Worksheet: Helen Keller’s Undelivered Speech on Women’s Suffrage, 1913

Name: _______________________________________ 
Period: ________ 
Date: __________

Follow this link to the digital Helen Keller Archive: “Speech written by Helen Keller regarding women’s suffrage and the freedom of men and women March 3, 1913.” Read the speech and answer the questions below.

Sourcing

When was this speech written? What additional information is provided in the handwritten notes on the speech?

Close Reading

What is Helen Keller’s opinion of women’s suffrage? What is the tone of her speech?

Identify and summarize the two most important arguments made in this speech.

Contextualization

What other problems does Keller link to the struggle for suffrage? What does she believe suffrage can do to address those problems?

What unfamiliar names, events, or ideas does Keller refer to in her speech? What topics would you need to learn more about in order to more fully understand her letter? Consult your teacher to find additional information.

Rhetoric and Analysis

Choose two passages in the text you find compelling and explain why you chose them.

Identify one rhetorical device used in the letter. How does Keller use it to persuade her audience?