Originally written for Advanced Language Composition at Santa Monica College, taught by Professor Susan Caggiano
Commencement speeches can be many things — motivational, inspiring, maybe nostalgic — but when expertly crafted and considered, they can be all those things and call out the wrongs of a presidential candidate in it’s spare time. The ways people write commencement speeches can vary from person to person, but generally, they start with Thank You’s, tell one or multiple theme proving stories, and focus on the success and future of the graduates. They give the speaker a chance to talk about their lives, and pass on knowledge that they might have needed when they were just graduating college. In Michelle Obama’s last commencement speech as First Lady, to City College of New York, she shows her audience what a political figure should look like while hitting all the marks of what a commencement speech should be. Michelle Obama takes care in how she speaks and gives advice, she humanizes herself to relate to her audience while giving personal anecdotes, she speaks about others with respect while building them up, and she focuses on one of the most important topics present in today’s world to adhere to her theme, all while speaking to the future, to the graduates: “I’m going to talk a little bit about diversity, thank you.”
The beginning of a commencement speech sets the tone for what is to come. By making allusions to Donald Trump in the very beginning of the speech, Michelle Obama sets a politically charged tone, and makes it obvious that she disagrees with many of the promises of Trump’s campaign. The most specific of her references lies within a section of the speech that is talking about the American Dream, and what America represents: the ability to make it no matter who you are. In this section, she is directly challenging Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan, by saying America has always been great because of its diversity, as well as specifically speaking against one of his main campaign promises: “And here in America, we don’t give in to our fears. We don’t build up walls to keep people out” (Obama). She also chooses to make a reference to the fear tactics Trump has used when dealing with issues of immigration and other versions of his so-called diversity: “I have seen how leaders who rule by intimidation –- leaders who demonize and dehumanize entire groups of people –- often do so because they have nothing else to offer” (Obama). This is a far less direct way of speaking about Trump than the previous example. Despite this indirect approach, it serves its purpose in naming Trump’s tactics as wrong as well as challenging people to rise above hatred, bigotry, and fear of the unknown. Finally, while speaking about the hidden advantage of struggle the graduates have, she alludes not only to Trump, but to all people raised in privilege and money: “They lost it, because they were ill-equipped to handle their first encounter with disappointment or falling short” (Obama). This allusion is used to show the graduates in front of her, and all the people who are struggling, that coming from a place of privilege can actually be a disadvantage when it comes to dealing with real life problems. Each time Mrs. Obama uses allusion in this speech, she is showing her own belief in the strength of diversity of America and telling the graduates that they have more strength than they might have originally thought.
With each sentence in this speech, Michelle Obama takes great care in choosing her words and how she delivers them. Specifically, we see her rely on alliteration, anaphora, and thoughtful diction to deliver her message. Alliteration is an appeal to the pathos of the audience; it makes her words sound melodical and adds emphasis to the word belonging to each repeated sound: “Be great. Build great lives for yourselves. Enjoy the liberties that you have in this great country. Pursue your own version of happiness. And please, please, always, always do your part to help others do the same” (Obama). The repetition of the “B” and “P” sounds creates a steady beat in her sentences, that allows the audience to be carried along with her words and easily understand her message. The alliteration serves to emphasize the action verbs, insisting further that people listen to her and follow through. This works because being carried gently from instruction to instruction makes it less intimidating to follow what the First Lady is telling you to do. In this quote, she also uses anaphora when she repeats the word “great.” This repetition drives in the idea that the graduates listening are–and are part of –something great. It instills confidence and really makes them feel her belief in them and what they can achieve. Furthermore, she uses very specific diction throughout the speech. She often goes back and forth between formal and colloquial language, showing both the formality of the event and that she is an everyday person who has been in their shoes, and therefore can be trusted: “unyielding determination, sacrifice, and a whole lot of hard work” (Obama). Had she remained completely formal, or chosen to be casual the whole way through, the audience would be left feeling talked down to or underwhelmed. This balance between the two options is hard to achieve and maintain. Each of these devices help make the words of Michelle Obama even more refreshing and clear, analyzing them makes you realize how thought and planned her writing is. In anything she does, Michelle Obama has the added battle of convincing people she deserves to be First Lady and treated with respect. Throughout her time with Barack Obama in the white house, she had people questioning her authority and choices, acting as if they knew better because they were white and/or a man (because wearing a sleeveless dress means you lack dignity but cursing out the First Lady on Facebook means you know better). With this speech, Michelle proves once again that she is much more than just The President’s wife.
