Speaker, audience, and medium

Speaker

The speaker of the commencement address “Make Failure Your Fuel” is former soccer player Abby Wambach, who is considered one of the best female soccer players in US history and the highest all-time goal scorer for the US national team. Wambach herself refers to her success in the speech when she mentions: “You’ve scored more goals than any human being on the planet –female or male. You’ve co-captained and led Team USA in almost every category for the past decade.” (ll. 189-193). Her success as a soccer player helps give her credibility and authority to talk about success to the young women graduates at Barnard College.

After her retirement in 2015, she published an autobiographical book, Forward, which became a New York Times bestseller. Wambach also mentions her retirement in the speech as a transition period which started with a ceremony (ll. 11-17), as a way to show the graduates that they have similar experiences. This helps Wambach come across as relatable and approachable, whic...