50 Shades of Obama

Unfortunately I didn’t get to listen to the podcast due to technological difficulties, but I did read Obama’s speech “A More Perfect Union”. I really enjoyed this read because I saw Obama in a different light. This speech is a response to controversial statements that his former pastor made, and is very powerful and well recited. Obama is obviously credible because he is the president of the United States and has had much experience in politics former to being president. Obama makes himself likeable when he talks about his goal to better America. His belief in a more prosperous future for America “comes from [his] unyielding faith in the decency and generosity of the American people” (648).  You could say that Obama is likeable because this statement is showing that he has faith in America and the people that make up America. You can tell that Obama is humble when he admits that his story “hasn’t made [him] the most conventional candidate” (649) and when he says “…a candidacy as imperfect as my own” (658). At least two times in this speech he humbly states that he might not be the perfect candidate, but is willing to do what it takes to better America. Obama makes his arguments a lot stronger when he states questions that most would ask when giving his speech and answers them. For example, “Why associate myself with Reverend Wright in the first place, they may ask? Why not join another church?” (651). He then goes on to answer those questions and provide clear explanations. Obama seems optimistic when he says, “Like the anger within the black community, these resentments aren’t always expressed in polite company. But they have helped shape the political landscape for at least a generation” (657). The reason I think he seems optimistic here is because he is finding the good out of a bad situation: shaping America into what it is today. In this speech you can obviously tell that Obama is a faithful religious man with many notions in his speech of God, and the plain fact that his speech is responding to injustice statements made by his former pastor. Obama makes himself look very family oriented and kind by many remarks in his speech. One that stood out to me was when he says that America needs to “take on full responsibility for our own lives – by demanding more from our fathers, and spending more time with our children, and reading to them, and teaching them that while they may face challenges … they must always believe that they can write their own destiny” (658).