Rhetorical devices

Here are some of the rhetorical devices that President Barack Obama employs in his remarks on common-sense gun safety reform…

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Direct address

Obama directly addresses his audience through the use of the personal pronoun “you” or through the possessive “your”. Here are just two examples: “And for those in Congress who so often rush to blame mental illness for mass shootings as a way of avoiding action on guns, here’s your chance to support these efforts. Put your money wher…

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Humor and irony

In his speech, Obama uses humor and irony, which engages the audience and makes the public feel at ease and even entertained.

Humor is employed when Obama makes fun of himself:

If there’s an app that can help us find a missing tablet -- which happens to me often the older I…

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Rhetorical questions

A few rhetorical questions are employed by Barack Obama in his speech as well. The following example is meant to suggest that reducing gun violence in the US should not be a political matter but should concern every citizen in the US, no matter their political viewpoint: …