This paper analyzes the 1990 speech of then, first lady of the United States Barbara Bush entitled “Choices and Change”. The various articles and in-text research reveal that this speech was a controversial speech. The bibliography references will encompass her life beginnings and strong family values. Analytical sources allow the writer to explore many controversial aspects of the 1990 speech. This paper will also describe examples of the excellent writing ability of Barbara Bush in the midst of controversy. It will cite critics of the speech that lend to the controversy. Barbara Bush Choices and Change Barabara Bush was born in 1925 in a suburban New York town. Having a seemingly happy childhood, she met George Bush when she was only 16 years old. They became engaged before she was 18 and married at age 19, right before George went to join the Navy. After the war, they made a home in Texas and she devoted much her time to raising her six children (one of which died in 1953). Her husband George built a business in oil while Barbara became the backbone of the family. …show more content…
“Barbara Bush was always an asset to her husband during his campaigns for public office.
Her friendly, forthright manner won her high marks from the voters and the press. As wife of the Vice President, she selected the promotion of literacy as her special cause. As First Lady, she called working for a more literate America the "most important issue we have." Involved with many organizations devoted to this cause, she became Honorary Chairman of the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy. A strong advocate of volunteerism, Mrs. Bush helped many causes--including the homeless, AIDS, the elderly, and school volunteer
programs.” (Black, 2009) She is a unique figure in American political history as the wife of one president and the mother of another. Her iconic presence, highlighted by her pearl white hair, Barbara Bush became one of the more popular first ladies of the 20th century. Who could imagine that at 16, they would meet someone that would lay the ground work for a storied life, a high profile career, and a place in the top 100 speeches in American history?! In 1990, Barbara Bush was the center on conflict at Wellesley College as she was invited to deliver its commencement address. Many students were outraged by the selection of Barbara Bush, who many felt that was not a good role model for various reasons. For one, she dropped out of college, although to marry, but her marriage to George Bush was the main reason for the protest. The students felt that her many accomplishments were the result of being married to him. A 1990 New York Times article reports that “The 150 students, in a petition presented to Dr. Keohane last month, said: ''Wellesley teaches that we will be rewarded on the basis of our own merit, not on that of a spouse. To honor Barbara Bush as a commencement speaker is to honor a woman who has gained recognition through the achievements of her husband, which contravenes what we have been taught over the last four years at Wellesley.'' (Butterfield, 1990) Nonetheless, Barbara Bush did go on to deliver her speech. With her speech being under fire before it ever began, she had to address an audience that contained negative views and had to reach into her bag of rhetorical devices. She used her gift of public speaking that illustrated her skillful body language and appropriate hand gestures. She also used a calm tone of voice that was easily received. Barbara Bush responded overall to the critics and protestors with a speech that emphasized family values and the importance of maintaining a strong foundation at home within your own house. The proofs in her words were true to her life. When she dropped out of college, it was to raise her family and to become a supportive wife to her husband. Although her most accomplishments were a result of being married to George Bush, she also championed her own causes along the as referenced on firstladies.org; “bringing national attention to, and help eradicate illiteracy in America, bringing national attention to the needs of indigent and homeless families, and being the inside advocate for the President's signing of the Hate Crimes Statistics Act and invited the first openly gay, and lesbian citizens to the presidential signing ceremony.”(National First Ladies’ Library and Historic Site) Furthermore, in the beginning of her speech, she captures the attention of her audience by establishing a relationship with the audience with good character and using the appeal of the audience’s pathos by thanking Wellesley for inviting her, knowing that she wasn’t the first choice. She continued her speech by further appealing to the audience by praising the school spirit by mentioning school colors and traditions. She was successful in turning a potentially negative event into an inspiring commencement address using ethos to address any question of her character and a humorous story telling style as a rhetorical device to persuade the audience to accept her as a worthy choice for this special occasion. “Now I know your first choice for today was Alice Walker, known for The Color Purple," Bush, dressed in a collegiate gown, told the senior class. ''Instead you got me, known for the color of my hair!"(Stecklow, 1990) She did an excellent job in knowing her audience and tailoring her speech to relate to their issues. Telling stories about mermaids, babysitting, children, and joking about husband’s all allowed for her gain favor and applauses from this group of women at Wellesley. Speeches with this type of story-telling style, is typical in situations of controversy. Barbara Bush was dynamic in delivering this well-written rhetorical speech that encompassed answers to the controversial nature of her invitation that was displayed by the students. She talked about choices, which every student in attendance must make for their future. A controversial choice to invite a woman who defines herself through a wedding ring was apparent with the students. However, Barbara Bush stated in her speech that she married George Bush because he made her laugh. She emphasized the importance of family and children, but in the end she was masterful in concluding her speech with the choice of realizing personal dreams and not society’s dream. “Confronting the controversy over whether she was chosen to speak because of whom she married, Mrs. Bush urged the all-woman graduating class to "respect difference [and] be compassionate" --and to remember there is more to life than a job. Then she won their hearts by suggesting that one day someone in the audience might follow in her footsteps as the president's spouse. "And I wish him well," she added, to an approving roar.”(Clift, 1990) It was important for the women on Wellesley to walk away from that commencement speech with a sense of pride for their school and a newly defined respect and admiration of Barbara Bush, as many would argue they were able to do so. In any event, it was a great honor for those students to be a part of an historic event that is forever characterize as one of the top 100 Rhetorical speeches.
