Remarks by the President Obama at the 9/11 Memorial Observance Ceremony

The Pentagon - Arlington, Virginia,September 11,2016 , 9:43 A.M. EDT

Good morning. 1 Scripture tells us, Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake
youwrite them on the tablet of your heart.2
Secretary Carter, Chairman Dunford, outstanding members of our Armed Forces, and most
of all, survivors of that September day and the families of those we lost3 -- it is a great
honor, once again, to be with you on this day, a day that I know3 is still difficult, but which
reveals the love and faithfulness in your hearts and in the heart of our nation.
We remember,5 and we will never forget, the nearly 3,000 beautiful lives4. taken from us so
cruelly -- including 184 men, women and children here, the youngest just three years
old. We honor5 the courage of those who put themselves in harms way to save people they
never knew. We come5 together in prayer and in gratitude for the strength that has fortified
us across these 15 years 5. And we renew 5 the love and the faith that binds us together as
one American family.
Fifteen years5;7; may seem like a long time, but for the families who lost a piece of their
heart that day, I imagine it can seem like just yesterday. Perhaps its the memory of a last
kiss given to a spouse, or the last goodbye to a mother or father, a sister or a brother. We
wonder how their lives might have unfolded, how their dreams might have taken
shape. And I am mindful that no words we offer, or deeds we do, can ever truly erase the
pain of their absence.
And yet, you -- the survivors and families of 9/11 6- your steadfast love and faithfulness
has been an inspiration to me and to our entire country. Even as youve mourned, youve
summoned the strength to carry on. In the names of those youve lost, youve started
scholarships and volunteered in your communities, and done your best to be a good
neighbor and a good friend and a good citizen.10And in your grief and grace, you have
reminded us that, together, theres nothing we Americans cannot overcome.
The question before us, as always, is: How do we preserve the legacy of those we
lost? How do we live up to their example? And how do we keep their spirit alive in our
own hearts?8.
Well, we have seen the answer in a generation of Americans -- our men and women in
uniform, diplomats, intelligence, homeland security and law enforcement professionals10;6
-- all who have stepped forward to serve and who have risked and given their lives to help
keep us safe. Thanks to their extraordinary service, weve dealt devastating blows to al
Qaeda.9
We've delivered justice to Osama bin Laden. Weve strengthened our homeland security.
We've prevented attacks. We've saved lives. We resolve to continue doing everything in
our power to protect this country that we love.5.1And today7, we once again pay tribute to
these patriots, both military and civilian, who serve in our name, including those far away
from home in Afghanistan and Iraq. 7
Perhaps most of all, we stay true to the spirit of this day by defending not only our country,
but also our ideals. Fifteen years5 into this fight, the threat has evolved. With our stronger
defenses, terrorists often attempt attacks on a smaller, but still deadly, scale. Hateful
ideologies4 urge people in their own country to commit Weve mourned the loss of
innocents from Boston to San Bernardino to Orlando. 7
Groups like al Qaeda, like ISIL9, know that we will never be able -- they will never be able
to defeat a nation as great and as strong as America4. So, instead, they've tried to terrorize
in the hopes that they can stoke enough fear that we turn on each other and that we change
who we are or how we live. And that's why it is so important today that we reaffirm our
character as a nation -- a people drawn from every corner of the world, every color, every
religion, every background5.1 -- bound by a creed as old as our founding, e pluribus
unum. Out of many, we are one. 2 For we know that our diversity -- our patchwork heritage
6-- is not a weakness; it is still, and always will be, one of our greatest strengths. This is the
America that was attacked that September morning. This is the America that we must
remain true to.5.1
Across our country today7, Americans are coming together in service and
remembrance. We run our fingers over the names in memorial benches here at the
Pentagon7. We walk the hallowed grounds of a Pennsylvania field7. We look up at a
gleaming tower that pierces the New York City skyline.7 But in the end, the most enduring
memorial to those we lost is ensuring the America that we continue to be -- that we stay true
to ourselves, that we stay true to what's best in us, that we do not let others divide us.5.1
As I mark this solemn day with you for the last time as President I think of Americans
whose stories Ive been humbled to know these past eight years7 Americans5 who, I
believe, embody the true spirit of 9/11. 3;
Its 5.1the courage of Welles Crowther9, just 24 years old, in the South tower -- the man in
the red bandana who spent his final moments helping strangers to safety before the towers
fell. Its 5.1the resilience of the firehouse 9on Eighth Avenue -- patriots who lost more than
a dozen men, but who still suit up every day as the Pride of Midtown. Its the love of a
daughter9 -- Payton Wall of New Jersey -- whose father, in his last moments on the phone
from the towers, told her, I will always be watching over you.2.2
Its 5.1the resolve of those Navy SEALS 9who made sure justice was finally done, who
served as we must live as a nation -- getting each others backs, looking out for each other,
united, one mission, one team.10 Its the ultimate sacrifice of men and women who rest for
eternity not far from here, in gentle green hills in perfect formation -- Americans who gave
their lives in faraway places so that we can be here today, strong and free and proud. Its all
of us5 -- every American who gets up each day, and lives our lives, carries on. Because as
Americans,5 we do not give in to fear. We will 3preserve our freedoms and the way of life
that makes us a beacon to the world.11
Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake youwrite them on the tablet of your
heart. 2.1And how we conduct ourselves as individuals and as a nation, we have the
opportunity each and every day to live up to the sacrifice of those heroes that we lost.
May God bless the memory of the loved ones here and across the country. They remain in
our hearts today. May He watch over these faithful families and all who protect us. And
may God forever bless the United States of America.12.
 Remarks by the President Obama at the 9/11 Memorial Observance Ceremony

