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Mara Greenwald

Matt Wilson
Writing 2
December 1, 2015
Resemblance of Message, Distinction of Genre
The United States is a nation that continually strives to uphold its fundamental ideals of
justice and inequality. Textbooks may tell us that the radical age of violence and segregation
ended in the mid to late 20th century, but racial inequality is still an ever-present demon in
American society. The issue of racial inequality has found its way into a multitude of writing
styles as a means of discussing the social matter publically. These vast and varying writing styles
are known as genres. Each genre of writing is governed by its own set of rules and expectations
known as conventions. You can think of conventions like stereotypical norms. These norms are
the conventions that in turn create different genres. In this essay I will put your knowledge to the
test and ask you to follow along with me as we analyze and discuss the conventions of poetry
and speeches. Looking through the lens of racial inequality we will examine Langston Huges
poem, I, Too and Barack Obamas speech, A More Perfect Union, in order to understand
how two stylistically distinct genres can ultimately convey the same messages despite varying
conventions.
Both Huges poem and Obamas speech speak to the social issue of racial inequality.
They are both pieces of writing that are intended to facilitate the communication of influential
and emotional ideas about race and inequality yet they go about it in completely distinct ways.
Each genre invokes different styles, tones and structures, but each effectively express the authors
intended thoughts.
President Obamas 2008 speech on racial inequality was formal, structured, and appealed
to the emotions of the audience. As speeches are intended to persuade an audience to align

themselves with the views of the speechwriter, speeches often appeal to the emotions of the
readers. This form of rhetoric known as pathos is an effective means of persuasion as emotions
are an easy way to form connections and understanding. In this case, Obama chose to include
personal anecdotes that allow the reader to better empathize with him. He wrote, I have
brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, uncles and cousins, of every race and hue, scattered across
three continents, for as long as I live, I will never forget that in no other country on Earth is my
story even possible. (Obama). This personal information allows for connections to form between
the reader and the author. After learning personal details about the authors life, the reader feels a
more intimate and humanlike relationship that in turn can lead to an opportunity for greater
persuasion. These perceived connections demonstrate the success of the speechwriters use of
pathos to persuade his audience.
In addition to pathos, the use of formal tone is a convention of speech writing that
demonstrates seriousness, knowledge and competence. When describing his family Obama
wrote, I am the son of a black man from Kenya and a white woman from Kansas (Obama).
This formality created an understanding between the reader and the writer that the information
being communicated was important and sincere. He could have instead stated, My dad was
black and my mom was white. The decision to reject this casual tone kept his writing inline
with the conventions of speech writing, thus leading his readers to believe that he is a competent
candidate for president who is speaking from the heart about a serious issue.
Finally, Obamas speech clearly laid out every aspect of his views on racial inequality. His
readers gained thorough and clear knowledge on his stances. Clarity is an essential convention of
speeches, as readers expect to understand every aspect of a speech they read in order to best
evaluate the stances and opinions discussed. Unlike the speech given by President Obama,

Langton Huges poem I, Too is able to convey opinions and emotions about racial inequality
through an unstructured and deliberately unclear and artistic form.
This artistic writing style of poetry is a genre that is more interpretive and freeform than
most. Poets invoke the use of literary devices such as metaphors, similes, and symbolism which
cause the readers to critically analyze portions of the texts. Huges uses symbolism and ambiguity
when he writes, Tomorrow, /Ill be at the table/ When company comes (8-9). The symbolism
of the table is used to express the understanding of status one has when allowed to sit at the
dining room table, and his current inability to do so because of skin color. Additionally, these
lines also invoke ambiguity as it is unclear what the statement directly refers to. This use of
symbolism and ambiguity is a core convention of poetry as it is often a more powerful and
interpretive approach to conveying feelings than directly stating them. These non-literal
explanations force the reader to think critically about the understood content of the poem.
Symbolism and ambiguity are integral parts of poetry because they are techniques that force
people to become self-aware in order to unpack the text. People must deeply think and look
within themselves to understand world in relation to the lines of the poem.
While poetry is enjoyed by anyone who wishes to explore the genre, it takes somewhat of
an artistic and wise mind to thoroughly unravel the complexities of poetry. Speeches are a more
literal form of expression that requires less work for the reader. However despite the varying
conventions and the different intended audiences, the Langston Huges poem and the speech
given by President Barack Obama exemplify how differing genres can ultimately convey the
same messages. Conventions and genres do not restrict content and meaningthey simply
provide differing platforms for public discussion.

Works Cited
Hughes, Langston. I, Too. 1945. Poetryfoundation.org.

Obama, Barack. "A More Perfect Union." Constitution Center, Philadelphia. 17 Nov. 2008.
Huffington Post. Web.

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