Following the recent Presidential election, a new face emerged as a representation of the American nation. Lately, Barack Obama has become a major figure in many public communications. As a result of the growing number of popular speeches comes praise and critique of his oral abilities and presentation. Scholars have suggested that a major task of the political officer is to communicate with his/her constituents. Therefore, it is important to understand and analyze the methods of communications by politicians, especially the one holding the highest executive office in the United States. Over the course of American history, the president’s inauguration speech, which happens every four or eight years, is one of the most highly praised public spectaculars in US politics. President Obama’s inauguration speech on January 20, 2009 focused on a number of contextual references: patriotism, history, religion and symbolism, through the innovative use of content that held strong conviction with the American people.

In the beginning of the speech, he started off thanking his predecessor, President Bush and highlighted the history of American politics, as well as providing a brief synopsis of our current economic crisis. He showed his gratitude toward the founders of our country and our ancestors who have made the American dream possible. Then, he continued showing his vision for the next four years of change.

A major theme in the speech is Patriotism. According to numerous political scientists and scholars, the President’s inauguration speech is one of the most significant forms of public communication representing new leadership in the Executive Branch. After stating the history of American politics, he emphasized “So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.” In this portion of the speech, he inferred that Americans must join him and continue the 233 years of the American democracy. He continued his speech mentioning events in American life such as the first settlers and their hard work. He also gave a lot of credit to the armed forces, past and present. In time of war, expressing gratitude to the past and present heroes of the country helped him appeal to veterans, current members of the armed forces, their friends and their family.

He emphasized numerous prominent historical facts in his speech. He had provided a history of American political life. He mentioned about famous battles like Concord (Revolutionary War), Gettysburg (Civil War), Normandy (World War II), and Khe Sanh (Vietnam War). He compared American democracy to different political ideology like fascism and communism. He talked about common defense and the peace our army has upheld in Afghanistan. With his articulate rhetoric ability and applying stories of American’s greatness in his speech, he was able to project a legendary image for the future with the successes of the past.
Another major contextual theme is religion. He used a number of religious-oriented wording and phrases. For example, in the first quarter of this speech, he had mentioned,

“We remain a young nation, but in the words of the Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.”

Not only did he emphasize the religious aspects of American government, he related it back to traditional American values of democracy, in the words freedom, equality and a chance to pursue happiness. Then he lists a number of religions of people in the United States: “Christians, Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and non-believers.” Near the end of the speech, he mentioned that God’s grace will help America endure the current issues. In the very end of the speech, he finished using both a patriotic and religious saying: “Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.” His charisma when mentioning religious groups and references allowed him to relate to many Americans who are religious and who feel comfortable having a leader who believes highly in religion. Over the course of American history, each and every elected president has had a religious belief of some sort.

A final contextual theme is the use of symbolic language. He compared American history to the “rugged path.” Near the end, he had compared America’s current situation to “icy currents” and referenced it as a “storm.” He compared the positive future to the “horizon.” Using symbolic language made his speech much more dramatic. His use of metaphors helped enhance the way to present America’s economic crisis.

Overall, I had a positive impression of Obama’s inauguration speech. It encompassed major contextual themes with the creative use of content. His excellent rhetoric ability was charismatic and articulate. His speech was able to bring together many groups of Americans in terms of socioeconomics and politics. By keeping his neutral perspective in this speech whose goal was to appeal to a bipartisan audience, he was quite successful. All in all, Obama’s public communication ability was very successful. “Yes, we can!”

Near the end of the American Civil War, Congress had passed legislation, most notably the 14th Amendment to protect the rights of racial minorities in the United States. The 14th Amendment changed the definition of American citizenship to everyone born in the US regardless of race, which soon led to the 15th Amendment which, in theory, stated that voting rights could not be denied based on rights. Following the war, Reconstruction had favored African Americans positively up until the Compromise of 1877, provided the presidency to the north, assuming that the south handle their own affairs, especially with regards to the treatment of African Americans. The welfare of African Americans would not be revisited again by the Federal government until after World War II, beginning the Civil Rights Movement and the era Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., one of the most prominent orators of this time. In the summer of 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. prepared one of the greatest speeches in American history, “I Have a Dream.” During his speech, Dr. King focused on a number of contextual references: history, religion, and culture through the innovative use of content (symbolism and repetition of important phrases) that held strong conviction and inspiration with the American people.

Near the opening of his speech, he began by saying “Fivescore years ago, a great American [Abraham Lincoln], in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation.” In Abraham Lincoln’s epic speech, he started in a similar fashion: “Four scores and seven years ago” (1776). Using similar wording as a speech by Abraham Lincoln, King was able to signify the fact that “I have a Dream” is and should be regarded with prominence like Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and the Gettysburg Address. Next, King talked about the 100 years following the Emancipation Proclamation and the effects of the Compromise of 1877, which neglected the social welfare of African Americans up until the Civil Rights Movement. Through the use of symbolism, he compared the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence to checks payable to the people, black and white, from the government. Yet, the check that granted “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” (another famous American quote), the check has come back with the mark “insufficient funds” and that the African American people refuse that the “bank of justice” is bankrupt. Furthermore, he stated “Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred,” comparing to the situation for African Americans at the time.

Religion is a major aspect of King’s speech. He mentioned “Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.” Although not very significant in terms of usage, he ends his speech by tying together different religious groups in an effort to rally support from as many categories of people as possible. Near the end, he mentioned “we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children-black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics-will be able to join hands and sing.” As a minister by training, Dr. King does have some points of religion in his speech, but perhaps he decided to make it more neutral to appeal to those who don’t believe in religion or his interpretation of it.

Culture and society are also major points in his speech. During the parts where he repeated “We cannot be satisfied” and “We can never be satisfied,” he mentioned points about the situation in the American culture in which discrimination, segregation and prejudice play a major role. He mentioned about the segregation when travelling at motels and hotels; the only upward mobility in the ghettos; the signs that say “for whites only” and rights to vote only on paper, but not in practice. He also uses symbolic language to finalize his statement, “No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.” By constantly repeating “we are not satisfied” and its variations, King greatly strengthened his position and was able to enhance his presentation of his objectives. Next, he emphasized the brutality of the police, and the inhumane treatment of those involved in the Civil Rights Movement, which was a major occurrence in his time. He further reinforced his rhetoric ability by referencing different geographic regions of America and different forms of oppression that African Americans face through the use of “I have a dream that one day…(something he wants to happen)” and “Let freedom ring from…(different regions of the United States).” By using those two powerful statements consistently, his goal was to bring together many people to join his cause and emphasizing what the cause is all about.

Overall, I had a positive impression of King’s “I have a Dream” speech. It encompassed major contextual themes with the creative use of content. His excellent rhetoric ability was charismatic and articulate. His speech was able to bring together many groups of Americans in terms of race, socioeconomics and politics. However, one notable problem in his speech is that he neglected two major groups of American society at the time: Asian-Pacific Americans and Native Americans. All in all, King’s public communication ability was very successful. Especially after his passing away, the Federal government under President Lyndon B. Johnson made a strategic push with different Civil Rights Acts, most notably the 1964 and 1968, providing equality and justice for all races.