Barack_Obama_Inauguration_Soeech_Analysis

Barack Obama’s Oil Spill Oval office Address Transcript Barack Obama addressed the America nation on June 15th, 2010 in his office. His speech was made after a BP oil spill just of the Gulf of Mexico. This was a moment of crisis, and the government was being criticised for not reacting fast enough. The President’s audience were the American population watching on their televisions and that were affected by the spill. Obama’s main purpose of this speech was to reassure the viewers that he was handling the situation. His posture throughout the speech is very reassuring and calming as he has his back up straight and he seems calm though firm, his shoulders are broad throughout the speech. Mr. Obama’s demeanour towards his audience throughout the speech is calming, he keeps eye contact with the camera throughout the speech, utilizing the television and the internet to connect with the individual, and he is building a rapport on a one-to-one basis. The opening of his speech was very formal, he greets the audience by saying “Good evening”, this immediately uplifts the audience and builds a rapport with the audience. Mr. Obama uses many plural pronouns, this is inclusive to the audience rapport, my using pronouns such as “as we speak, our nation faces a multitude of challenges”, this make the audience feel included in the speech and that they are having their own say, also by saying “as we speak”, this makes the audience feel they are being spoken to on a one-to-one basis. At the start of his speech, Mr. Obama’s hands are entwined, this establishes seriousness. Throughout the speech, Mr. Obama uses hand gestures, though they are reserved showing that the oil spill should not cause panic, but that everyone should remain calm, and be constructive during the spill. From the start of his speech the tone the President uses is generally low as he has no ‘live’ audience and therefore he doesn’t need his voice to soar. Throughout the speech there is a sustained low tone with occasional stress which is indicative of the severity of the issue and Mr. Obama’s determination to address the issue. Emphasis is put upon words such as, “brave, home and abroad”, this stresses Obama argument that he is a busy man as President and this is why is has taken him so long to address the issue of the oil spill. One of the first things Obama includes in his speech is a parallel phrase, “At home, our top priority is to recover and rebuild from a recession that has touched the lives of nearly every American.  Abroad, our brave men and women in uniform are taking the fight to al Qaeda wherever it exists.” Using a parallel phrase helps the audience remember, as this is typical of a prepared speech and it helps create rhythm so it is easily remembered symmetry. Obama uses many rhetorical devices throughout his speech, he uses an extended metaphor of battle starting with, “the battle we’re waging against an oil spill that is assaulting our shores and our citizens.” This places a military image in the minds of his audience, he includes this metaphor throughout his speech telling his audience that, “we will be fighting” and they have a “battle plan”. Focusing on war imagery make it sound that the American government are going to fight BP and it shows they are in control. Obama uses alliteration, saying America’s top priority is to “recover and rebuild from a recession”, alliteration helps something stick in the listener’s mind, because of the repetition on certain sounds. Obama also uses a lot of Emotive language, e.g. “our brave men”, “assaulting our shores” and “oil began spewing into the water”, the use of emotive language draws up feelings in people which they previously they may not have felt. President Obama uses a narrative structure, he tells the story of what happened including all the facts, he does this so people in the wide audience who may not have known the full story, now have more details, as he is describing the situation to date. He emphasises some major points, “On April 20th”, “40 miles of the coast” and “Eleven workers lost their lives.  Seventeen others were injured.” He does this to show that he knows everything that has gone on and that he is in control. Barack Obama uses very cautious language when talking about the clean-up operation, he is less-confident but still reassuring, though does not promise anything, he is very careful with his words, stating, “efforts should capture up to 90 per cent of the oil” and that they’re “expected to stop the leak completely”. By using modal auxiliary verbs, Obama is vague and is showing less confidence but still reassuring his audience. Mr. Obama’s language is reassuring as it is not overconfident as it is still cautious. Obama seem to take charge by telling his audience that, he personally assembly a team. He includes a superlative by saying that is has “our nations best scientists and engineers.” He also says that the team is, “led by Dr. Steven Chu, a Nobel Prize-winning physicist”; this makes it sound legitimate and make it sound more trustworthy. There is rhythmic Constance were he says “The millions of gallons of oil that have spilled”, it rolls of the tongue and sticks in the listeners memory. When Mr. Obama says the line, “make no mistakes”, his tone off voice is still calm though his volume gets louder.