A lot has been said about the prowess of Barack Obama and the brilliance he showed on March 18th, 2008 when he was addressing people in Philadelphia during his campaign. He said things that even his distractors couldn’t say either in public or in privacy (Frank 180).
The focus is on the orator ability to talk about racism and togetherness in public and his desire to move the country to a new and better level. He is assuring the whites that they have no reason to fear from voting in an African-American (Talbot, David, page 82). His speech is simply solid, respectable, and short but very uplifting. It is a speech that many people believe it belongs to the greats of America; Lincoln and Kennedy.
Obama is wise not to blame anyone for the current situation in America. He uses a very tolerant note that touches on certain crucial pointers. He convinces the public that it is greed and irresponsibility that led the country to the current state. He shifts the blame from individuals to everyone. He states that, the current segregation is due to collective failures in making hard choices. He makes it a responsibility for everyone to change the current state of racism (Frank 174). He warns citizens on falling apart as he praises the productivity and inventions of Americans. He demands that from that very day that citizens should gather themselves, cooperate and eliminate racial and societal ideologies. Quoting from his speech he says that, “Starting from today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America”. This eventually worked for him because he won the elections.
His speech lacks elements of despise for others. He avoids using words that would otherwise indicate he is scorning someone else. His speech is just on point and very precise for that matter. His speech encompasses the crowd as he uses “we” instead of “I”. He entitles the citizens an obligation to support him and fight as a unit for the victory. He says that, “We will not apologize for our way of life and even racism cannot outlast us, we will emerge victorious”. This bit of his speech supports the fact that Obama believes in the power of the people. He shows this belief by telling the public that yes they can do it if they fight together. He is calling upon the people to forge a peaceful coexistence devoid of racial disparities (Talbot 80). It was a show of the public the power and the strength it had over few individuals. This speech was simply tough and unsparing to the outgoing administration. Note that, changes in America most often terrify the public yet his outstanding speech of hope confirms his endurance to the spirit of the Americans (Obama, Senator Barack, page. 20).
Obama achieves what other presidents did not achieve. He uses a simple but very strong speech to convey a message to the public. He is honest and frank to the public about the situation of racism and segregation. He is inspiring citizens to believe in the course of making changes in America. He addresses as crowd which lacks confidence in the government and has a drooping morale. However, he uses very strong words that give the public hope about the future. His speech involves the public in rebuilding the country through individual contributions. He poses the problem to the public and hints that the solution that only comes from them. He is transitioning the problem and solution back to the American people in such a remarkable way. He uses strong words as he calls for action and reminding the public about the need for unity.
The speech gives no room for rhetoric questions. He punches his lines direct and boldly to the public while avoiding any mistakes that could afterward be criticized. He says that, “all are equal, all are free and all deserve to pursue happiness”. He is pointing to the fact that not even differences in our birth or wealth or factions can weaken the power of Americans. He urges people to reform their habits and to stand for justness. He uses allusion to comfort the white and eliminate their fears. He uses history to point out the need to reconcile and to narrow the gap. For instance he says that, “Unity was stained by this nation’s original sin of slavery, a question that divided the colonies and brought the convention to a stalemate until the founders chose to allow the slave trade to continue for at least twenty more years and to leave any final resolution to the future generations”. He calls upon voters to take the initiative to forge peace and to grow stronger in unity (Marilyn 280). He entrusts the public with this calling and says that, “This was one of the tasks we set forth at the beginning of this campaign. To continue the long march of those who came before us, a march for a more just, more equal, more free, more caring and more prosperous America”. He uses his example to remind the public that his father was black and his mother white. He goes ahead to talk about his marriage to a Black American who has the blood of slave and slave owners. He punches this note by using his daughters as examples of the people who have inherited such blood. Therefore, he uses a story whose character is himself and his family. He informs the public about himself and the morals lessons they can learn from his story. He fits his story to this theme by using his black father who loved a white woman and the pain that they had to endure (Obama, Senator Barack 21).
Works Cited
Frank, David A. "The Prophetic Voice and the Face of the Other in Barack Obama's" A More Perfect Union" Address, March 18, 2008." Rhetoric & Public Affairs 12.2 (2009): 167-194.
Obama, Senator Barack. "A more perfect union." The Black Scholar 38.1 (2008): 17-23.
Talbot, David. "How Obama really did it." Technology Review 111.5 (2008): 78-83.
Young, Marilyn J. "Lloyd F. Bitzer: Rhetorical situation, public knowledge, and audience dynamics." Twentieth-century roots of rhetorical studies(2001): 274-301.
