Friday, September 7, 2012
The Master – reviewPaul Thomas Anderson's meditation on Scientology starring Joaquin Phoenix is an utterly absorbing psychological drama of marginal lives
Peter Bradshaw writes from the UK
on 2 September 2012
Paul Thomas Anderson is a film-maker from whom special things are expected, and that's what he has given us – something special. This is Anderson's meditation on the origins of Scientology and the career of L Ron Hubbard, and perhaps every kind of cult and guru following, which he portrays not as sinister exactly, but as the poignant symptom of loneliness and uneducated intelligence.
It's an arresting and utterly absorbing psychological drama of marginal lives, an emotional history of charlatanism and gimcrack philosophy, a world of snakeoil truth salesmen offering self-medication of the spirit, all set in a postwar America realised with superb flair and confidence, utterly without cliché. Without preamble, we are plunged into the tortured inner world of its lead character, whose confused sense of pain, destiny and dread is summoned up by the orchestral score by Jonny Greenwood. It has the feel of something by Steinbeck or DeLillo.
This, of course, is not the first time Anderson has dramatised a cult leader: there was the charismatic seduction coach Frank Mackey in Magnolia, played by Tom Cruise. Watching this, I wondered how Cruise might have played the lead role here. What Cruise will make of this film is anyone's guess.
It has a stunning lead performance from Joaquin Phoenix, a performance quite different from and in advance of anything he has given us before, an achievement that puts him on a par with the young Pacino or De Niro. Phoenix plays Freddie Quell, a disturbed young man discharged from the US Navy in 1945 after treatment for psychiatric disorder. Freddie is an alcoholic, his face gaunt and haunted, agonised and twisted with his own swallowed misery; he is addicted to the poisonous moonshine he brews himself, a transient who stumbles from job to job, and then finally, through the mysterious workings of fate and zen – as he is given to understand – the hobo Freddie meets his redeemer. He drunkenly attempts to stow away, perhaps with the vague hope of asking for work, on a grand motor-yacht apparently rented for a wedding reception.
The person in charge is Lancaster Dodd, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, the cult leader solemnly referred to as "The Master" by his acolytes, a puce-faced public speaker who believes in curing physical and psychological ills by rooting out the previous selves and interplanetary interlopers from millions of years ago, through confrontational interrogations and therapies which are like hypnosis or recovered memory. The Master is secretly amused by Quell, gets a taste for his hooch, and decides to make of him a special project, a perfect case for his enlightened treatment. Freddie is the Fool to his Lear, or Peter (or maybe Judas) to his Jesus. With the encouragement of Dodd's zealous wife Mary Sue (Amy Adams), and with Dodd's own tacit consent, Freddie beats up rationalists who try to disrupt their meetings, or even followers who are insufficiently enthusiastic. But Freddie can never forget the emotional pain that brought him to this pass, and Anderson suggests that Dodd's tragedy is that his friendship with Freddie can never work out, and even that poor, muddled Freddie has a certain innocence, something which can't be seduced.
Anderson conjures a strange and dysfunctional world, a world that looks like 1950s America, but perhaps more like some alien planet that happens to look exactly like ours, a world pregnant with disturbing secrets. The setpieces and extended scenes are magnificently realised, arresting and bizarre. Freddie the seaman mumbling and masturbating on a beach, Freddie the department store photographer, Freddie the field hand, Freddie the bum. His tattered life passes before us, in its various phases, as in a frieze, stumbling towards his destiny and then onward, leaving even that behind. When he is being broken down by Dodd, the scenes are extended, happening almost in real time: it is discomfiting and bizarre. Hoffman's performance is not quite as distinctive as Phoenix's – and he arguably displays some mannerisms from previous movies – but he is utterly plausible as the leader and pseudo-scientific thinker, somewhere between Mussolini and Dale Carnegie.
The movie takes its own place in what Michel Foucault called the History of Unreason – the various forms of madness that are not included in the official history of the western enlightenment. These are people who sign up to crazy worldviews, and eagerly board Dodd's wandering ship of fools, and yet their emotional lives are real – and not foolish. It is a movie that may alienate and exasperate some, but its audacity, its formal daring and Joaquin Phoenix's performance, make it simply unmissable.
