"Yes We Can" Rhetorical Analysis Of Obama's Victory Presidential Speech In 2008. Ahmed Negmeldin Abdeltawwab University Of Science And Technology, Zewail City. "Our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand."(EternalMedia, 2008) Those words are from Obama's aspiring, and emotional speech. Following the victory establishing trust and gathering all the factions of the citizens around the president was a necessity. In his home city Chicago Obama gave his victory speech that was a great sign to express his loyalty to his people and to the Americans as a metaphor. (240,000 pack Grant Park for election rally, 2008 ) Winning the election was the big event and the main reason His goal was to stimulate the feeling of loving the country in order to let people unite and act according to Obama's vision of change. He established strong feeling of honor of being American through telling short stories about troubles that United States managed to overcome. His language was specific and served the pathos appeal. For instance using "thriving" and "suffering" as two opposite words to describe the last financial crisis. Obama also used the story of Ann Nixon Cooper to create an image of the changing history that can touch people's heart. He started with detailed description of the obstacles she faced through her life. Actually he used the term "color of her skin" instead of "black" that show how carful Obama was to choose his words. Speaking about the history that Ann lived through "The heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can." He used again opposites to correlate between hard times and the need of change. The story of Ann inspired him to talk about his daughter and the new generation; he used every small detail to push the audience emotionally towards believing in his There were 21 months for Obama to convince Americans and he succeeded at that night. The victory night was absolutely not the right time to give a speech that appeal to logos and that what Obama done. The only claim he made came in the beginning and he even didn't support it with evidences "we know the government can't solve every problem." When did the public agree on that? However, Obama was clever to hide that claim in the next sentence by expressing his intention to be honest and share the challenges with the public. Obama mentioned some historical facts for the sake of gaining people sympathy then he could state his vision. For instance the Lincoln quote that Obama used he didn’t build an argument based on it. He wanted to prove that United States could change so he told the anecdote of Ann Nixon. Obama used that anecdote without falling into the cherry picking fallacy as he told by relating to the case of all Americans at that time. The whole speech was almost empty of any rational thinking triggers and that was the perfect case for a victory
The purpose of an “inaugural address” is to inform the people of his or her intentions as a leader. Two of the most prominent inaugural addresses throughout history are Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s and Barack Obama’s. Franklin Roosevelt’s inaugural address stands the test of time because it gave the American people hope that they may overcome the terrible Great Depression. Similarly, Barack Obama’s address is well known because it inspired millions that we will be lifted out of economic crisis, but it was also remembered as the first inaugural address from an African American president. The inauguration speeches of Franklin Roosevelt and Barack Obama use the rhetorical devices parallelism, allusions, and emotive language to convey their messages
From his extremely vivid imagery at the beginning to his conclusion that America plans to seek a solution with Russia and other nations, the president’s flow from using pathos to logos to ethos made his speech very effective and compelling. His argument was backed up and supported all through out his speech, which helped his audience believe that what he was saying is true and important. However, his speech would have been nothing without the implication and opinion that America is the strongest nation in the world. Although this point is debatable, it is our duty to help other nations. We definitely do an excellent job at helping other nations and always having their best interests at heart. I believe this was the main goal for Obama’s speech; a plan to protect the United States. The use of logos, ethos and pathos just helped his speech to be more persuasive and
On November 2, 2004, President George W. Bush was nominated and elected for his second and final term of presidency. Throughout the course of his term, a vast amount of controversy revolved around the actions of President Bush. Some of the main matters that were significant during his first presidency were the issues of abortion, pro-choice versus pro-life, and AIDS, which led to a fluctuation in his popularity with the masses. However, even with these issues, the unforgettable tragedy of September 11, 2001, and the start of the Iraq War, Bush was reelected to President of the United States despite everything he had going against him.
Finally, President Obama calls for action. He reminds us, through anaphora, that “our journey is not complete” until we are all equal and more opportunistic, per-se. Obama tells us that that is our task, alluding to the Declaration of Independence, to “make these words, rights, these values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness real for every American” is a task that we will all go through together as one to achieve for all. Concluding his speech, the president reminds us that we are the hope; we ARE the change.
Roy Peter Clark, author of “A More Perfect Union”: Why It Worked, takes a stance on President Barack Obama’s speech while analyzing it. President Barack Obama delivered a speech titled “A More Perfect Union.” His speech focused on the prominent issue of racism in America. In this article, Clark talks about President Obama’s known power and brilliance. Clark makes references and comparisons to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and W.EB. DuBois. “A More Perfect Union” features writing techniques that makes the message more defined and effective. President Obama utilizes four closely related rhetorical strategies. Clark broadly explains the purpose of the rhetorical strategies. Allusion, parallelism, two-ness, and autobiography helped to shape President Obama’s speech that that was meant to create
He wants to move past the racial segregation and move towards a truly unified country, and he uses pathos by talking about the about his upbringing and his life. The use of the descriptions of his youth with a black father from Kenya and a white mother from Kansas shows that he can relate to the common person, seeing as he had to adjust to both sides of his family as well as the stigmas that both sides had. The urgency in which Obama answered the accusations of being similar to Wright, caused the American public to realize he does not have the same mentality. We can accept a politics that breeds division, and conflict, and cynicism."
