During a funeral for Reverend Clementa Pinckney, a Charleston shooting victim, President Obama delivered an influential eulogy. This eulogy turned out to be so powerful that it traveled throughout the internet and became known as one of Obama’s best speeches from the duration of his presidency. The speech resonated so well with many citizens because of its relatable content and connections to passionate issues in today’s society. The delivery of the eulogy played a gigantic part in its effectiveness to Americans as well. President Obama’s eulogy contained beyond relatable content and various connections to the issues racking society’s bones today.
Americans were seeking for a president who promised hope and change. Regardless of the ethnicity, culture, and economic power Barack Obama managed to give Americans a reason to believe in themselves; however, his promise never came true. Barack Obama main idea in his speech “A More Perfect Union” is on America’s racial history to awaken stubborn minds on the importance of unity and hope. Therefore, he uses the Preamble of the United States Constitution, “[w]e the people, to form a more perfect nation [ and then he finishes the sentence by] it was stained by the nation’s original sin of slavery… to convey the message in a patriotic and white friendly way about racial injustices” (qtd.in Barack Obama).
President Barack Obama, the first African American President in the United States of America. He made history. But, he did not stop there. President Barack Obama honored other history maker Rosa Parks with a statue in the National Statuary Hall of the United States Capitol building. While dedicating the statue to Rosa Parks, former President Barack Obama used many rhetorical devices in his speech to convey his message, using allusions, repetition, and anthesis to convey conviction.
He later says that the journey is an incomplete one. This too is similar to what Lincoln and Kennedy did in their speeches. Lincoln had “high hope” and Kennedy spoke about progressiveness as a nation. Obama rarely used the words you and I, but utilized "we" and "we the people". This goes to show that he thinks that there is no individual person, but we are one nation and must stay united.
In his 2004 DNC Keynote Address, Barack Obama asserts that the U.S has common underlying beliefs and goals which unite it. He talks about the importance of looking out for fellow Americans as a means of protecting the rights and opportunities of the masses. While Obama’s vision of community and brotherhood in America appeals to a broad audience in theory, changes which would bring about such a society remain divisive and controversial. Obama proposes that “alongside our famous individualism, there's another ingredient in the American saga….. A belief that we are connected as one people.”
Obama’s use of ethos and pathos in his “A More Perfect Union” speech further helps to persuade his voters to stick with him because he does not have the same views as Reverend Wright. It gives some context as to why some African-Americans feel the way they do towards the government and other races. In his speech Obama also uses irony by noting the old truism that the “most segregated hour in American life occurs on sunday morning” meaning that on a day that's supposed to be dedicated to love and God, the American people are still segregated and racially divided whether it be Black and White or Latino and Asian(Obama). The combined use of ethos, pathos, and irony strengthen Obama's message of unity and equality.
The 44th and first African American President, Barack Obama, in his Inaugural Address, promotes a call to action. Obama’s purpose is to express his gratitude for his opportunity to become president and discuss his plans for economic advancement. In order to reach the American people of the U.S., Obama adopts a serious and thought-provoking tone to urge them to support his plans for advancement. During this time of economic crisis, Obama clearly conveys to the American people through his use of metaphor, allusion, and anaphora, that it is time to take a stand and make a change in America.
In order to attain this goal, Obama attempted to speak to every demographic, “It’s the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled.” This connected him with not just one person, but the entire country. Although, Obama stood as a candidate, he portrayed himself and the citizens as “one people” that “will begin the next chapter in America’s story.” Consequently, this depicted the nation; a nation that will make change united and not
It is a unique technique to point out all the devices he said, to be able to focus on this specific speech and actually listen and wrap your head around everything Barack Obama said is an educational process. Barack Obama was of course elected as President of the United States in November of 2008, “A More Perfect Union” speech convinced the undecided voters to believe in him and trust him as the nation’s President, someone they trust that will be able to run their country and take care of the nation as one, someone who will address these type of conflicts made and that is why candidate Barack Obama addressed what he needed to address during this
In his eulogy for his friend John McCain, President Barack Obama underlined what a fantastic friend John was and how much they respected one another despite holding different political views. According to Barack Obama, not only was McCain an outstanding leader, he was also a wonderful friend. The fundamental objective of Barack Obama's address was not only to pay tribute to John McCain, but also to honor him as a person and a leader, and to showcase both his public and private performances throughout his political career. Throughout his speech, Obama utilized rhetorical appeal, especially ethos and pathos, anaphora as well as personal aspects to highlight John McCain's great accomplishments to society and draw countless parallels between
Near the end of the speech Obama repeats the line “are we a nation,” to question what kind of country is America when the situation calls for it. The two possible action Obama provide are to either callously turn their back on the illegal immigrant or to do what is right for both the immigrants and themselves. America’s responsibility for it following generation that their future will not be jeopardized due to the decision made now. These decisions, will determine whether or not America will act on fabled fear and make a grave mistake. Obama again uses repetition as he repeats the line “we are” this time to unify and give a sense of comradely between the citizens and the illegal immigrants.
Obama Speech On March 18, 2008, former United States president Barack Obama made a statement to clarify the meaning and the truth behind the statements made by his pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright. During this time in America, many people felt racism was very much alive in society and hoped that voting for a black president would be a major step to resolving this ongoing problem. Yet the reverends comments seem to prove to people across the country that racism was not only still existing, but that the possibly elected African American president was a racist. Using plain folk, Barack Obama was able to educate people on the truth of his views by making Americans very engaged through incorporation of known events into his ideas, making people
Barack Obama’s win for President in 2009 was a historical moment for the United States. His inaugural speech was much anticipated, because this was going to set the tone for his presidency. His speech told the American people that improving the economy is one of his priorities, but there were also other areas he would like to improve like healthcare and the education system. This was a speech that was meant to persuade the American public to take action for them to rise as a nation again, and for them to put their trust into him. His message addressed a couple of specific points like his gratefulness to the American people, the different crises America is facing, how America will overcome these crises, replying to his cynics, addressing the world, and then he reminded America again to be brave like they’ve always been to overcome the hard times (5 Speechwriting Lessons from Obama's Inaugural Speech, (n.d.).
Purv Chauhan Jack Geist English 108 February 16, 2018 Barack Obama victory speech Rhetorical Analysis “If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible - tonight is your answer.” (Obama, 2008). Barack Obama was elected president on Nov 5, 2008. He argues in his speech that whatever was going on in the country, it is going to change, it was a dawn of a new beginning.
Rhetorical Analysis of Obama’s Victory Speech Barack Obama was re-elected as the president of the US on November 6, 2012 from Chicago, Illinois. This paper will throw light and analyse various elements Barrack Obama is using to portray his political ideology to audiences through his speech. I intend to focus on the rhetorical effects of the speech. By using various form of rhetorical tools such as Tautology or Anaphora, President Obama gives a speech which focuses on the idea of American life such as the American dream, American promise and the future.
