Conjecture and the Inauguration ; Brightness in Nostalgia

For many U.S. citizens, as revealed through the presidential election campaigns and outcome, President elect Barack Obama’s inauguration speech this Tuesday will set the tone for four years of hoped for change. Throughout Obama’s campaign, his message has sought to define an America through the needs, hopes and dreams of its citizens. He seeks to define the way things are by who we are. The exigencies of “real” American people are supposed to dictate Obama’s rhetoric. The worldview Obama calls to mind differs greatly from the past administration’s figure, George W. Bush. Tinged with a patriotic and proud nostalgia, Obama readily invokes images of Abraham Lincoln and other classic moments of political and American history far gone from the recent political image.


Obama’s rhetoric is situated in a time where a new frontier means not a geographical but a digitized landscape. His effective use of digital media infused his persona {and thus his proposed ideology} with all the brightness of pixel and pop, though with seriously hopeful undertones of strength and determination. “Yes we can,” personified, translated to song, to image, to color. 

Four Principles of Rhetoric as applied to Michelle Obama's Speech.

Michelle Obama's speech presents a specific worldview, which Barack Obama would fulfill by becoming the next president of the U.S. The first principal of rhetoric—advisory—is precisely this: advice to the audience to adopt a particular worldview. In this case, Obama represents and promises the fruition.

 

The second rhetorical principle—addressed—has to do with who the audience is and who the speaker perceives the audience to be. Michelle Obama uses words and phrases like "as a mom," "as a daughter" etc. The anecdotes and examples she employs are embodied in the heroes of her narratives: "blue collar workers," families hard pressed for money but instilled with the kind of desire that drives them to accomplish seemingly impossible jobs so as to provide for their children and make ends meet. She references her own family and her relationship with Obama, appealing to the personal and relatable situations of those in her audience. She spoke to Americans, voters, those concerned with their livelihood and their children's futures. Her choice of words and analogies make this obvious.

 

Her rhetoric arises out of a lack the audience experiences--be it socially, financially, etc. Her speech relies upon the assumption that there is a palpable need for change and hope felt among her audience and all of America. People are working hard and not always finding help from the government or even acknowledgement of their dire situation. There is a need to recognize this national "other" that Obama promises to see.

 

Finally, her performance was especially influential. She delivered her speech in a manner similar to that employed by Obama: gestures, voice, tone, expression. She referenced the anniversaries of two momentus events: women gaining the right to vote and MLK's speech. The images tied up with the events will call to mind already accomplished milestones of a similar sort—things to which to aspire.