Introduction
Literary genres refer to linguistic conventions that operate within specific contexts and possess similar text structures, purposes, and functions. As a result, genre analysis evaluates the communicative styles and techniques adopted by speakers to achieve their goals. Genre analysis also looks into the texts’ descriptive elements and how the message is conveyed to the targeted audience or genre community. For example, political speeches are a powerful tool to express thoughts to a group of individuals and share a strong message about human development and social constructs. On that account, the following essay reports on the genre analysis of three political speeches, including Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, Barrack Obama’s final speech as the US president, and President Joe Biden’s recent speech on the Russian-Ukraine conflict.
Text Structure
Political speeches are a form of public address that take note of human developments and issues in the political environment. As a result, the speeches take an organized and formal structure that addresses different topics and subjects. For example, President Obama’s speech talked about the political and economic developments his government had achieved over the eight years he was serving (Guardian News, 2017). The Gettysburg address focused on the ongoing civil conflict and the duty of Americans and President Biden’s speech covered issues about political conflicts, currently being experienced by individuals in Ukraine (CBS News, 2022). Therefore, these speeches address conflicting subjects but take a similar approach to introduce their topics, expound on associated issues and send a message targeting specific issues in society.
Common Terms and Phrases
Although these speeches address different topics and are given during separate periods, they share several common terms, phrases, and vocabulary. Former President Obama occasionally mentions human rights, equality, and democracy (Guardian News, 2017). Similarly, Lincoln mentions the need to fight for equality and the democracy founded by the forefathers. Additionally, President Biden suggests that it is important to live without democracy. Moreover, all speakers mention conflicts between individuals using various terms, suggesting that conflict resolution is a critical aspect of political speeches (Kirby, 2017). In addition, all speakers talk about the thriving of the human race by living in peace and collaborating. Thus, they use political terms to call on individuals to fight for democracy and a sound political environment.
The Tone of the Text
In all speeches, the speakers take a tone that is authoritative, assertive of their powerful positions, and straight to the point. The approach is critical to their delivery since it represents the power they yield over their aggressors (Kashiha, 2022). For example, former president Barrack Obama speaks of how his government stood the test of time by achieving milestones that most individuals would have ruled out as impossible. Lincoln encourages his people to fight against all forces of political evils, and President Biden talks of military power. Biden also suggests that his nation is unified with Ukrainians and has a sacred obligation with the NATO alliance, thus sending out a strict warning against attacking any member country in the Alliance.
Descriptive Element in the Text
All speeches adopt vivid descriptive elements to engage the thoughts and attention of their audience. For instance, Obama starts his speech by quoting the ideas of key political figures in US history and the documents used to declare that the US is a free state. Similarly, Lincoln and President Joe Biden provide a historical recollection of past events and conflicts where leaders always lost the battle against democracy. All leaders expound on their topics at length, offer various references to historical events, and provide various flashbacks of a time when the human race faced issues but was triumphant because of their strong will and beliefs (Kirby, 2017). As a consequence, both speakers urge individuals to fight for good because it is more powerful than evil.
The Audience in the Genre
An audience refers to the group of people or community to which the message is being directed or individuals who should act on the information. In this case, all speakers are addressing broad audiences, comprised of individuals within the immediate environment and the parties that the message concern. Nevertheless, political speeches target specific audiences in different parts of the text (Biel, 2017). For example, President Obama starts his speech by addressing political leaders and people who underestimated their abilities. However, he ends the speech by talking to all Americans and the rest of the world about the importance of collaboration and justice. Similarly, Lincoln and Biden address war soldiers, the families of individuals who have lost their lives due to conflicts, and leaders purporting the conflicts. Therefore, the language used resonates with the thoughts, emotions, needs, and ambitions of the speakers and their audience.
The Goals of the Genre
The main goals of political speeches are to mobilize individuals, create awareness about a particular idea or concept, and encourage individuals to make better political decisions to achieve a high quality of life. As a result, the speakers take advantage of their positions to describe various issues, including barriers to the development of the human race, the need to live in a democratically sound world, and how to ensure continuous political advancement toward mutual benefits and positive outcomes (Kashiha, 2022). This is seen by how all speakers adopt a language aimed at stirring people’s emotions and allowing them to brainstorm about their experiences and associated events. Throughout their speeches, the speakers share their thoughts and urge individuals to follow through by taking matters into their hands and working towards the best possible future.
Strategies Adopted by the Speakers to Achieve their Goals
The most notable strategies adopted by both speakers to achieve their goals are emotional appeal, the use of factual evidence and the recollection of past historical events to initiate a nostalgic response and urge the audience to change its ways. Additionally, the speakers adopt intense and formal language to initiate specific responses from their audience. All speakers point to the plight of individuals suffering because of a system that does not address their needs Additionally, they provide factual data and information about civil strife and its consequences (Biel, 2017). Moreover, the historical recounts serve a major role in allowing individuals to think about their actions and fight for change. Therefore, emotional appeal, factual evidence, vivid language, and historical citing play a major role in helping the speakers to deliver their message.
Conclusion
Political speeches are popular literary genres because of the high levels of engagement individuals have with politics and the economy. As a result, they are easily recognizable because of their distinct features and attributes. For example, the speakers in these contexts and people in leadership positions, yield a lot of power and are respected by their audience. Moreover, they use their positions of power to advocate for justice, peace, democracy, fighting for human rights, and continuous development. In addition, the speeches share similarities in that they both seek to initiate positive change in society using political and social means. Therefore, they fit the context of political speeches, thus supporting their genre classification as political speeches.
References
Biel, Ł. (2017). Genre analysis and translation. In The Routledge Handbook of Translation Studies and Linguistics (pp. 151-164). Routledge.
CBS News. (2022). Biden says Putin “cannot remain in power.” [Video].YouTube.
Guardian News. (2017). Barack Obama’s final speech as president – video highlights. [Video]. YouTube. Web.
Kashiha, H. (2022). Academic lectures versus political speeches: Metadiscourse functions affected by the role of the audience. Journal of Pragmatics, 190, 60-72.
Kirby, P. (2017). Political speech in fantastical worlds. International Studies Review, 19(4), 573-596.
Appendix
The Gettysburg Address by Abraham Lincoln
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate — we can not consecrate — we can not hallow — this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Abraham Lincoln, November 19, 1863.