Jeremiads have been around for thousands of years. This rhetorical strategy is named after the prophet Jeremiah, who prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem because Israelites turned their backs on the Lord and were worshipping false idols. A jeremiad is a sermon, speech, visual text, or essay that unifies people by creating tension between an ideal social life and its manifestation (Aufses). A traditional jeremiad presents a spiritual or biblical ideal for specific behaviors. It then describes the way an individual or community has fallen from the standards and provides a vision for an ideal public life that will result from a return to the high standards that have been presented (Aufses). This rhetorical strategy was started during the 1600’s
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This rhetorical strategy causes the audience to reflect on their actions that have caused them to fall out of the high standards put forward, which ultimately results in the people realizing what they must do to go back to that ideal way of living. Moreover, jeremiads are still used today because they are very effective at getting individuals, as well as communities, to look at things in a different perspective. Jeremiads also encourage civility, engagement, and personal growth because the speaker creates a unique bond with the audience. The speaker makes it clear that life would be a lot easier for everyone if they would simply follow the rules and live up to the high standards that have been put forward. Yet jeremiads do not have to be written to promote a spiritual or political change; they can also be used to persuade audiences into a social …show more content…
Obama delivered this speech at the memorial service for the victims of the shooting in Tucson, Arizona on January 8, 2012. This shooting killed six Americans and injured thirteen: one of the injured being congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (Aufses). Obama’s speech is not intended as an emotionless way to communicate information but rather to comfort the people touched by the event, as well as to guide them in how to handle their sorrow. He is able to create such an effective jeremiad by clearly presenting an ideal behavior for Americans; Obama says that Americans should strive to be better as a result of the loss of their loved ones (Obama). He goes on to describe the way in which the United States has fallen from those standards simply because they are so caught up looking back at the past: building resentment for those who have hurt their loved ones and seeking revenge . Finally, Obama provides a vision for an ideal public life where the citizens of America should be civil and know that they can question each other 's ideas without questioning each other’s love for their country and things they might not agree upon. Nevertheless, Obama explains how the true American Dream can be strengthened for future generations of Americans if today 's society simply works together and stops clashing heads so often. However, this ultimate goal can only
This rhetorical strategy causes the audience to reflect on their actions that have caused them to fall out of the high standards put forward, which ultimately results in the people realizing what they must do to go back to that ideal way of living. Moreover, jeremiads are still used today because they are very effective at getting individuals, as well as communities, to look at things in a different perspective. Jeremiads also encourage civility, engagement, and personal growth because the speaker creates a unique bond with the audience. The speaker makes it clear that life would be a lot easier for everyone if they would simply follow the rules and live up to the high standards that have been put forward. Yet jeremiads do not have to be written to promote a spiritual or political change; they can also be used to persuade audiences into a social …show more content…
Obama delivered this speech at the memorial service for the victims of the shooting in Tucson, Arizona on January 8, 2012. This shooting killed six Americans and injured thirteen: one of the injured being congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (Aufses). Obama’s speech is not intended as an emotionless way to communicate information but rather to comfort the people touched by the event, as well as to guide them in how to handle their sorrow. He is able to create such an effective jeremiad by clearly presenting an ideal behavior for Americans; Obama says that Americans should strive to be better as a result of the loss of their loved ones (Obama). He goes on to describe the way in which the United States has fallen from those standards simply because they are so caught up looking back at the past: building resentment for those who have hurt their loved ones and seeking revenge . Finally, Obama provides a vision for an ideal public life where the citizens of America should be civil and know that they can question each other 's ideas without questioning each other’s love for their country and things they might not agree upon. Nevertheless, Obama explains how the true American Dream can be strengthened for future generations of Americans if today 's society simply works together and stops clashing heads so often. However, this ultimate goal can only