook profiles!"<br />

* ''[[Red vs. Blue]]: Revelation'' sees [[The Neidermeyer|Sarge,]] of all people, give a legitimately stirring one that begins with an [[Meaningful Echo]] of the first line of the series: "You ever wonder why we're here?"

{{quote| '''Harry''': ''No way''? You listen to me now! For eleven years, I was a [[Muggle]] [[Jerkass|douchebag]] living under some stairs. But ''this'' year, [[Changeling Fantasy|I found out I'm a wizard! I'm famous!]] I can fly, turn invisible, '''''and I just travelled the fuck back in time!''''' So fuck you, Draco, how's that for a happy thought! There is absolutely ''no way'' that there's no way! [''cue [[The Eleven O 'Clock Number]]'']}}

* In ''[[The Codex]]'', one of the early Halo 2 machinimas, there was a ''stunningly'' good one of these. Massive bonus points for overlaying ''two'' [[Rousing Speech|such speechs]], by the (sympathetic) opposing commanders.

* Played with a lot in ''[[Chicken Run (Animation)|Chicken Run]]''. Ginger, a chicken at a chicken farm, constantly makes speeches about her dreams of freedom to the others in an attempt to convince them to go along with her plans to escape. Sometimes they work, sometimes they're met with clueless responses or sarcastic jibes. In one scene this trope is subverted, when after one of Ginger's speeches a more cynical chicken, Bunty, responds with an 'enlightened' look on her face "In all my years, I've never heard such a fantastic '''load of tripe'''!"

{{quote| '''Ginger:''' We either die free chickens, or die trying!<br />

* The ''[[SpongebobSpongeBob SquarePants]]'' episode "Band Geeks" parodies this when Squidward gives up in despair of his [[Zany Scheme]] to impress his high-school rival by getting his friends and neighbors to form a marching band, and Spongebob delivers the following speech after Squidward has walked out:

{{quote| '''Spongebob''': What kind of monsters are we? That poor creature came to us in his hour of need, and we failed him. Squidward's always been there for us when it was convenient for him. Evelyn, when your little Jimmy was trapped in a fire, who rescued him?<br />

'''Evelyn''': A fireman.<br />

'''Spongebob''': And Larry, when your heart gave out from all those tanning pills, who revived you?<br />

'''Larry''': Some guy in an ambulance.<br />

'''Spongebob''': Right! So, if we can all just pretend that Squidward was a fireman, or a guy in an ambulance, then I'm sure that we can all pull together and discover what it truly means to be in a marching band.<br />

'''Harold''': Yeah, for the fireman!<br />

* Towards the end of ''[[Teen Titans (Animationanimation)|Teen Titans]]'', Beast Boy has managed to avoid being captured by the Brotherhood of Evil, but the only apparent other "survivors" have rather lame powers and don't see the point in trying to fight back. He manages to rally everyone together to go save the day.

* Subverted in the 2008 ''[[Horton Hears a Who!]]'' where Horton tries to [[Shaming the Mob|Shame the mob]] with a rousing speech explaining why he is so devoted to protecting a speck on a clover which contains a microscopic community on it. At the end, even the Sour Kangaroo notes that the speech is moving, but immediately orders Horton bound and caged anyway.

{{quote| '''The Judge:''' ''The man in the hot pants speaks the truth. Case dismissed!''<br />

'''[[Asian Store Owner|Mr. Bang]]:''' ''But they rob my store!''<br />

{{quote| '''Zapp''': ''I'd like to make one final statement. Kif, come here and hold up the flag. And wave it a little, for God's sakes. My friends, you can take away a man's title and his uniform but you can never take away his integrity or his honour. Plus, it was mostly Kif's fault.''}}

* Optimus Primal delivers one at the end of ''[[Beast Machines (Animation)|Beast Machines]]'' right before facing Megatron's final onslaught.

* While in the [[What Do You Mean ItsIt's Not Heinous?|mall security holding cell]], ''[[Invader Zim]]'' notices an [[Air Vent Passageway|air vent on the ceiling]] and gives a rousing speech on how if all the inmates use teamwork, he can reach the vent {{spoiler|[[Bastardly Speech|and then he leaves them behind]]}}.

* ''[[Batman: theThe Brave And The Bold (Animation)|Batman the Brave And The Bold]]'': [[Aquaman (Comic Book)|Aquaman]]'s [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yE8C1WWixgc Rousing Song of Heroism] is a particularly [[Large Ham|hammy]] and [[Ear Worm|catchy]] version of this trope.

* [[Big Bad|Gaston]] does this to everyone in Belle's village near the end of ''[[Beauty and The Beast (Disney)|Beauty and Thethe Beast]]'' so that they will "kill the Beast!"