(The Pentagon - Arlington, Virginia,September 11,2016 , 9:43 A.M. EDT)

Speech Analisys

This speech of President Barack Obama was delivered at a Pentagon ceremony marking
the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in 2011.Exactly 15 years ago, nearly 3,000 people
were killed in New York City, Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon during terrorist attacks
carried out by al-Qaida, a Muslim militant group founded by Osama bin Laden.Even if it can
be considered rather a sentimental tribute to the victims than a public and political
announcement, this speech still manages to empower the american people , influence and
also manipulate certain feelings.Therefore, considering all the above, this speech carries some
rhetorical devices that will be annalised from this objective and critical point of view.

The remarks and the thoughts of the President Obama are not only of a great importance to
the politicians and representatives figures of national security.The target audience consists of
the whole nation(survivors, affected families) that took part physically and emotionally to
the tragedy and still share feelings of regret and sorrow.The topic provides an informational
content to all people around the world; it is about an issue and and a constant
danger:terrorism.

The persuasion ,as we know, can take many forms in terms of manipulation. Here, the
speech meant to seduce the locutors because it is based on emotions. There are not invited
to take action .They are expected to reflect and control their sadness,anger and other
suppresed fellings.All this happens through words and ideas expressed by the President,that
can result, at a lower scale, a mass-manipulation.

Introduction is the part of the beginning of speech in which locutor greets and capture the
attention of the listeners.Here, the President use a collective formula of greetingGood
morning, that shows the double function of it :social and psycological one.He also uses
appellatives that address both specific categories of listeners and the whole audience ,
Secretary Carter, Chairman Dunford, outstanding members of our Armed Forces, and most
of all, survivors of that September day and the families of those we lost.
This method of acuumulation of appelatives indicates that one or several most important
officials present are firslty introduced and then the rest of the audience collectively.
Remarkable is that the head of state uses from the beginning a quote from
Scripture,Proverbs,3:3 Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you..write them on
the tablet of your heart. This kind of quotes are used mainly in times of conflicts and
distress to calm down the spirits, to relieve the pain,and to raise hopes in a more serene
future.

The thesis specifies the subject of this speech,the commemoration of the victimis in 9/11
terrorist attack.The purpose is to remember the victims,to honour them and to renew the
love and the faith that bindsthe american people, as a family.

