Michelle Obama transcript analysis

Michelle Obama’s 2008 speech was aimed at introducing herself and promoting Barack
Obama to the American public for his upcoming election. Throughout the speech, she talks
about her personal experience with him and all of his great values. She tried to convey a
feeling of sympathy and warmth to the public. To do so, she uses a number of rhetorical
devices that will form a memorable feeling for the American citizens.

In the first 40 lines of Michelle Obama’s 2008 speech, she employs a variety of rhetorical
devices to portray herself to the public as someone they can connect with and relate to.
Obama uses anaphora by using the phrase “I come here” to express the different roles she
has (as a daughter, sister, mother, and wife). The repetition of this phrase at the beginning
of successive clauses adds a rhythmic and poetic effect to the discussion. Throughout the
text, Michelle Obama will share personal anecdotes about her family to evoke sympathy and
highlight the values that she has obtained through her upbringing. In her anecdotes, she also
uses antithesis to juxtapose what her family has faced with the values they upheld. For
example, she contrasts her father’s physical struggles with his resilience and optimism.

Michelle Obama connects to the public through emotions but also through ethics. She uses
pathos by relying on the audience's emotions and their empathy for her family's sacrifices.
By sharing her experience as a sister, daughter, mother, and wife, she creates a bond with
the public. Making herself relatable allows her to have an emotional connection with them.
Her experience serves as pathos but also ethos through her credibility. As an influential
figure, her word can be trusted. As she tells her story, she presents herself as a devoted wife
and loving mother. She shows her values and how they resonate with theirs.

Overall, Michelle Obama reflected a lot on her experience in her family and their values. She
built her trust with the public by making herself relatable. In the 2012 speech, she
concentrates more on her experience as First Lady and her family’s journey in the White
House. She highlights Barack Obama’s qualities and accomplishments while also humanizing
him as a husband and father. This speech was aimed at getting the American citizens'
support for Obama’s reelection. In 2016, Michelle Obama’s speech takes a more political
turn to endorse Hillary Clinton. She uses her authoritative figure to show Clinton’s assets and
qualities. Here, she juxtaposes her own experience in the White House and what she thinks
Hillary Clinton could do as President of America.

In conclusion, Michelle Obama has been able to get the public on her side by using different
rhetorical devices such as pathos and ethos. She has used her past experience to highlight
her values and those of the people she is supporting. She promotes them to the fullest with
anecdotes and facts. She often relies on her authority as a sister, mother, wife, or First Lady
to support what she is saying.

Michelle Obama has always been a woman who supports her own. She has always been on
the side of equality, and fighting for women's rights. That is what Ibsen is trying to do in his
book "A Doll's House." In this play, he denounces the role of women in his society and how
unjust it is. Unfortunately, the situation remains in our time. It isn’t as evident as in the 19th
century, but Michelle Obama does what she can to bring equality back.