In 2008, J.K. Rowling delivered a powerful commencement speech to the 2008 Harvard graduates. Her use of ethos and pathos help to develop a strong connection with the crowd that is needed to completely relay a message. She also reveals personal moments from her past, such as poverty and working at an African Research Department, to convince the audience that failure and imagination are two key parts in success. Rowling builds her credibility by using ethos. She connects with the audience at the very beginning of her speech by using humor. To make herself and the audience feel more comfortable she makes jokes, for instance looking at the flags and "trying to convince myself I'm at the world's largest Gryffindor reunion". It creates an emotional
Ann Richards’s keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention in 1988 was extremely interesting to watch. I believe her speech was intended to be focused on the American family and also the American farmers. These two areas seemed to be very important to Mrs. Richards and she made a point to discuss both.
Students in school typically work long hours in order to achieve high standards academically. Those who achieve the highest grades are honored with the title of valedictorian. However, the title has been under attack as students and parents call for the title to either be extended to more students or abolished entirely. In “Best in class by Margaret Talbot, Talbot claims that schools should keep the single valedictorian system, but reduce its overall importance; she claims that using contrast and selective presentation.
There have been many historical events in history that have impacted America in many ways. For example, famous Speeches given by important people such as Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the united states which his main goal was to help America recover from the severe economic issues during the 1930’s. Roosevelt used rhetorical devices to persuade desperate Americans, wounded from the Great Depression, by introducing a plan which it will be the best way to recover from the severe crisis that affected Americans. In Franklin D. Roosevelt, First Inaugural Address, he used personification, diction, and antimetabole to convey his conflicting feelings about the New Deal, in order to face the economic issues
“Hitler is a monster of wickedness, insatiable in his lust for blood and plunder” (Churchill). These are the words of Winston Churchill, who was the British Prime Minister. Churchill, in my opinion, is the most effective political leader when it comes to power of language, manipulation, and words. Despite being known as a great speaker, the speech he made after Germany invaded Russia was what really showed how powerful he is. He used the elements language, words, and manipulation to make the people understand his side.
In today’s society, one of the most natural human traits is selfishness. David Foster Wallace incorporated this idea in his commencement speech at Kenyon College in 2005. Wallace aims to persuade his audience that, “the most obvious, ubiquitous, important realities are often the ones that are the hardest to see and talk about.” Although the intended audience of his speech is the graduates and staff, along with their friends and family, the piece has become quite popular since its delivery. Wallace offers, “nothing less than the truth” and captivates the listeners with his complete honestly. His personal tone lets the audience feel like they are a part of the conversation, rather than just receiving it. Wallace successfully conveys his message that society is blind to the world around them through the use of logic, humility and emotional appeals.
In her ,“Harvard”, address, actress, comedian and producer Amy Poehler speaks to the graduating class of 2011. Her speech is filled with her uplifting sense of humor and her down-to-earth personality that you can’t help but enjoy. Poehler utilizes various rhetorical strategies throughout her address such as allusion, and conveying pathos in a humourous as well as an emotional way. By using these, she successfully encourages the young students and families at Harvard University to work their hardest and take on the world.
