Q1 (a). In this speech, the writer is the speaker. I learnt much about the writer, who is also the speaker by reading through the speech. From the first part of the speech, “Fans, for the past two weeks you have been reading about a bad break I got.” it describes the writer’s experiences about a bad break he got. The author explains to his fans about what had happened in the past two weeks. He also explains his seventeen years of experiences with his fans and how they have shown him much kindness and encouragement. He feels lucky to associate with his fans, especially the grand men. The writer goes ahead and mentions individuals like Jacob Ruppert, Ed Barrow, Miller Huggins, and Joe McCarthy and he considers it an honor to have met them. Also, the speaker describes his experiences the teams he played with and his relationship with her mother-in-law. He also considers it a blessing to have a father and mother, who dedicate their lives to ensure that he gets an education and to build his body. The writer goes ahead to describe his wife as a tower of strength and that she possesses more courage. He considers himself lucky to have his wife by his side. At the end of the speech, “So, I close in saying that I might have been given a bad break, but I've got an awful lot to live for.” This means that as much as he is given a bad break in baseball, he still have plenty to live for and to be proud about in his life.
Q2 (a) The general purpose of this speech is to inform the fans and the people he worked with of how important they were in building his entire career. Moreover, he describes how lucky he is to be associated with people in his like such as the fans, his colleagues, and his family. The writer feels lucky to have such an amazing group of people surrounding him, which include the fans, his colleagues, his mother-in-law, his parents, and lastly his strong and courageous wife. This type of speech is known as informative speech because it informs the fans on what has befallen him.
(b) The specific goal of the speech is to inform the fans of how important they were to him. The writer also appreciates working with Jacob Ruppert and Ed Barrow, who he describes him as the builder of baseball’s greatest empire. He also acknowledges Miller Huggins, who he describes him as wonderful to associate with him and Joe McCarty, who he describes him as the smart student of psychology and the best manager in baseball.
Q3 The audience in this speech include the entire baseball family. The occasion comprised of an eager and enthusiastic group of people, mostly fans. The primary purpose of this occasion is to explain what had befallen the speaker for the past two weeks. The occasion comprises of the fans, which he describes them as kind and full of encouragement. The speech is also meant for his colleagues in the baseball team, and he feels lucky being with them. This is the perfect occasion of the writer to express his joy in interacting with people, who love baseball
Q4 (a) The audience in this speech include the entire baseball family. The occasion is to explain what had befallen him for the past two weeks. The event comprises of the fans, which he describes them as kind and full of encouragement and the baseball management team. The writer speaks of his family's background, and he appreciates every one of them in his life. I think the writer of the speech knew very well about his audience because he mentions there specific influences, their attitude, and their beliefs. According to this speech, it is evident that the speaker was in his audience’s shoes due to well-selected words and sentences, which are filled with emotions. It is obvious that the people were moved by the way the speech was written.
Q5 (a) In my perspective, I think that the writer engaged in the pre-analytical activities described above, which was formal. The results of these analytical activities helped the writer to target the speech appropriately. From the way the speech was written, it covers the entire scope of baseball. Baseball being a game comprising of team management and fans, it means that background information of what the fans were thinking was highlighted in the speech. Also, the mention of his family members is vital because they form a building block for the speaker. The writer is very brave in ensuring that the fans come first, and then the team management, and lastly his supportive family. It is evident in the speech that the writer featured the particular needs of people surrounding his life, which is commendable.
(b) The writer tailored the speech to his audience and its special needs by mentioning the kindness of the fans, the corporation of his baseball colleagues were, and lastly the support of his family and friends. This occasion comprises of these mentioned people.
Reference
Lou Gehrig's Farewell Speech. The Famous Address by "The Iron Horse" In Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939. Retrieved from http://baseball.about.com/od/majorleaguehistory/a/gehrigspeech.htm
