In his speech, Barack Obama was able to tie the historical legacy of what happened in Selma to both the trials and tribulations present in the United States today. In 1965, Martin Luther King Jr’s Christian Leadership Conference led by John Lewis and Hosea Williams, made a point to march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama to establish voting rights for African Americans. The voting act passed later in the year but not before an event referred to as “Bloody Sunday” occurred, where the 600 peaceful activists who were marching, were stopped on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, over the Alabama River, and greeted by signs indicative of the Ku Klux Klan, confederates, and authorities who terrorized and assaulted these people. These people were struck, assaulted, pummeled by the hooves of horses, violated with tear gas, etc. yet they remained peaceful and goal oriented. They did not fight back and the events that occurred were shown in the media developing a group of advocates who ended up helping the cause. Barack Obama gave his speech commemorating the 50th anniversary of this “Bloody Sunday” on that very bridge. He begins by honoring John Lewis and then details the abuse that John himself experienced on “Bloody Sunday” coupled with a doctor’s description of what tear gas can do to the body, increasing both the pathos and logos of his speech. He says that the “air was thick with doubt” which alluded to the tear gas that he also specified previously. He also evokes immediate ethos being
In 2004, Obama walked up to the podium at the Democratic National Convention as a political novelty. The speech he delivered established Obama as a natural leader and transformed him into a future presidential candidate. Rich in demonstrative rhetoric, its purpose was to unite the American people through nationalism. The exploration of his rhetoric and style throughout this paper will cement why the speech was beneficially identity transforming for Obama's political career.
In his speech, “Remarks by the President in a National Address to America’s Schoolchildren,” Obama effectively argues his claim, that kids should go to school and try very hard to succeed to schoolchildren around the U.S. He effectively argues his claim because he uses supporting details and stories of students that have undergone tough situations, but still overcame those obstacles to succeed and school. Also, he is trying to tell kids that they should do well in school to get a good job and make a difference. He also uses rhetorical appeals to help with the supporting details. One of supporting evidence that he brought up was that if someone wants to become something such as a doctor, or lawyer you will need a good education to do
The intended audience for this speech was young women who aspire to become a better woman independently. Even though the actual audience was young women, the place where she gave a speech was the best place to show the similarity between Michelle Obama and her intended audience. The school was “girls-only, inner-city, its pupils, of whom 20% are the children of refugees... 92% of whom are from a black or minority background”(Cadwalladr, 2009, para.9). She says, “ I want you to know that we have very much in common”(1:24). Then, “I did not raise with wealth or resources or any social standing to speak of, and I raised on the Southside of Chicago. That is the real part of Chicago”(1:50). She uses her personal statement to lose the gap between
On July 27th, 2004 Barack Obama gave a influential and significant speech that is remains to be talked about ten years later. This speech took place at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Obama, speaking on the side of most democrats, specified that the John Kerry/John Edwards duo would be the greatest selection to assist in leading America down a greater road. The speech ended in rounds of applause and was both praised and discussed all across America. He used pathos as a means of relating to the greater audience and touches their hearts.
President Barack Obama spoke his remarks at Howard University commencement ceremony for the class of 2016. This special moment in the speech is honoring people of color, especially African Americans and made history at this University, having the president to present his speech (Donnella). Obama explained how America was different when he graduated college and society is now accepting new cultures and backgrounds within today’s workforce and education. Obama wants the audience to take opportunities and learning new skills to expand their education.
Some examples of convoluted sentences from the text are “His father,” and “The people I meet.”
Move over, parents and teachers. Someone with even more authority wants to tell kids to work harder in school: the president of the United States of America. In 2009, in the first year of his presidency, Barack Obama opened the school year with a speech to students, asking them to take charge of their own education. His speech, which he filled with many anecdotes meant to establish credibility and create inspiration, sent students an important message about their education. However, Obama could have made his speech stronger if he had avoided several missteps in the content and delivery of his message.
