When looking back on the 18th of March, 2008, several do not believe that it is a significant date. It is not a holiday, nor a significant day in history, though, it is the day that Barack Obama delivered his “A More Perfect Union” speech at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama spoke to the public concerning extremely racial comments his former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, had declared. Obama tries to persuade the people to understand that he does not agree with what Wright stated. His way of doing this is to connect with the audience using his background, he utilizes specific pronouns to connect him to the audience, then tells other people’s stories to allow the audience understand why
At the time of this speech, Barack Obama is running for the Democratic Presidential candidate as well as being called into question when his former pastor publicly accused the government of committing hateful acts against black Americans. He addresses the American public then tries to persuade them to recognize that he understands both the white Americans and the black Americans. He uses ‘we’ and ‘us’ to show that he truly views the people as one as opposed to various separate groups, “… we cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together, unless we perfect our union by understanding that we may have different stories, but we hold common hopes; that we may not look the same and may not have come from the same place, but we all want to move in the same direction…” He wants to move past the racial segregation and move towards a truly unified country, and he uses pathos by talking about his upbringing. 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 families as well as the stigmas that both sides had. The urgency in which Obama answered the accusations of being similar to Wright,
We can accept a politics that breeds division, and conflict, and cynicism. " Contrasts with the statement Obama makes two sentences after, “This time we want to reject the cynicism that tells us that these kids can 't learn; that those kids who don 't look like us are somebody else 's problem.” The juxtaposition signifies how he wants the country to move forward. Together the people can help fix problems like the health care, the war, and the education system. Furthering his ethos Obama makes and allusion to the O.J. Simpson trial, “We can tackle race as a spectacle as we did in the OJ trial - or in the wake of tragedy, as we did in the aftermath of Katrina, or as a fodder for the nightly news... or we can come together and say "not this time" “ providing an example of how horribly previous presidents had handled the country’s racial problems. Other rhetorical strategies Obama uses are an anecdote, with Ashley’s story; and imagery, “Perhaps somebody told her along the way that the source of her mother 's problems were blacks who were on welfare and too lazy to work or Hispanics who were coming into the country illegally." The use of imagery contributes to the purpose by showing that blaming race will not solve any of the major problems the country is facing. He further established his pathos by talking about a section in his first book, Dreams From My Father, and how his first service at Trinity, the church he knows pastor Wright. He
In President Barack Obama’s eulogy for Reverend Clementa Pinckney and others who died in the Charleston Church Shooting, delivered on June 26, 2015 at the College of Charleston in South Carolina, he commemorates Reverend Pinckney and at the same time advocates for his own political agenda. President Obama shifts between black and presidential registers, weaves the ideas of grace, sight, and blindness throughout the speech, and cultivates his ethos to better connect with his audience, the American people, not only African Americans or Christians. President Obama addresses the American public during this racially charged time in order to remember the lives lost during the shooting, to promote his political views, and to unify the all Americans.
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
In contempt of Obama’s humble giving spirit, vivid personality, and many accomplishments, a debate is always at hand upon hearing the infamous name Barack Hussein Obama. From his place of birth, religion, and ethnicity Obama’s face a fair share of controversy. At the heels of adversity along with sheer determination to help others Obama became a leader that delivers and one of the most influential people of America. Adversity was introduced to Obama at an early age. With a Kenyan father and Caucasian mother residing in Hawaii, Obama has always stood out in numerous ways. In 1959 Barack Obama Senior was selected from a number of candidates to go to school in the US where he attended The University of Hawaii in Honolulu to
He makes sure his audience connects with him directly by making them feel at his level, and at hiss. This way he connects to the audience, and in exchange, helps his statement of unity. Using various examples of parallelism, anaphora and refrain, Obama brands the theme of equality and togetherness in our country throughout the speech, vital to gaining the respect of his audience. Obama recalls the ‘enduring strength of the constitution’ by delving into the past alluding to America’s allegiance to the Declaration of Independence by quoting “we hold these truths. that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”.
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
We must glimpse the past if we are to construct a better future. Many may ask themselves, “Who am I?” but it is the revelry in understanding that basically our future lies in the past, such that it can only be answered by, “Where do I come from?” Looking to great leaders from our past bridges our connection to our future. Martin Luther King and now President Obama are excellent representations of this connection. Both faced the issues that plague America’s past, even though they are a part of different time periods. There are two specific works that address these some of these issues, “Letter from Birmingham Jail” written by Martin Luther King Jr. and the speech given by Barack Obama, “A More Perfect Union.” Although “Letter from Birmingham
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 emotionally influences the nation to move forward from the issues of race that is hindering America. Without dwelling on his family tree, Obama reminds us that his father was black and his mother white, that he came from Kenya, but she came from Kansas: “I am married to a black American who carries within her the blood of slave and slave owners — an inheritance we pass on to our two precious daughters. I have brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, uncles, and cousins, of every race and every hue, scattered across three continents, and for as long as I live, I will never forget that in no other country on Earth is my story even possible.
In a speech given in support of Trayvon Martin, President Barack Obama spoke about his own personal experiences with Racial Profiling and how the story behind Trayvon’s death hits home because it easily could’ve been him. This is the full video of Obama speaking about Trayvon Martin and race in America . The mentality of “this could’ve been me” that Pr...
On the third Monday in January, we celebrate a man who helped change the course of history in the way people treat others who are different than them. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an African American clergyman and civil rights leader for who was made famous by the glorious speech “I Have a Dream”. (Norton 1152) In this speech, he spoke of a future where Caucasians and African Americans would no longer be segregated and to not be judged by the color of our skin but to be known together as equal. During his speech, whether he did it purposely or accidently, he used rhetorical devices to help deliver his message to his audience. In the speech, Dr. King used ethos, logos, and pathos to appeal to his audience in an ethical, logical and emotional
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
By placing himself in this role, he creates the impression that as the father figure he is also in a position to give advice and serve as an educator. Obama then goes on to soothe and insure his nation that questioning and reflecting is natural, stating that “When a tragedy like this strikes, it is part of our nature to demand explanations –to try to impose some order on the chaos, and make sense out of that which seems senseless,” and then goes into the role of an educator by telling the story of each of the victims of the shooting. By telling each victim’s story, Obama further elicits an emotional response from the audience by effectively humanizing each person. This further creates a sense of unity, making it seem as if Obama really knew the victims, and making each person more relatable to the audience so that each member of the audience might feel as though any one of the victims could have been their neighbor or beloved family
Obama also talks about how fascinated he was with his father. As he grows a bit older into adolescence, Obama learns more about race relations and reads the book Heart of Darkness. This book helps him to see how white people look at black people, as a white man wrote the book talking about black people. He also delves into his marijuana use, which he used to help him during this confusing and rough period in his life. Obama’s story then goes to New York, where he is now a young adult and wants to be a community organizer....
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.