AMERICA you are NOT the Greatest Nation on earth anymore, get over it
CORRECTION: WE ARE NOT THE GREATEST NATION ON EARTH, STOP THIS INCESSANT PROPAGANDA, AMERICA. re: Obama "we keep our eyes fixed on that distant horizon knowing that providence is with us and that we are surely blessed to be citizens of the greatest nation on earth.'' USA IS NOT THE GREATEST NATION ONE EARTH NOW. GET OVER IT AMERICA.
Obama thinks the USA is the greatest nation on earth? What propaganda do Americans swallow? Sorry but it just aint true.
OBAMA SAID and it's tragic that this kind of propaganda brainwashing still goes on. America
is a third rate country, Wake up friends.
is a third rate country, Wake up friends.
''America, I never said this journey would be easy, and I won't promise that now. Yes, our path is harder, but it leads to a better place, Heaven in fact, because alone of all
antions on Earth, God loves the USA the best. It's in the Bible.. (Cheers.) Yes, our road is longer, but we travel to Jesus together. (Cheers.)
We don't turn back. We leave no one behind as we ascend to Heaven. (Cheers.) We pull each other up. (Cheers, applause.) We draw strength from our victories. (Cheers, applause.) And we learn from our mistakes. But we keep our eyes fixed on that distant horizon knowing that Providence with a capital P is with the USA and only the USA and that we are surely blessed to be citizens of the greatest nation on earth, bar none, greater than the UK, greater than France, greater than China, greater than Germany, greater than any other Godforsaken nation on Earth, so help me God..
Thank you, May our Christian God bless you even if you are NOT Christian, my Jewish pals and Muslims friends, and God bless these United States the GREATEST
NATION ON EARTH, get that CHINA? GOT THAT EUROTRASH? GOT THAT REST OF THE GODFORSAKEN WORLD?. (Cheers, applause.)''
Thursday, September 6, 2012
Cardinal Dolan's Rewritten Prayer at DNC convention forget to mention, ALLAH, why is that? and he PRAYS saying JESUS WAS REVEALED TO ALL AMERICANS? Not true! SHame on the Catholic Church for giving us DOlan
Cardinal Tomothy DOlan left out ALLAH in praeyr to God or Abrakam and Jesus , WHY?
- http://northwardho.blogspot.tw/2012/09/cardinal-dolans-rewritte-prayer-at-gop.html
and he addressed PRAYER to JESUS who is NOT all of America's savior, only those who follow him
SHAME ON HIM FOR being an antisemite!
Cardinal Dolan's Rewritten Prayer at DNC convention forget to mention, ALLAH, why is that? and he PRAYS saying JESUS WAS REVEALED TO ALL AMERICANS? Not true! SHame on the Catholic Church for giving us DOlan
GET ME REWRITE for ALL AMERICA NOT JUST XIANS
A Prayer for Our Country at the Republican National Convention
Here is the prayer that I SHOULD HAVE offered at the Republican National Convention:
With firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, let us pray:
Almighty God, father of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Jesus, revealed to SOME of us NOT ALL , so powerfuly in your ALLEGED SOn, Jesus Christ, AND ALLAH we beg your continued blessings on this sanctuary of freedom, and on all of those who proudly call America home. We ask your benediction upon those yet to be born, and on those who are about to see you at the end of this life. Bless those families whose ancestors arrived on these shores generations ago, as well as those families that have come recently, to build a better future while weaving their lives into the rich tapestry of America.
We lift up to your loving care those afflicted by the recent storms and drought and fire. We ask for the grace to stand in solidarity with all those who suffer. May we strive to include your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, in the production and prosperity of a people so richly blessed.
Oh God of wisdom, justice, and might, we ask your guidance for those who govern us, and on those who would govern us: the president and vice-president, the Congress, the Supreme Court, and on all those who seek to serve the common good by seeking public office, especially Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan. Make them all worthy to serve you by serving our country. Help them remember that the only just government is the government that serves its citizens rather than itself.
Almighty God, who gives us the sacred and inalienable gift of life, we thank you as well for the singular gift of liberty. Renew in all of our people a respect for religious freedom in full, that first most cherished freedom. Make us truly free, by tethering freedom to truth and ordering freedom to goodness. Help us live our freedom in faith, hope, and love; prudently, and with justice; courageously, and in a spirit of moderation. Enkindle in our hearts a new sense of responsibility for freedom’s cause. And make us ever-grateful for all those who, for more than two centuries, have given their lives in freedom’s defense; we commend their noble souls to your eternal care, as even now we beg your mighty hand upon our beloved men and women in uniform.
