President Barack Obama’s first speech after taking the oath was his inaugural address in 2009. Throughout this speech, President Obama illustrates a theme of unity through a number of stylistic and linguistic choices. First, the inclusion of certain phonological elements such as alliteration, consonance, and assonance works to beautify the language, which causes it to resonate with the listener. ‘Pounded the pavement’ or ‘picked up the phones’ is an example of alliteration that appeals to a listener (Tillman, 2018). Both the use of simile and metaphor are prevalent in the work and are used to shine a positive light on topics such as the U.S. or those that work alongside President Obama. For instance, the U.S. is referenced as ‘the global leader in technology, discovery, and innovation’ while Joe Biden is titled ‘a happy warrior.’ Another prominent and vital component of this inaugural address is the triple anaphora, the use of which appears twice and works to establish expectation followed by a climax. The first includes the following segment: ‘…a doctor or a scientist, an engineer or entrepreneur, a diplomat or even a president’. The second time it is utilized, three statements follow each other closely to create a sense of rhythm, suspense, and payoff as such: ‘that’s the future we hope for. That’s the vision we share. That’s where we need to go forward. ’
Because the theme of unity is prevalent within the speech, President Obama utilizes persuasive elements in order to instill inclusivity among the audience. This theme and a persuasive effect often manifest through rhetoric, especially concerning hope. Special dictation works to emphasize this, as the specific ways in which President Obama presents certain sentences capture the attention of the audience and inform them without being patronizing regarding the themes of the speech. Parallelism, the application of contradictory terms in consecutive order is also employed within the speech, with an example being ‘single, simple, powerful idea’. Synecdoche is also referenced through the mention of ‘the great state’ and ‘men and women in uniform’. While these may seem like small variations, the use of synecdoche establishes a connection between the speaker and the listeners, as they both understand the actual meaning of a term without it being directly said. Similarly, parallelism recognizes that certain concepts carry dualities, which may be either new or familiar but ultimately interesting to the audience. The combination of these persuasive elements of rhetoric, parallelism, synecdoche, metaphor, and reparation makes continuous reference to the theme of unity that President Obama aims to promote to his listeners. As such, the devices and linguistic choices are able to accurately deliver the fundamentals of the message to the audience, with hope and unity being the prevalent ideas.
Reference
Tillman, R. (2021). Inaugural Addresses of the 21st Century: A Look at Presidential Speeches Past. Spectrum News. Web.