In his speech, Obama uses terms like “Us”, “We”, and “Our” which let him connect with his audience by allowing him to identify with them. In a way it lets him connect with his audience’s mourning . Obama also allows his audience to use their imagination to remember Reverend Clementa Pinckney during his speech. He uses imagery like “ He would not grow discouraged. After a full day at the capitol, He’d climb into his car and head to the church to draw sustenance from his family, from his ministry,from the community that loved and needed him.” With this Obama paints a picture of Reverend Clementa and uses emotion to captivate the audience’s attention. In efforts to personalize his speech,Obama uses bit of humor. When referring to the time he met Reverend Clementa Pinckney he states, “Back when I didn’t have visible grey hair.” With this bit of added humor, Obama attempts to ease his audience into the eulogy. He lets his audience have a laugh and connect with him. Obama also uses a lot of passion in his eulogy. Halfway through his speech, Obama makes a bold statement which makes his audience roar with applause. With a strong and passionate tone he states “Oh, but God works in mysterious ways. God has different ideas.” Obama’s tone and statement makes his audience feel his compassion which creates a memorable and unforgettable speech for his audience. Obama use for pathos in his eulogy is very effective since he is able to target the of his audience and use emotion to connect with
In the beginning of the speech Barack Obama reflects back to where his parents and grandparents came from and what they did as their occupation. Obama shows pathos, logos and ethos many times throughout his 2004 keynote speech. He also spoke on why his mother and father gave him the name that they gave him. By doing so, Barack Obama showed pathos throughout the speech and got his audience to know him a bit before pursuing the Democratic Party to vote for John Kerry. He appeals to his audience by mentioning that his parents are both passed away, and from the look of things that did not stop him from standing where he was that day with pride and sadness:
Remarks by President Obama at the eulogy for the honorable Reverend Clementa Pinckney; A man who was killed when an another man rushed into a church in South Carolina and killed 9 people while they were immersed in an afternoon mass. President Obama created different appeals and feelings through the use of different Rhetorical Devices such as Logos, Ethos, and Pathos. The use of logos ethos and pathos help the president convey his central idea which is to ensure the people of South Carolina and the people of the United States that not only are they safe, but they will unite to take this opportunity to create a more united U.S. This will happen through the establishment of new gun reforms.
Obama goes on to say “We cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together.” He believes that this is the time to change, and a new generation governed by racial minorities. Obama support these claims by reiterating his own beliefs and those of the American nation. “I would not be running for President...
He uses allusion and repetition of words to prove his points about racial discrimination. His main goal is for the country to stay united and put discrimination aside, and continue the path of the ones who came before us. Obama alludes to the civil war by saying,” continue the long march” which illustrates the march that the north did to the south to stop race discrimination, as well as the fact how the north opposed with slavery and wanted to make south stop (1). The other device he uses in his speech was the repetition of words by using the word “more” to express his main goal and focus. Although the country is so called “free” his main goal is still to improve America in every way possible and put race discrimination completely aside. In the speech, he expresses his tone by saying,” more just, more equal, more free, more caring, and more prosperous America.” Which goes to the fact that he is trying to even improve America more in every way possible. If we improve our country even more, then we will not be having any issues in our
Let’s take a step back to 2008 in Philadelphia. Neither the city nor year suggests that history is going to be made. On March 18, 2008, at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Barack Obama took the stage and delivered a speech that would portray the racial landscape of his presidency. In his speech, Obama points out rhetorical tactics to support his argument that we as Americans in this country need to be united for racial equality to exist. He begins his speech with a back story to highlight the kairotic moment present, then appeals to pathos through lots of examples of racial injustice to signify the need for such change, and then uses his appeals to ethos to suggest ways of change for Americans, both black and white. The speech was very successful: people from both sides praised his bravery, and later the same year, Obama demolished McCain in a close victory to secure his presidency.
He reviled both his personal and family history stating, “I am the son of a black man from Kenya and a white woman from Kansas, “I am married to a black American who carries within her the blood of slaves and slave-owners”, and, I have brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, uncles and cousins, of every race and every hue, scattered across three continents”. As Obama is telling his family background, He shows how and why he has an authority to speak on race issues. It then supports the remarks he later makes about the race issues that are affecting America. By Him revealing his own personal history it allows him to gain ethos by creating a personal connection with his audience. This allows his audience to be a lot more inclined to trust him, and support him if they can make a connection to his speech on a more personal
On July 27, 2004, Barack Obama made arguably his most important speech, “The Audacity of Hope”, at the Democratic National Convention Keynote Address. These conventions are for political parties to announce a winner for nomination. All the way through his piece, Obama focuses on connecting Americans and himself to the audience. In fact, at the time, Barack Obama was a US Senate candidate for the United States president, and in making this speech, was offered a window for raising his popularity. Throughout “The Audacity of Hope” speech, Barack Obama implements three main devices to raise his political popularity: repetition, abstract language, and structure.
..., had left the business world to teach in an inner-city Chicago school. But Ryan was forced to drop out of the race when scandalous details about his divorce were made public. On July 7, 2004 The Democratic National Convention chased Barack Obama to deliver the keynote speech. During his speech Obama stated there’s not a liberal America and a conservative America," he declared. "There's a United States of America. There's not a black America and white America and Latino America and Asian America. There's a United States of America. Obama enclose his speech with phrases such like “the audacity of hope”. This phrase was later used for his second book titled The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream (2006) which was a best seller. On January 4, 2005, Barack Obama was back as a U.S. senator, and his first law was passed with Republican Tom Coburn.