The presidential inauguration is uniquely sacramental: the peaceful transition of power is representative of the strength that has made the United States the oldest democracy on Earth. Every 4 years, a new or incumbent president delivers this address to the nation, setting forth the principles that will guide the new administration, and uniting the nation under shared commonplaces. Each president is given the opportunity to establish themselves as distinct from the presidents before them. In the past decade, we have seen two unique presidents with two drastically different visions of America deliver their message to the United States of America. While both call upon shared national values and the unity of the nation under difficult circumstances, they differ in terms of inclusion and diversity within America. Both presidents deliver compelling arguments that encourage the American people to serve their country in diverse ways.
This inaugural speech marked the beginning of the second term of Barack Obama as president of the United States of America. It was delivered at United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. on January 21, 2013. The event followed the presidential election in the United States and it was very important all over the world, about a million of people gathered outside the Capitol to witness the president's words and millions more from around the world watched him on television (Staff). For first time, a president talked about same sex marriage and gay rights, he also talked about divisive issues such as reform of immigration policies, stopping climate change and preserving a social welfare safety net. Obama showed a progressive and liberal agenda, focused on equal rights and possibilities for all the citizens. The theme of the speech was “Faith in America's Future,” (Caldwell) and he successfully used various rhetorical techniques and resources to influence the audience.
In his State of the Union Address for 2016, Barack Obama uses logical and ethical arguments to emphasize shared ground rather than partisan disputes. He also taps into the audience’s desire to feel better about themselves and their country. By using humor and irony, Obama paints his opponents into corners, out of which it would require outrageous extremism to effectively squirm away. At its best, this approach demonstrates how much Americans actually have in common in a culture dominated by ideologically polarized cable-news channels, Facebook, and cultural tribes that increasingly live and socialize apart from one another. The president's technique throughout the speech is to frame issues through a rhetorical jujitsu to persuade his opponents,
President Obama, like all Presidents before him, delivered a farewell address to the United States on January 20, 2017. As he stepped down as President he was eloquent and it was as clear as ever that he is a master of oration. Obama will go down in history as the first Black President as well as a strong orator who had the ability to captivate an audience through his use of ethos, pathos and logos amongst other rhetorical devices. His farewell address is a perfect example of Obama’s mastery of discourse as it is chock full of oratorical devices. Obama’s message to the American people and to the rest of the world is that it is essential that we maintain a sense of what it means to have a democracy and that in order to maintain peace and
Former President Barack Obama performed a speech in response to a mass shooting that happened in a community college in Oregon. This speech included other gun related incidents which occurred during his time in office in 2015 regarding Umpqua Community College and Roseburg. After giving his condolences and love to those who felt loss in their hearts, Obama gave a powerful argument regarding gun control and how we, as Americans, should fight and strive for better gun laws. While Obama gave a moving speech, I could not help but feel it fell short in its argument while conducting a thorough critique. Obama appealed to his audience utilizing pathos and ethos with ease but fell short for those in the audience looking for logos or specific facts within his performance. I will be taking this opportunity to delve further into an analysis of this speech and both its heights and pitfalls.
At the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Michelle Obama the first lady at the time, was endorsing the democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton. Using her personal connection with the president and Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama creates a more personal speech. With her credibility as first lady, use of her family and her platform she lead as first lady, she persuades the audience to spread Hillary Clinton’s campaign message. Michelle Obama uses the rhetorical devices including, anaphora, several allusions, and imagery to strengthen her 3 appeals and persuade her audience.
Senator Obama is altering the language. Christians did not exist in the Old Testament story of Ezekiel, but Senator Obama is effectively connecting with every major religion. Simultaneously, he is reaching out to the secular world as well. Being cognizant that everyone does not actively practice a religious faith, Obama chooses stories that
Barrack Obama’s inauguration speech successfully executed crafty rhetoric to ensure our country that we will be under safe hands. The speech draws from ideas straight from the founding documents and Martin Luther King’s speech to establish ‘our’ goal to join together and take action on the many problems facing our country. As President Barrack Obama begins his speech, He refrains from using ‘me’, ‘myself’, and ‘I’ but instead ‘we’, ‘us’, and ‘together’ to establish ethos. He makes sure his audience feels at his level, and he at theirs. This way he connects to the audience, and in turn, aids his