Rhetorical analysis of Michelle Obama's 2008 DNC speech

“I love this country!” Michelle Obama said fiercely at the Democratic National Convention in 2008. The audience present at the DNC, consisted of people from “Main St. America” –which is a euphemism for the middle-class. During Michelle’s speech, she channels Dr. King’s charisma and addresses the audience about a very simple and iconic message: the American Dream. Her advice to the throngs of hopeful faces was to never give up; that it is possible, the American dream is real and she is a living example of it. She emphasizes on the topic of unity throughout the twenty-minute speech to appeal to the mass. Everyone wants the same thing. Everyone wants opportunity. Everyone wants the American Dream. These are all the national views that everyone can agree upon – including those not part of the middle-class.
Michelle’s appearance comes off as very maternal. This includes her wardrobe attire. She continues to appeal to the idea of ‘unity’ –that everyone has a mother or even a sister to look to and respect. Her wardrobe, though conservative, seems to mimic the style of Jackie O: simple but elegant. Michelle has come a long way from her first public appearance to the speech she made at the convention. She was first criticized for being too overpowering and coming off as having a very harsh exterior; but it seems she has ‘dumbed’ or softened herself down from her Harvard law background into being a mold of how the First Lady should be and act.
Her use of nonverbal language includes using gentle flourishes of her hands to make an emphasis on what she is saying – instead of what she used to do with her hands, which once including making a ‘whooping’ gesture in the air. She has overtime, transformed into the character that America expects of her. This sets women back decades where Michelle unfortunately has to downplay her intelligence to cater to America – this situational need is partly because of the culture that society has cultivated when it comes to women in power. Hilary Clinton, an exceptional woman who has accomplished a lot in her lifetime, has been criticized many times for being seen as “cold”.
Michelle continues to repeat the idea of the American Dream using her maternal side as a plea. She uses her father and children as examples – which everyone has and everyone was once a child. Her audience responds positively because they believe in what Michelle and her husband will bring – their reaction is nothing negative but full of hope. Their only concern is to not repeat past mistakes and not go the same route as the last president gave them.