Barack Obama’s speech is
full of emotions and greatly displays how different emotions, of varying
scales, can complement each other in a speech. Obama does start with a patriot
tone to capture the audience’s attention. Who doesn’t like to get behind the “Merica”
bandwagon? As he talks about the signing of the Constitution, he mentions
slavery and that sets the tone for next couple of pages that a serious and
uncomfortable issue is about to be discussed. With this uneasy topic on the
audience’s mind. Obama can freely talk about the racial disparities in his
life, such as Reverend Wright. Obama begins talking about Reverend Wright as
the man who used “incendiary language” to make comments that could potentially
widen the racial inequality gap. The emotions he uses transition from slight
disappointment in the Reverend to that of respect of the man who helped Obama
find his way in this world. He uses similar emotional transitions as he talks
about what is wrong with the country in regards to racial divides in society to
make the audience sympathize with those affected. He, then, moves to get the
audience “pumped” by intelligently transitioning to how we can better change
society if we acknowledge what is wrong and try to change the wrongs by working
together as one cohesive unit.
In “Ally’s
Choice,” The emotions that are triggered are mainly that of anger, shame, and
compassion with hints of frustration. The anger is introduced after the tone is
set up with the background of the town’s demographics and the story of Ally’s
and Charlotta’s school experiences. The shame and frustration started during
the telling of the high school experiences where Ally felt ashamed of being referred
to as black, due to the harassment she faced, when she was “really cream…lots
of cream” colored. The frustration was displayed in a clear fashion when Ally
spoke about having to explain that she was not black or Negro and when Ally
disowned Charlotta in front of Ally’s friends. The compassion comes about when
Clarice, Charlotta and Ally say that they still love each other even if they
have differing views regarding their racial identities.
These text both show emotion in that they both like to strike sensitive subjects that people don't like to talk about. In this they talk about race which back in 2008 and for years before that and after that has always been an issue and a sensitive subject for all of America. With all these different mixes of cultures, races, etc. it has always been a struggle to live in a world that limits you because of color beliefs etc. Because Obama brings up a lot of these topics and subjects, this hit home for the majority of people who have physically and mentally lived through these struggles. I feel as though they were triggered the same equally in both texts in that they both talk about race and the struggles faces here in America and I feel like they use these topics to assimilate with the population to understand and sympathize, with this sympathy you bring unity. When differences are set aside they help bring about what is similar what makes us strong as a country and in doing so they do something that for so long minorities have been trying to argue to be realized. Something that for so long has been wished to be heard.
ReplyDeleteI truly agree with what is being said here. Both articles show emotions and sympathy. Both show major facts that face us everyday in our life. Some people live it, some people don't. Most Obama's speeches remind us of reality and how this reality has always been an issue in our everyday lives. No matter how much America strives to show that there isn't any difference between people, due to their colors, races, gender and ethnicity, believe it or not, there is a different, a huge different. Unfortunately, people suffer a lot sometimes because of who they are. Barack Obama's speeches have always hit people hardly that it reminds them about who they are and how they are different from others. The same goes for Ally's Choice, and how she has faced issues in her her life due to her “really cream…lots of cream” colored. I think, it is about time that people change their views and stop looking at other differently.
ReplyDeleteI truly agree with what is being said here. Both articles show emotions and sympathy. Both show major facts that face us everyday in our life. Some people live it, some people don't. Most Obama's speeches remind us of reality and how this reality has always been an issue in our everyday lives. No matter how much America strives to show that there isn't any difference between people, due to their colors, races, gender and ethnicity, believe it or not, there is a different, a huge different. Unfortunately, people suffer a lot sometimes because of who they are. Barack Obama's speeches have always hit people hardly that it reminds them about who they are and how they are different from others. The same goes for Ally's Choice, and how she has faced issues in her her life due to her “really cream…lots of cream” colored. I think, it is about time that people change their views and stop looking at other differently.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking strictly to Obama's speech, I decided to watch the actual video instead of simply reading it. His ability to control his own emotions and masterfully deploy them in the context of a 30 minute speech is nothing short of genius. It's, quite frankly, disturbing that he is so devastatingly effective at delivering other people's words as his own. It doesn't matter if Obama wrote the speech because he meant everything he said. He simultaneously accomplished his goals of: quashing the Jeremiah Wright controversy, furthering his political agenda and campaign, and appealing to every single American watching. He uses his near-psychopathic emotional control to transition not only the emotion of his speech but the emotion of the crowd. When simply read, Obama's speech is masterful. When viewed, it serves as his magnum opus of public speaking. Through the emotion evident in his transitions, he draws the listener from pride to fear to suspicion to anger and back to pride. He ends in a hopeful note, as is befitting for a politician. His emotional control and injection makes a merely great speech something more...he is clearly able to channel his own experiences and anxieties as a black man in America into his voice. The listener actually feels what he feels. After listening to Obama speak, the most appropriate reaction is mild awe. This is the true power of emotion in spoken and written word.
ReplyDelete