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Rhetorical Analysis Of A More Perfect Union

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Former president Barack Obama, in order to regain voters after a huge controversy during his 2008 presidential campaign regarding things his pastor said used numerous rhetorical strategies to persuade his voters. Obama had to persuade his voters to stick with him. Obama used repetition, allusion and many others to get his point across to the audience. In his speech in which he is talking on racism and cultural differences he uses repetition to further emphasize his point. He talks about wanting a “more just, more equal, more free … America.”(Obama “A More Perfect Union”) Obama is emphasizing that he wants an America that is better for everyone and how to achieve an America that is more just, equal, and free.The point Obama is trying to accentuate is that he wants a better …show more content…

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. In Obama’s “ A More Perfect Union” speech he uses rhetorical strategies.Obama is acknowledging the current state of America, the good and the bad and how we could all help to make it better. He uses repetition, allusion, and many more to convince the American people that if they want a better America for everyone to vote for

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He briefly addresses the issues he finds with racism, and focusing on the important main goal of unity in America. Obama stated many things in his speech, which Clark states related to four rhetorical strategies: The power of allusion, parallelism, the “two-ness” of texture, and autobiography. Therefore, making his speech very influential to Obama getting his point across. Before analyzing Obama’s speech, Clark stated a very famous paragraph that was written by W.E.B DuBois.

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Beginning on January 8, 1790, the State of the Union Address has performed as one of the most informative and effective ways for the President of the United States to address members of congress with future plans, past reflections, and current achievements. The State of the Union address for 2018 was given on January 30 by President Donald J Trump. In every speech given a strong use of some sort of rhetorical appeal is used, whether it be ethos, pathos, logos, or multiple. Focusing on the starting portion of President Trump's Union Address he begins to describe the achievements of his administration over the year that he has been in office. When defining these successes he also takes the time to acknowledge several people who have showed heroism

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The Rhetorical Elements of Barack Obama’s Speech President Obama uses rhetorical appeals throughout his speech. These rhetorical appeals help prove that each an every student should try their best in school. President Obama stated in his 2009 “Address to America’s Schoolchildren” that each student must take responsibility for his or her own education. President Obama uses many examples of ethos, logos, and pathos in his speech. In Obama’s 2009 “Address to America’s Schoolchildren” he has examples of ethos.

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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.

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It was important that Bush use rhetorical appeals such as ethos, pathos, and logos in his address to the nation. He also needed to use the hope and history on which America was built on to unite the

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Furthermore past leaders have used rhetoric in their quest for power. Rhetoric is defined as “The art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing”(Oxford dictionary). Orators and compelling leaders use rhetoric to influence their audience. Marc Antony in “The tragedy of Julius Caesar” uses rhetoric beautifully to sway the Romans from Brutus’s side to his. “You all did see that on the Lupercal.

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Furthermore, President Obama’s first inaugural speech contained patriotism, allusions, and anaphoras to appeal to the effect of pathos. His diction helps to persuade his audience that he is understanding and emotionally connected to the situation that America has been in and the importance of sticking to the ideas that our founding fathers have implemented thus far in America’s

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He thanks god for the way America was. George Washington and Barack Obama had great speeches. They both focused on different

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At the beginning of his speech, he conveys emotion through telling his own story and putting the audience in his shoes. He states “On the one hand he is born in the shadow of the stars and stripes and he is assured it represents a nation which has never lost a war. He pledges allegiance to that flag which guarantees "liberty and justice for all. " He is part of a country in which anyone can become President, and so forth”. This shows the audience how African American children feel when living in a country made on the premise of equality, but feeling anything but equal to their Caucasian peers.

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In Thomas Jefferson’s “Declaration of Independence,” he uses rhetorical devices to convey his purpose which is to say that colonies have decided to break their bond with the King and Great Britain and to explain their reasoning. One of the devices used the most to convey his purpose was parallelism. Jefferson also uses repetition to make his reasons clear. Some might think that his use of restatement further makes his points clear; however, they are wrong. Jefferson uses rhetorical devices like parallelism and repetition to explain the reasonings of the Colonists decision to break their bonds with the King and Britain.

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In the 1960s the African Americans were freed, but did they really have all the rights they were promised? Racial conflicts were everywhere. Lyndon B. Johnson was current president and was trying to encourage congress to pass a bill called The Voting Rights Act. To influence the vote he gave the speech “We Shall Overcome.” In “We Shall Overcome” President Lyndon Johnson used ethos, pathos, logos, and other rhetorical devices such as allusions, repetition and appeals to authority to persuade congress to pass the act.

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These devices create a speech that is clear to the audience, relatable to a wide variety of people, and develop strong pathos. It is because of his successful and abundant use of rhetoric that Obama’s speech turned him from an Illinois Senator into a rising star with a presidential

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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.).

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To achieve this, he used rhetorical strategies such as appeal to pathos and repetition. His passionate tone flowed through these strategies, increasing their persuasive power on the people and encouraging them to follow/listen to his message on racial injustice. While pathos elicits an emotional response from the audience to make them more accepting of King’s ideas, repetition structures the speech and emphasizes key ideas for the audience to take away from listening. These two techniques played a crucial role in furthering his purpose and in provoking a powerful response from the audience that made this speech memorable and awe-inspiring. To this day, King’s speech remains one of the most famous and influential speeches in

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His speech is similar to the one he gave in 2008 and contains repetition and conveys his political views. We notice how Obama opens his sentence with the same words such as: “We want”, “You’ll hear” and “That’s”. His speech is followed by the ideas about the USA, Americans or what the future holds for them. The first rhetorical device used by Barack Obama in his speech is an Anaphora. He starts his sentences with the same lines.

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