Analysis of Obama's speech of November 4, 2008

Here's what history may remember of Obama's speech of November 4, 2008:

There were two important themes in Obama's speech: unity and inspiration, with two historical figures: Lincoln and Martin Luther King. These are the lines that may last:

1. "If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer."
This line uses Obama's favourite oratorical device, the tricolon, the use of three clearly definable clauses to build to a strong finish. A tricolon are often the lines we remember (think, "veni, vidi, vinci"). Technically, all words must be the same length, but that's hard to accomplish in modern English. The tricolon was also Abraham Lincoln's rhetorical mainstay ("With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right" in his second inaugural address on March 4, 1865, or in his Gettysburg address on November 19, 1863: "We cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground" and "a government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth").

The Gettysburg address was a speech given to dedicate a military cemetery at the site of a terrible, but decisive, battle. So the ceremony where this speech was delivered was all about dedication and consecration of that piece of ground to the men that fell there. To 'hallow' means to make something sacred. What Lincoln is saying is that we mere mortals could never give words that are worthy of the price these fallen soldiers paid. They gave 'their last measure of devotion' for the sake of the Union, their very lives. He is saying that the government has no authority to dedicate or consecrate or make the land holy because the people who fought and died there trying to preserve the union (the USA) had already made the land holy as a result of their dedication and patriotism. This is one of the most famous speeches in all US history. One of the things that also makes it precious is its brevity. The thoughts expressed here show so much of what a truly humble man Lincoln was. He was the kind of leader that cared deeply for these men. Just before the President made this speech, another public official (the Governor of Pennsylvania?) spoke for almost 2 hours. Then Lincoln stood and gave his 2-minute speech, there was no applause after his speech and so Lincoln thought it was a total failure…

2. "It's the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day."
This speech might become known as the "Arc of History" speech. The rhetorical line here is a paraphrase of Martin Luther King's August 16, 1967 speech, in which he declared "the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." This line has matured over time. When Obama started using it, he quoted King verbatim, but has now adapted and made it his own.

3. "A new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope."
This is the most rhetorically elegant part of the speech, and its emotional core. It uses the tricolon format again, and hits hard on ideals. It's also a unique part of the speech; it's not paraphrased or quoted.

4. "Those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes We Can."
These are the closing words of the address, which echo the lead mantra of Obama's presidential campaign.

Here is a complete transcript of the speech for you to download: OBAMA_SPEECHbig