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Cameron Pica
Professor Babcock
English 137H Rhetoric and Civic Life
08 October 2017
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September 11, 2001 was a clear Tuesday morning, at 8:45 AM an American Airlines jet

crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center in New York City, the tallest buildings in

the city. Moments later another jet crashed into the second tower making it clear that America

was under attack. Shortly after the Twin Towers in New York City were attacked United Airlines

Flight 93 was hijacked and under attack, however heroic passengers stopped the terrorist who

had taken over the plane and crashed it into a field in rural Pennsylvania before they could reach

their target. Throughout history devastating events such as 9/11 have occurred and taken time to

recover from. Nearly 3,000 people had died and over 6,000 were injured, as many lost their

brothers, sisters, wives, husbands, friends and loved ones. There is no better way to respect and

bring a country back together after such devastation than building a monument to honor those

who had lost their lives. The 9/11 memorial in New York City has become a significant part of

not only the City of New York, but also the United States. People visit the monument every day

with different personal connections to reflect on this tragic event. Comparatively the Flight 93

memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania is part of a much smaller community but still holds

strong personal connections to the family and friends of those who lost their lives on that

catastrophic day. While the 9/11 Memorial in New York City and the Flight 93 Memorial in

Shanksville, Pennsylvania differ in some respects, both are powerful monuments that mean so

much more to Americans than just a physical object or place. They provide a deeper emotional

connection and share a common goal to honor those who had lost their lives on 9/11.

Understanding the context of both memorials is crucial for creating a connection with

visitors. The 9/11 Memorial in New York City is two square holes in the foundation of the

original towers surrounded by hundreds of trees (Home). The trees were planted around the

memorial to separate the memorial from the city and show that the nation can regrow and
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recover. The trees chosen were swamp white oaks that will never grow to be identical (Home).

These trees represent individuals and how everyone is different but in the end, we can all recover

from anything. On the memorial, the names of every person who lost their life that day is

engraved into the marble stone bordering the holes. A waterfall flows down the four sides into

the center where there is a big reflecting pool that is an acre in size (Design). The waterfall,

which is the largest man made waterfall in North America, symbolizes the healing after the

trauma and gives the memorial a calm spiritual feeling when you visit. The waterfall is a symbol

to show how we can recover from anything. The memorial lies in the heart of the Financial

District in New York City, an area one would expect to be loud and flowing with hundreds of

people at all hours but it is silent and peaceful. The design of the memorial was created as a

space separate from the rest of the city, a space that exonerated visitors from the hustle and

bustle. However, it is not the only commemorating memorial honoring the fallen heroes of the

September 11th attacks, there are many honorary sites and memorials including the Flight 93

memorial.

The Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania is a two-hundred-and-

seventy-foot strip of paved black granite showing the flight path of the United Airlines Flight 93

that was hijacked on September 11, 2011 en route from Newark, New Jersey to San Francisco,

California (Flight). On the path, there are forty white granite slabs with all forty heroes’ names

on each slab. Each individual eight-foot-tall slap resembles each passenger and where they sat on

the flight (Flight). Finally, at the end of the path there is a glass wall with the quote “A Common

Field one day, A Field of Honor Forever” that overlooks the impact site to where flowers are

planted and the remaining damaged hemlock trees stand. The memorial is surrounded by open

fields, farm land, and the sound of nature and wildlife. The final memorial was completed and
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dedicated to the victims of the attack on the 10-year anniversary, September 11, 2011. A day that

is forever remembered and honored across the United States. Along with the 9/11 Memorial the

Flight 93 Memorial has become a shared enterprise among Americans and those of other

countries and communities who lost loves, friends and family on that day. September 11, 2001

influenced our country and many still grieve on this day every year. The cleaning up and design

of the memorials really brought communities and the nation together after such a low point in

time sharing one goal and ultimate desire to stand together in unity.

The emotional appeal of both memorials is crucial in their effectiveness. Both

monuments have pathos that affect tourists, loved ones, and people in their communities in

several different ways. The 9/11 Memorial in New York City and the Flight 93 Memorial are

essentially burial grounds of the innocent people who lost their lives on that tragic day. Families

and friends look to the monuments as sorrowful places to go and pay their respect and honor the

lives of those they lost. The community of New York City looks to the memorial with emotions

that many tourists cannot fathom. A city that was struck with devastation came together to honor

the lives of their neighbors. In contrast tourists and people of the community, view the 9/11

memorial as a place to honor the victims in silence and respect the area as a place of mourning,

while visitors of the Flight 93 Memorial view the memorial as a heroic site and feel a sense of

pride toward the memorial and heroes that fought to take down the hijackers.