As for authority part, Barack Obama doesnt give details on the self-introduction, since
everyone knows the President of the United States of America, but still mentions through the
end , that this memorial speech is his last one in this position of head of state: I mark this
solemn day with you for the last time as President.

Summerising, the president choose to point fingers at the malefactors that created the
national chaos in the U.S. In the other hand, he gives special thanks to the all persons and
organizations that have contributed and were involved in maintaning a stability after and
during the disater.Thanks to their extraordinary service, weve dealt devastating blows to al
Qaeda.

Since the subject is of a great sensibility to the audience, some rethorical question are
commonly to appear, followed by the response of the locutor: The question before us, as
always, is: How do we preserve the legacy of those we lost? (..)Well, we have seen the
answer in a generation of Americans.

This answer is also followed by series of thanks and demonstrations that marks the
transition to the body of the speech. Here, the american exceptionalism ca be spotted without
any effort, even by the motto used to describe the american nation: e pluribus unum.Out of
many, we are one.;or by making use of the figures of speech:We will preserve our
freedoms and the way of life that makes us a beacon to the world.

Considering the collateral circumsances of place,time, issue and person,used here as a

rhetorical device, we can observe that their main function is to win the listeners benevolence
and more credibility. Some of them are expresed in the following examples:place: We run
our fingers over the names in memorial benches here at the Pentagontime : fifteen years
may seem like a long time, issue :nearly 3,000 beautiful lives taken from us so cruelly,
person:Groups like al Qaeda, like ISIL, know that (...) -they will never be able to defeat a
nation as great and as strong as America.

The part in which the previous biblical proverb is recalled, may be considered the transition
to conclusion. It is the moment where the main points of the locutor are crucial to be
remembered.Therefore, the head of the state considered that some moral values, such as love
and faith, should be preserved with great gratitude .The closig statement, where a collateral
circumstance of person is used, invoks God and His blessing on their nation:And may God
forever bless the United States of America.

As for the rhetorical devices encountered in this speech, used to increase the seductive and
persuasive power of the discourse we can mention those in means of; amplification, such as
repetition, Fifteen years(..).Fifteen years anaphora: Its the courage of Welles(..);Its the
resilience of the firehouse(..);Its the love of a daughter(..);Its the resolve of those(..);Its
the ultimate sacrifice,enumerationour men and women in uniform, diplomats,
intelligence, homeland security and law enforcement professionals, accumulations of
various structures,appositionsAnd yet, you -- the survivors and families of 9/11 your
steadfast love and faithfulness has been an inspiration to me and to our entire country.

We also find superlative constructions, leading to the intensification of meaning Hateful

ideologies,the ultimate sacrifice,a nation as great and as strong as America.The
integration of quotation:Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you..write them on
the tablet of your heart. ,I will always be watching over you.The figures of speech,as the
methaphorical comparison:our freedoms and the way of life that makes us a beacon to the
world.

After analyzing Obamas memorial speeches from the theoretical basis of language,one can
conclude that the President knows how to make use of rhetorical devices in his speeches.In
this manner,the audiences attention is attracted and the speakers words are more powerful
and persuading. He prefers to create a thought-provoking atmosphere by syntactic
parallelism,compared with lexical and phonological rhetoric devices.The simplicity,accuracy
and the perssuasion techniques of Obamas discourse reveals a veritably qualified orator.
1-GREETINGS

2-QUOTES

2.1USE OF BIBLICAL AND RELIGIOUS QUOTES

2.2 FROM OTHER SOURCES

3-THE INTEGRATION OF ONESELF IN THE SITUATION;TAKING PART-FORM OF

EMPATHY.

4-SUPERLATIVES

5- REPETITIONS

5.1.ANAPHORA

6-APPOSITIONS

8-RETHORICAL QUESTIONS

7.COLLATERAL CIRCUMSTANCES(PLACE,TIME, MANNER, ISSUE,PERSON)

9.THANKING AND PRASING CRITICISM

10.EUNUMERATIONS

11.FIGURES OF SPEECH

11.1 METAPHORA

11.2.COMPARISION

12. INVOKING GOD