Alvarez

Victoria Alvarez
Professor Sally Olivas
English 101
16 September 2016
Michelle Obamas Use of Rhetoric
First Lady Michelle Obama effectively uses all forms of rhetoric in her 2016 National
Democratic Convention Speech by emotionally appealing to the audience and using credible
logic and facts to persuade the audience to vote for candidate Hillary Clinton. Throughout her
entire speech, she uses ethos to cause the audience to believe her; she talks about her children
which is a direct appeal to parents. Another form of rhetoric she uses is logos; Obama uses valid,
legitimate examples and information to justify her credibility. The most important form of
rhetoric that she uses is pathos. She has a very strong emotional connection with the audience;
this is because she relates to how she has her own children and wants them to live in a safer and
better country. Lastly, Obama uses diction throughout by constantly referring to the children or
the kids of the country. She successfully uses all aspects of rhetoric within her speech.
Throughout Obamas speech, she uses plausible information and examples to persuade
the audience to believe and agree with everything she says. Obama does this when she says,
And let me tell you, Barack and I take that same approach to our jobs as President and First
Lady, because we know that our words and actions matter not just to our girls, but to children
across this country (Obama). She creates a trust between herself and the audience because all
parents can easily relate to wanting the best for their children. Another thing she says is, There
is only one person who I trust with that responsibility, only one person who I believe is truly
qualified to be President of the United States, and that is our friend, Hillary Clinton, this is

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another effective way she gains trust from the audience (Obama). If she can trust Hillary with her
children, shouldnt everyone else too? Obamas form of ethos is very powerful and persuasive,
causing the audience to believe they should vote for Clinton.
Obama makes it evident in her speech she creates her form of logos by validating her
information and causing the audience to trust her since her examples are dependable. When
Obama says, Because as a true public servant, Hillary knows that this is so much bigger than
her own desires and disappointments, so she proudly stepped up to serve our country once again
as Secretary of State, traveling the globe to keep our kids safe (Obama). She is confirming
Hillarys acts of helping children by talking about how, at her previous job, she did just that.
Obama wants someone of previous public service to run the country, so she states that Hillary
has that experience and is fitted to the position; this causes a trust with the audience, convincing
them that they should want only Hillary to run the country since she has previous experience.
The strongest form of rhetoric that Obama uses throughout her speech is pathos; it is the
most effective because she uses her own life experiences to relate to the everyday normal person.
Obama also addresses how she, too, is a mother, and she yearns for her children to grow up in a
better country than it is now, I also told you about our daughtershow they are the heart of our
hearts, the center of our world; this is the first key point that really appeals to the audience,
showing that she and Barrack are parents, too, outside of the presidency (Obama). Obama
references that a lot, but another time it really stood out was when she said, And when I think
about the kind of President that I want for my girls and all of our children, thats what I want. I
want someone with the proven strength to preserve. Someone who knows this job and takes it
seriously (Obama). Not only does she reference her own children, but every single child in the
nation. Her form of pathos is very effective in that most parents want the best for their children

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and her saying that Hillary can provide that is convincing enough to cause them to vote for her or
even just consider it.
Diction is very well used in Obamas speech; she takes it upon herself to constantly talk
about the children and kids of this country, not just her own, but everyones kids and how we
need to make this a safe place for them to live. From start to finish, the main words she uses are
children and kids; they each are said a handful of times within. When Obama says, Keep our
kids safe and I want a president who will teach our children that everyone in this country
matters (Obama), it becomes a form of repetition within the speech and gives a clear message
that she wants the future to be for the children. Her form of diction is repetitive, yet not
overbearing.
First Lady Michelle Obama effectively uses all forms of rhetoric in her 2016 National
Democratic Convention Speech by emotionally appealing to the audience and using credible
logic and facts to persuade the audience to vote for candidate Hillary Clinton. She uses these
forms of rhetoric to emotionally and logically capture the audience into believing all that she
says is true in order to ensure the audience will vote for Clinton.

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Works Cited
Obama, Michelle. Michelle Obamas Speech At 2016 Democratic National Convention.
Democratic National Convention. Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. 25 July 2016. Speech