One of the best ways to convince your audience to listen to you is to supply them with personal details and information. Contradictory as it sounds, talking about yourself (in the right way) is one of the best ways to get listeners or readers to like you. Michelle Obama has mastered this art of talking about herself in a way that both commands the authority she deserves, and shows people that she is human, just like them. The former First Lady uses the audience’s knowledge of who she is in order to keep their respect for her and make them listen: “my last chance to share my love and admiration, and hopefully a little bit of wisdom with a graduating class,” “as First Lady, I have had the privilege of traveling around the world and visiting dozens of different countries, and I have seen what happens when ideas like these take hold.” This choice to call upon her power and knowledge works because she speaks about herself humbly. Using the word “hopefully” shows that she doesn’t expect people to listen to her without thought, and mentioning that she has traveled around the world gives the audience reason to believe what she is saying about the dangers of leading with fear. Mrs. Obama is telling them that she hasn’t just read about these things or heard about them, she has actually been there, and seen them in person. This appeals to the audience’s logos, and gives them justification to believe her. She contrasts this use of her power by understating the barriers between her and the audience, showing them ways she is just like them: “As many of you know, I grew up in a working class family in Chicago. And while neither of my parents went past high school, let me tell you, they saved up every penny that my dad earned at his city job because they were determined to send me to college” (Obama). This choice to re-humanize herself appeals to people’s pathos, since she’s relating to them in ways they might not have known about before. It further shows the audience that they should take her advice because she has been where they are now, and she’s made it out of that situation and become one of the most powerful women in the world. It gives hope to anyone listening that they can do it too, and that life gets better. Most of the other First Ladies grew up from a place of privilege, so when Michelle opens up and shows the graduates that she lived life similarly to them and without all the privileges of a wealthy white american, she encourages them to believe in the future of this country despite the political climate. This method of talking about herself works incredibly well in appealing to the graduates’ ethos, and builds her demonstration of how a political figure should speak.
The way you talk about or to others often reveals what type of person you are. When Michelle Obama speaks about the graduates in front of her, she does so in a way that builds them up and shows her respect for them as human beings. She uses her political power to encourage everyone who listens to take pride in who they are, no matter what their background is, no matter how different or similar it is to hers. This way of speaking and choice of delivery appeals to the audience’s pathos, since it makes them feel good about themselves and shows her belief in their ability to succeed despite any hardships they’re experiencing. She uses amplification here to continuously add on to why she believes in them, and specifically uses it while talking about her audience to keep this appeal to pathos strong: “These are just four of the nearly 4,000 unique and amazing stories in this graduating class –- stories that have converged here at City College, this dynamic, inclusive place where you all have had the chance to really get to know each other,” “at this school, you represent more than 150 nationalities. You speak more than 100 different languages — whoa, just stop there. You represent just about every possible background -– every color and culture, every faith and walk of life” (Obama). Building up the people being talked about is a sign of a great person and specifically a great political figure. In this speech, Michelle Obama shows that she believes the diversity that the City College has is its greatest asset. This brings unity to the college and strengthens the audience’s admiration for her, as well as proves her admiration of what they have accomplished.
Throughout this whole commencement speech, Michelle Obama has praised the graduates, warned against taking privilege for granted, and shown everyone that America’s diversity is what makes it strong. She focused on diversity, unity, and accomplishments, she encouraged the graduates in front of her to take nothing for granted but that they deserve everything they work for and she taught them how to navigate their future and the future of this country. By choosing to send such a political and hopeful message to the future of America, she has shown her confidence in them, and that she believes we as a country can succeed no matter what:
“this school was the gateway to actually realizing that opportunity in their lives, founded on the fundamental truth that talent and ambition know no distinctions of race, nationality, wealth, or fame, and dedicated to the ideals that our Founding Fathers put forth more than two centuries ago: That we are all created equal, all entitled to ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness’” (Obama)
Through this speech, the former First Lady showed the graduates, and the hundreds of thousands of others who ended up seeing it, what a First Lady and political figure should look like. Her words rallied the graduates, causing them to applaud, call out praises, and change how they see their future and the future of America. These responses to her speech prove just how good of a speaker she is, and how powerful it can be to see someone you respect, someone who looks like you, in a position of power. She is one of the most important political figures of recent times, and she continuously inspires those who haven’t been heard to keep pushing and do their very best. She was able to use rhetorical devices to send off the graduates with the belief that they can succeed and prosper through anything they come across as long as they put in the work.
Works Cited
Obama, Michelle. “Remarks by the First Lady at City College of New York Commencement.” National Archives and Records Administration. National Archives and Records Administration, 3 June 2016. Web. 11 May 2017.