After the Watergate Scandal in 1972, the House Judiciary Committee needed to decide whether or not to start the process of impeaching President Nixon. As a new member of the committee, it was Barbara Jordan’s job to convince everyone else to vote for the impeachment of Nixon. In Jordan’s speech, pathos is effectively used to persuade the House Judiciary Committee to impeach President Nixon. Through the use of rhetorical questions, repetition, first person pronouns, and dramatic imagery Jordan impacts her audience’s opinion on the impeachment of Nixon.
Mrs. Barbara Allen Barrett, age 39, was previously married to Michael John Reed who she had two offspring with, Catherine Reed, 16, who attends Givenchy Academy and Todd Michael Reed, 18, who attends Stanford. Barbara and Michael were married for 9 years before they decided to get a divorce. She met John Walker Barrett 2 years after her separation at a functions for a garden.
On January 12, 1780, Abigail Adams, former First Lady, wrote to her son, John Quincy Adams, while he was abroad with his father and brother. Adams addressed to her son and future President to maintain his spirit to learn and grow. She expressed his purpose through her motherly tone, various religious and historical allusions, use of logos, rhetorical question with simple syntax and use of metaphors.
Politics is dirty and competitive and has not changed between 1879 and 2018. It is a complex system of jargon, charm, facts, and lies. Mark Twain’s “The Presidential Candidate” satirically expresses the essence of both old-world and modern politics as a presidential candidate who blatantly tells the truth of his wrongdoings. As a politician, one must be an open book. Their life must be truthfully written on the pages for the readers to analyze and evaluate their credibility as leaders. “The Presidential Candidate” resonates both in 1879 and 2018 with his use of humor, use of diction and use of subtlety.
To summarize this analysis, Hillary Clinton shows us how as we unite, the stronger our bond is. She uses clever ways to show this action. Though she did not win this presidential election, she is still loved by many. She helped herself because of the way she wrote and persuaded people to join her. Using rhetorical appeals
Barbara was born into a comfortable home in New York, New York. She had a middle class up bringing and both her mother and father came from distinguished families. They also were probably well off because of her fathers great success in business. Barbara's father Maurice was at some point President of the American Jewish Committee as well as a Philanthropist, a baker and a publisher. He published many magazines one of which was The Nation. Which he purchased as it was going bankrupt in 1935. Barbara's grandfather Henry Morgenthau Sr., Maurice's father, worked and served as an ambassador to Turkey, and her uncle Henry Morgenthau Jr., Maurice's brother, was Secretary of the Treasury for President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Barbara had two sister's Josephine and Anne, and their family had seven servants.
Though Kennedy and Clinton addressed their audiences nearly thirty-two years apart, each rhetor faced a common rhetorical barrier – an American populace too heavily focused on the personalities within each respective presidential election rather than the true issues confronting the United States. To overcome that barrier, both Kennedy and Clinton utilize definitional strategies – in the form of association – as well as language strategies –specifically, historical allusions. Whether or not the speeches directly correlate with both candidates winning their presidential elections does not concern the examination; this paper observes how exactly the rhetorical devices used served to dissolve the barriers between the rhetor and the intended audience.