May we know the truth of your creation, respecting the laws of nature and nature’s God, and not seek to replace it with idols of our own making. Give us the good sense not to cast aside the boundaries of righteous living you first inscribed in our hearts even before inscribing them on tablets of stone. May you mend our every flaw, confirming our soul in self-control, our liberty in law.
We pray for all those who seek honest labor, as we thank you for the spirit of generosity to those in need with which you so richly blessed this nation.
We beseech your blessing on all who depart from here this evening, and on all those, in every land, who seek to conduct their lives in freedom.
Most of all, Almighty God, we thank you for the great gift of our beloved country.
For we are indeed “one nation under God.”
And “in God we trust.”
Dear God bless America. You who live and reign, forever and ever,
Amen!
- http://northwardho.blogspot.tw/2012/09/cardinal-dolans-rewritte-prayer-at-gop.html
and he addressed PRAYER to JESUS who is NOT all of America's savior, only those who follow him
SHAME ON HIM FOR being an antisemite!
Cardinal Dolan's Rewritten Prayer at DNC convention forget to mention, ALLAH, why is that? and he PRAYS saying JESUS WAS REVEALED TO ALL AMERICANS? Not true! SHame on the Catholic Church for giving us DOlan
GET ME REWRITE for ALL AMERICA NOT JUST XIANS
A Prayer for Our Country at the Republican National Convention
Here is the prayer that I SHOULD HAVE offered at the Republican National Convention:
With firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, let us pray:
Almighty God, father of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Jesus, revealed to SOME of us NOT ALL , so powerfuly in your ALLEGED SOn, Jesus Christ, AND ALLAH we beg your continued blessings on this sanctuary of freedom, and on all of those who proudly call America home. We ask your benediction upon those yet to be born, and on those who are about to see you at the end of this life. Bless those families whose ancestors arrived on these shores generations ago, as well as those families that have come recently, to build a better future while weaving their lives into the rich tapestry of America.
We lift up to your loving care those afflicted by the recent storms and drought and fire. We ask for the grace to stand in solidarity with all those who suffer. May we strive to include your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, in the production and prosperity of a people so richly blessed.
Oh God of wisdom, justice, and might, we ask your guidance for those who govern us, and on those who would govern us: the president and vice-president, the Congress, the Supreme Court, and on all those who seek to serve the common good by seeking public office, especially Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan. Make them all worthy to serve you by serving our country. Help them remember that the only just government is the government that serves its citizens rather than itself.
Almighty God, who gives us the sacred and inalienable gift of life, we thank you as well for the singular gift of liberty. Renew in all of our people a respect for religious freedom in full, that first most cherished freedom. Make us truly free, by tethering freedom to truth and ordering freedom to goodness. Help us live our freedom in faith, hope, and love; prudently, and with justice; courageously, and in a spirit of moderation. Enkindle in our hearts a new sense of responsibility for freedom’s cause. And make us ever-grateful for all those who, for more than two centuries, have given their lives in freedom’s defense; we commend their noble souls to your eternal care, as even now we beg your mighty hand upon our beloved men and women in uniform.
May we know the truth of your creation, respecting the laws of nature and nature’s God, and not seek to replace it with idols of our own making. Give us the good sense not to cast aside the boundaries of righteous living you first inscribed in our hearts even before inscribing them on tablets of stone. May you mend our every flaw, confirming our soul in self-control, our liberty in law.
We pray for all those who seek honest labor, as we thank you for the spirit of generosity to those in need with which you so richly blessed this nation.
We beseech your blessing on all who depart from here this evening, and on all those, in every land, who seek to conduct their lives in freedom.
Most of all, Almighty God, we thank you for the great gift of our beloved country.
For we are indeed “one nation under God.”
And “in God we trust.”
Dear God bless America. You who live and reign, forever and ever,
Amen!
Cardinal Dolan's Rewritte Prayer at GOP and DNC conventions forget to mention, ALLAH, why is that?
Cardinal Dolan's Rewritte Prayer at GOP and DNC conventions forget to mention, ALLAH, why is that?