Both these memorials were effective with their Kairos. The architects of both memorials

set a completion deadline of September 11, 2011 the 10-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

Every year on September 11th following the attacks we reflected on what happened and fight to

uphold the legacy and freedom of the United States. The one thing the country had to do to

relieve the pain and show that we stand tall again was honor the lives of those we lost and stand
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strong with one another. It was important to finish the memorials within 10 years because it

shows that a decade has passed since the attack and the day will never be forgotten as honor and

respect are continually paid to the heroes of 9/11, the fire fighters, police officers, citizens

fighting to save lives and passengers aboard Flight 93 who took down the hijackers.

However, this was not an easy task for those involved in constructing the memorials, the

9/11 Memorial in New York City was behind on the project. In 2011, they had to accelerate

work to meet the deadline (Home). The Flight 93 memorial had an original design in 2005

called the Tower of Voices containing 40 wind chimes to appeal to visitor’s emotions through

the sound of the chimes (Leopold). They wanted to align the land with a circular path of red

maple trees to symbolize recovery, but this became controversial saying a red crescent looks like

an Islamic crescent. Therefore, they had to redesign the memorial and forego the original design

of the crescent. They still plan to build the tower of voices by 2018 (Leopold). This represents

the voices of the 40 passengers that will be heard forever that fought back against the hijackers.

The location of the memorials plays a big part in the civic infrastructure behind the

memorials. The 9/11 Memorial in New York City is in the exact location of Ground Zero and the

Flight 93 memorial is in the exact location of the planes crash landing therefore the only logical

thing to do was put both memorials in the exact burial ground of these victims and hero’s. The

Flight 93 Memorial also honors the victims as the stones are laid out in the order in which each

person sat on the plane (Flight). This adds a much deeper meaning and support to the memorials

effectiveness. Many families who had lost a loved one in New York City lived close to where

they had lost their loved one, while families who had lost loved ones on Flight 93 lived farther

from the memorial and do not get to visit it as much. Additionally, the location of the memorials

played a major rule in terms of funding. The 9/11 Memorial in New York City brought the
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community together to fund the project much different than the Flight 93 Memorial in

Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The 9/11 Memorial was mainly funded by government agencies and

private donations from individuals throughout the city (Home). It was much easier for such a big

city that was directly affected by the attack to find funding compared to the Flight 93 Memorial

located in a rural area. The funding for the Flight 93 Memorial came from the government and

the Flight 93 National Memorial Act, which established the site as the 386th national park

(Leopold).

Ultimately September 11, 2001 will be remembered for as long as the Memorials stand

and the citizens of the United States honor those who lost their lives. Both the 9/11 Memorial in

New York City and the Flight 93 Memorial have a much deeper meaning connecting with

people’s emotions through their location, context, and timing. When all is said and done these

powerful memorials will continue to honor the victims and heroes that lost their lives on

September 11, 2001 and will continue to civically bring people together every day having a

lasting effect on the country for as long as they stand.

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Works Cited

“Design Overview.” National September 11 Memorial & Museum,

www.911memorial.org/design-overview.

“Flight 93 National Memorial (U.S. National Park Service).” National Parks Service, U.S.
Department of the Interior, www.nps.gov/flni/index.htm.

History.com Staff. “9/11 Attacks.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 2010,

www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks.

“Home | National September 11 Memorial & Museum.” Home | National September 11

Memorial & Museum, www.911memorial.org/.

Leopold, Todd. “The making of a memorial: Reshaping ground zero.” CNN, Cable News
Network, 1 Sept. 2011, www.cnn.com/2011/US/08/31/911.memorial/index.html.
Accessed 28 Sept. 2017.

“$700 Million and Counting: 9/11 Museum Opens With Money Worries.” NBCNews.com,
NBCUniversal News Group, 18 May 2014, www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/700-
million-counting-9-11-museum-opens-money-worries-n106536.

Johnson, Kirk. “As 9/11 Cleanup Moves Inside, Residents Battle With Emotions.” The New York
Times, The New York Times, 30 June 2002, www.nytimes.com/2002/07/01/nyregion/as-
9-11-cleanup-moves-inside-residents-battle-with-emotions.html?mcubz=1.

“Questions about the Design.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior,
www.nps.gov/flni/learn/management/designquestions.htm.