Her slow yet concise way of speaking, coupled with easy to follow transitions allowed for a speech that was enjoyable to listen to. Her use of examples from her personal life allowed her audience to get a picture of who she was if they did not know, and allowed her to better relate to them by provided examples of how she is related to the college they are graduating from. Her reference to many modern political problems allowed her to bring up her important role as an activist and facilitated further understanding from the audience. While some areas of her speech were weak, such as the longer than needed pauses and her lack of consistent eye contact, to a few points where she didn’t speak clearly enough, the overall picture that was her speech was fairly strong. Looking at this speech, I hope to incorporate some aspects that I failed to include in my previous speeches. Some of these include her use of hand gestures to emphasize and exaggerate certain phrases and topics, and her combined use of appeals. While my initial thoughts going in were “This is boring” and “This is too slow”, it evolved into me wanting to hear more, and overall my defeat in the beginning turned into a victory at the
Slavery when Africans were held against their own will and it first started in 1619 in Virginia. Frederick Douglass was born into slavery who goes by the name Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, he was born on February 14 1817 in Maryland, Tuckahoe. His mother was a slave women and his father was a white master. Douglass was an agent for the anti-slavery in Massachusetts. He went to lecture tour in Ireland, Scotland and England to give lecture to people On July 5 1852 Frederick Douglass gave a speech on slavery’s arguing that during the fourth of July African American were treated wrongfully. Douglass gave a powerful speech about how he feels towards slavery and how
Following the American Revolution, a new holiday was birth unto a new nation, the Fourth of July, an Independence Day, for some. While Caucasian-Americans were embracing the independence from Great Britain annually, those who were enslaved, were mourning. Frederick Douglass, an African-American social-reformist, who escaped slavery in his youth. On the fifth of July, 1852, Douglass delivered a historic speech conveying to the American people how slaves view the holiday that those who were free cherished.
In, “The Speech of Miss Polly Baker” written by Benjamin Franklin (one of the Founding Fathers) in 1747, brought up the disparities that were between men and women within the judicial system. Also, “The Speech of Miss Polly Baker” also briefly points out, how religion has been intertwined with politics. All throughout “The Speech of Miss Polly Baker,” Benjamin Franklin uses very intense diction and syntax to help support what he is trying to express to the rest of society. Also writing this speech in the view point of a women, greatly helps establish what he is trying to say. If Benjamin Franklin was to write it as a man, the speech my have not had the same passionate effect as it currently has.
Marriage is the biggest and final step between two young people who love one another more than anything. In the marriage proposals by Charles Dickens and Jane Austen we are able to see two different reasons for marriage. While Dickens takes a more passionate approach, Austen attempts a more formal and logical proposal. Rhetorical strategies, such as attitude and diction, have a great impact on the effect the proposals have on the women.
During 1931, a second grand war begin with national powers uniting together. Many nations instantly took arms, but the US decided to stay neutral. As a result, European countries established a new flourishing fear of being overthrown by eastern communist foes(“World”). Then the dreadful event on December 6, 1941, caused the US to reconsider its own stance on the war. Allied Powers realized their opportunity to use Pearl Harbor to gain a chance to determine their own fate in war. On December 26, 1941, the United Kingdom’s Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, presented a speech eventually known as “Masters of Our Fate” to the US Senate and the House of Representatives(“Winston”). Through the use of esoteric rhetorical questions, vivid metaphors,
Hey Jem it’s been a long time since I last spoke with you, and I would like to tell you Me and Scout are doing mighty fine just on our own. We got a townhouse in Tallahassee Florida, where Jean is currently going to school, and I picked up a job along the way. She’s studying some type of literature program they have there I don’t know all the details. Anyway I’m working for the local circus a little yonder of the school, well at least till Scout graduates, it’s a pretty fun job that should be able to pay the bills and everythang else . Aye you know what, it reminds me of the time I ran away to come see yall. I remember it like it had been sunday, I ran away because my parents didn't really engage in any activities with me and along the way
Commencement speeches, which are presented in American graduation ceremonies, aim to inspire and motivate. Successfully, Nora Ephron 's commencement speech addressed to the Wellesley Class of 1996; inspired her audience to "be the heroine of [their '] li[ves], not the victim". Through anecdotes, Ephron explored the differences between her education and the graduates at Wellesley College, to remind the women graduating that whilst society was different in many ways, in particular for women, "there was still a glass ceiling".
I consider Steve Jobs’ commencement speech at Stanford University in 2005 to be one of the most effective speeches. He uses mechanics of speech to craft a well-rounded speech that is crowned by his use of rhetorical devices. Jobs gives relevant and fundamental knowledge of his life and experiences with his rhetorical approach. In his speech to the Stanford’s graduation class, he tells different stories of love, loss, discovery and difficulty he faced in his life to encourage new graduates as they continue to mature in life. He encourages students to pursue their dreams and not be discouraged by failures they might experience in life.