Overall, Hillary Rodham Clinton gave a convincing speech on women’s rights at the U.N. World Conference by using the key rhetorical techniques ethos, pathos, logos, and anaphora’s. The use of these techniques helped the audience believe in the cause of which Clinton was speaking about, sympathize for situations females were being put through, and working to strive towards equal rights for everyone. Clinton used the same stance throughout her speech and raised her voice at points in her speech that needed
Hillary Rodham Clinton is a well-recognized woman in the United States. Her great contribution as Secretary of State impacted people’s lives. One of many remarkable speeches Clinton gave was the “The Women Rights Speech” at the 4th World Conference on Women Plenary Session, where she used strong words and emotions to appeal to the audience. Even though the speech talked about women's rights, she wanted everyone, including men and children, to listen and take action. Her use of ethos, logos and pathos throughout the speech helped people understand women live in a world where they suffer discrimination, and she proposes solutions to solve the issue.
Bill Clinton known as William Jefferson Blythe III was born on August 19, 1946 in Hope, Arkansas. His mother's name was Virginia Cassidy and his father was William Jefferson Blythe. Bill Clinton never got to meet his biological father due to the fact that he died in an accident three months before he was born. Bill Clinton was taught to read at a very early age by his grandma, Edith Cassidy who practically raised him. In 1950 Bill Clinton’s mom married Roger Clinton who was a car dealer and an abusive alcoholic, when Bill Clinton was fifteen; his mother divorce Roger Clinton then remarried him again. Has a young boy he was very religious to the point where he went to church on a regular basis and when he became an adult he was a member of a Baptist church. He became infatuated with politics when he was a teenager; he won student elections in high school as well as at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. where he graduated from and later on won a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford University. When he graduated from Yale Law School Bill Clinton taught law at the University of Arkansas for a short amount of time.
George H. W. Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts on June 12, 1924. Bush was born into a wealthy family. His parents were Prescott Sheldon Bush and Dorothy Walker Bush. His family moved to Greenwich, Connecticut, when he was a young boy. Bush family was rich and his parents raised their children to be modest. Bush father was an investment banker who later became a republican senator from Connecticut, serving from 1952- 1963.("George Herbert Walker Bush pg, 20") As a teenager bush attend Philips Academy Andover, a boarding school in Massachusetts. Bush was also into sport a lot. when he was in academy he was a captain for baseball and soccer team. Bush graduated high school in 1942.
“I am being educated finally” (Barbara Jordan). Barbara Jordan’s Becoming Educated is an autobiography in which her use of rhetorical strategies shows specific details of her college life to make her message clear on how she becomes educated, and the struggles of gaining reasoning skills.
Barbara Jordan was a truly unique woman, seasoned politician, and a friendly and gregarious woman that spent her lively hood helping Texas communities. Barbara proved the point that it only takes one person to be a voice for the people, even against the most powerful issues she faced. She was not only influential but also inspiring to most people that felt lucky to know her, or even the ones who had simply just heard of her all of her great achievements. Barbara Jordan fought and eventually prospered against racial barriers and even over the own troubles she faced having a physical disability. Jordan's influence on Texas communities was shown in how she rallied minorities, and inspired ALL Texans to succeed! A single women, helped break down
When her husband, Barack Obama, ran for president and was elected, she began to advocate for support of military families and solving child obesity. As the First Lady of the United States, she became very influential and a popular role model. She became very well known for her work with children and getting them more physically active and healthier. She has also volunteered at homeless shelters and soup kitchens, and has spoken at public schools to teach children the importance of education. Becoming First Lady gave Michelle many opportunities to spread her ideas and influence
There has been much scholarship on the development of the role of president of the United States over the years, yet there has been relatively little scholarship on the role of the president’s wife: the first lady. C-SPAN’s original series First Ladies: Influence and Image seeks to remedy this historical overlook by spending a significant amount of time exploring the legacies of first ladies over the course of 44 administrations (First Ladies: Historical Perspectives). Though the first ladies might traditionally be under-acknowledged by scholars, these women nevertheless played crucial roles during their husbands’ administrations. Indeed, the modern first lady has the power to sway the public opinion of the president, influence the American