Viola Davis Assassination Essay

The Emmy Award is a well respected representation of excellence that is rewarded to the year's most outstanding group of talent, in the form of an award show. This year, The Emmy's was host to one of the most talked about acceptances speeches from select acts. One of these inspirational speeches that has been receiving attention was from Viola Davis, an African American actress who stars in a hit TV drama , "How To Get Away With Murder." Out of a total of six nominees, Viola Davis won the Emmy for Leading Actress In A Drama Series. I personally didn’t watch the Emmy Awards, however after hearing about the acceptance speeches, I turned to YouTube.
While watching Viola Davis give her acceptance speech, the camera pans over to several known actors/actresses, and catches the emotional expressions on their faces. Actresses like Kerry Washington (Scandal) and Taraji Henson

(Empire) each showed emotion with tears and smiles. While others looked to the stage showing intense interest in their face and solicitude. It showed a mix of emotions towards her speech, all of which were positive expressions.
As Viola Davis walks up the stage, she stands at the microphone and holds the Emmy Award as if she has given her talents her all and it was publicly taking notice.

This made for a great introduction leading into her speech with the emotion she demonstrated. She open's her speech with a quote from Harriet Tubman which transitions into a topic of struggles that have been overcome through past years regarding race and gender. Her message she conveyed with the audience was the change in society. Quoting Harriet Tubman, Viola says "...I see green fields, lovely flowers, and beautiful white women extending their arms towards me, but I cant seem to get over that line." Sharing this quote, she goes on to share her feeling of accomplishment in the industry, summarizing her compassion for the strides made that have lead up to the moment where she is able to accept an award as an equal African American leading actress. She then continues to give thanks to many people that have supported her and her career, as well as several other African American women such as Nicole Beharie, Halle Berry, and Meagan

Good.
In contrast, however, Frances McDormand won the Emmy Award for Lead Actress In a Limited Series or Movie. She came off as uninterested, unprepared, and shy. Her speech lasted no more than fifteen seconds and didn’t publicly show thanks saying "I have already given the thank you's that need to be said". I personally felt that she could have elaborated and spent more time acknowledging the audience, cast members, and others involved. It could have very well been nerves, shyness, or level of comfortness. Everyone shows gratitude and excitement in different ways. However, compared to Viola Davis, it came off more as a negative, uninterested acceptance.
In conclusion I found Viola Davis's acceptance speech very inspiring. Her speech was very well organized in terms of transitioning from a quote expressing frustration and hardships "crossing a line" to equality, to giving thanks to many people that she feels has impacted the industry giving her the opportunity to accept such an award. This shows a very strong level of humility and sincere gratitude, which I personally commend in an industry full of arrogance. Compared to others who may flaunt acceptances egotistically, Viola showed professionalism, poise, humbleness, and motive. I believe she has inspired many with her speech and has only increased her fan base. With so many award ceremonies each year, Viola certantly set a standard for acceptance demeanor and performance with her message.