President Jimmy Carter's televised address on energy, July 15, 1979, illustrates the principle that rhetoric serves as a transformer, taking issues involving incompatible and insatiable demands and converting them to forms amenable to solutions. The address depicted three distinct yet related scenes: (1) the immediate scene of the energy crisis; (2) the political scene of Carter's role efficacy, and more generally, the responsibility of government; and (3) a vast scene of national values and identity. Carter attempted to unite each of these units into an explanatory whole that would set the conditions necessary for concrete action to take place. The effect of the address was generally positive, as it was heard by an estimated 100 million people, and poll results indicated a rise in Carter's approval rating. While the address failed to move Congress toward passing an energy program, it succeeded as the first step on Carter's ascent in public opinion. (DF)