Central Message
Harris’s overall purpose was to show gratitude and appreciation for all the people who supported her on the vice-presidency trip. In her speech, she thanked the president-elect Joe Biden and his wife Jill for welcoming her into their family. She also thanked Joe Biden for the courage of choosing a woman for the vice-president’s post. Kamala Harris thanked her campaigners and supporters, and all the Americans who came to vote. Then, she swore her great love to her family and thanked her mother, Shyamala Gopalan Harris, who came to America at the age of 19, full of aspirations. Her speech’s culmination was the appreciation of women’s input in the development of democratic society: Black, Asian, White, Latino, and Native American women, since she “is standing on their shoulders.”
Background
Kamala Harris will be the first female vice-president and the highest-ranking female elected official in US history. Her origin made her an exceptional candidate for her role since she has Asian-American and African-American ancestry. Before becoming the junior United States senator from California in 2017, Kamala made a career in law. As a senator, she worked on the initiatives related to healthcare reform, gaining citizenship for undocumented immigrants, the DREAM act aimed at development, relief, and education for alien minors, a ban on assault weapons, and progressive tax reform. Therefore, her identity made her take care of the listed issues.
Identity
The speech included many references to women of all origins since Kamala Harris must be feeling that she is their protector and is responsible for them. It is unlikely that her identity limited her in doing or saying something more than her new responsible appointment did. Her identity also let her appreciate family ties and human relations to a greater extent.
Immediate Audience
The immediate audience of the speech was people who supported Kamala. That is why she reassured everyone that she would work hard for the good of all Americans. She addressed the audience very warmly and kindly in her speech. Kamala also expressed special thanks to all the women, especially black women, who are her supporters.
Addressing the Audience
The audience not at the speech was the Americans who did not support Kamala or were not interested in politics. The vice-president-elect addressed these people at the end of her speech, saying she will do her best to make the lives of every American better, including working-class Americans who voted and who did not vote for her.
The Historical Moment
The historical moment Kamala Harris was speaking was determined by the announced election results and the end of the Trump era. Harris addressed this in her inspirational tone; besides, she began and ended her speech by saying that after days of grief and sorrow, it is time to get down to business and revive the economy. The historicity of the moment was also dictated by the fact that Kamala is the first female vice-president.
Wording
The new vice-president-elect used powerful wording to emphasize the most critical moments of the speech. For example, the thanked Joe Biden for the “audacity to break one of the most substantial barriers that exist in our country and select a woman as his vice president.” Kamala also named Joe Biden, her electoral counterpart, a “healed” and “uniter,” as well as a “loyal, honest and prepared” man.
Tone
Throughout the speech, Kamala’s tone became more relaxed, pleased, and agitated since she was thrilled to see the audience’s reaction to her words. She must have been practicing and was expecting to achieve this effect. The audience’s enthusiastic response to Harris’s remarks suggests that her speech was good since communication with the audience is an essential element of a powerful speech.
Impact
Moreover, the speech was impactful since Kamala Harris addressed many different groups of people who counted on her when giving her their support. In particular, the Black women caught by camera looked inspired and satisfied with Kamala’s words. Other listeners also showed approval.
Anything to Add?
If I had to add a paragraph to her speech, I would say the following:
“These were hard days when we faced grief and sorrow that came with the pandemic. Hopefully, these days are over. When the epidemic ends, we will revive the economy, for which I have a well-developed strategy. I want to ensure that every American will have a job and housing. I will do everything to stop evictions and find a new home for everyone who needs it. We have a fabulous team of economists, businessmen, financial analytics, lawyers, and medical practitioners. Together we developed a map on how to turn things back to normal. We will learn from our own mistakes and our predecessors’ missteps to regain confidence in our future.”
Kamala Harris Speech Discussion
Kamala Harris Acceptance Speech was persuasive since she used essential speech elements, namely: introduction, conclusion, tone, image, addressing the audience. Therefore, her speech made a significant impact on her listeners. Some topics addressed in the speech convinced me more than others.
In particular, I was impressed with Kamala’s understanding of her black female audience. She showed her sincere sympathy and received their affection. Moreover, the speech empowered individuals living in America in 2020 because Kamala Harris displayed genuine democracy as a role model for groups previously excluded from politics – aliens, women, and people of color. Therefore, Kamala wanted to show that her bare appearance at that stage means a lot for America’s present and future.
Money
Money is a material manifestation of energy and should be treated with respect. As the authors of the article reasonably put it, people should recall how much effort they have spent to earn money when thinking about buying something unnecessary. As a rule, I make smart choices when planning my expenses. I try to satisfy my needs and wants – both material ones, like the need for delicious food or new outfits, and aesthetic ones, like visiting a concert of my favorite musical band. If I had a stable income source, I could easily save up for a house or a car since saving is easy for me. Therefore, I read this article with pleasure since it says that even famous billionaires like Warren Buffett and Mark Zuckerberg live below their means.
The article also provides several arguments that warn the reader against using loans. This advice is exceptionally sensible since living on credit is a constant source of fatigue and irritation. The more loans people have, the higher the interests they pay to the bank. Of course, there are situations when a loan can be the only option – for example, in the event of a divorce, unexpected medical expenses, or the need to fix a car. But more often, people spend credit on things they could do without falling under the influence of advertisements and the lifestyle imposed by the media. Thus, this article is an excellent source of inspiration for those who decided to go against the tide and make their own financial decisions.
While describing the benefits of savings, the authors also imply that the luxury lifestyle is often overrated. They note that while money does make us happy, it is right only to a particular extent. According to the article, the amount of $ 75K per year is enough to make a person happier and more confident in the future. Everything above this amount leaves the level of happiness the same. In other words, it is not 11 yachts or high-priced houses, clothes, and cars that make a person happy, but the ability to satisfy their real needs.