GET ME REWRITE for ALL AMERICA NOT JUST XIANS
A Prayer for Our Country at the Republican National Convention
Here is the prayer that I SHOULD HAVE offered at the Republican National Convention:
With firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, let us pray:
Almighty God, father of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Jesus, AND ALLAH we beg your continued blessings on this sanctuary of freedom, and on all of those who proudly call America home. We ask your benediction upon those yet to be born, and on those who are about to see you at the end of this life. Bless those families whose ancestors arrived on these shores generations ago, as well as those families that have come recently, to build a better future while weaving their lives into the rich tapestry of America.
We lift up to your loving care those afflicted by the recent storms and drought and fire. We ask for the grace to stand in solidarity with all those who suffer. May we strive to include your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, in the production and prosperity of a people so richly blessed.
Oh God of wisdom, justice, and might, we ask your guidance for those who govern us, and on those who would govern us: the president and vice-president, the Congress, the Supreme Court, and on all those who seek to serve the common good by seeking public office, especially Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan. Make them all worthy to serve you by serving our country. Help them remember that the only just government is the government that serves its citizens rather than itself.
Almighty God, who gives us the sacred and inalienable gift of life, we thank you as well for the singular gift of liberty. Renew in all of our people a respect for religious freedom in full, that first most cherished freedom. Make us truly free, by tethering freedom to truth and ordering freedom to goodness. Help us live our freedom in faith, hope, and love; prudently, and with justice; courageously, and in a spirit of moderation. Enkindle in our hearts a new sense of responsibility for freedom’s cause. And make us ever-grateful for all those who, for more than two centuries, have given their lives in freedom’s defense; we commend their noble souls to your eternal care, as even now we beg your mighty hand upon our beloved men and women in uniform.
May we know the truth of your creation, respecting the laws of nature and nature’s God, and not seek to replace it with idols of our own making. Give us the good sense not to cast aside the boundaries of righteous living you first inscribed in our hearts even before inscribing them on tablets of stone. May you mend our every flaw, confirming our soul in self-control, our liberty in law.
We pray for all those who seek honest labor, as we thank you for the spirit of generosity to those in need with which you so richly blessed this nation.
We beseech your blessing on all who depart from here this evening, and on all those, in every land, who seek to conduct their lives in freedom.
Most of all, Almighty God, we thank you for the great gift of our beloved country.
For we are indeed “one nation under God.”
And “in God we trust.”
Dear God bless America. You who live and reign, forever and ever,
Amen!
GET ME REWRITE for ALL AMERICA NOT JUST XIANS
A Prayer for Our Country at the Republican National Convention
Here is the prayer that I SHOULD HAVE offered at the Republican National Convention:
With firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, let us pray:
Almighty God, father of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Jesus, AND ALLAH we beg your continued blessings on this sanctuary of freedom, and on all of those who proudly call America home. We ask your benediction upon those yet to be born, and on those who are about to see you at the end of this life. Bless those families whose ancestors arrived on these shores generations ago, as well as those families that have come recently, to build a better future while weaving their lives into the rich tapestry of America.
We lift up to your loving care those afflicted by the recent storms and drought and fire. We ask for the grace to stand in solidarity with all those who suffer. May we strive to include your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, in the production and prosperity of a people so richly blessed.
Oh God of wisdom, justice, and might, we ask your guidance for those who govern us, and on those who would govern us: the president and vice-president, the Congress, the Supreme Court, and on all those who seek to serve the common good by seeking public office, especially Governor Romney and Congressman Ryan. Make them all worthy to serve you by serving our country. Help them remember that the only just government is the government that serves its citizens rather than itself.
Almighty God, who gives us the sacred and inalienable gift of life, we thank you as well for the singular gift of liberty. Renew in all of our people a respect for religious freedom in full, that first most cherished freedom. Make us truly free, by tethering freedom to truth and ordering freedom to goodness. Help us live our freedom in faith, hope, and love; prudently, and with justice; courageously, and in a spirit of moderation. Enkindle in our hearts a new sense of responsibility for freedom’s cause. And make us ever-grateful for all those who, for more than two centuries, have given their lives in freedom’s defense; we commend their noble souls to your eternal care, as even now we beg your mighty hand upon our beloved men and women in uniform.
May we know the truth of your creation, respecting the laws of nature and nature’s God, and not seek to replace it with idols of our own making. Give us the good sense not to cast aside the boundaries of righteous living you first inscribed in our hearts even before inscribing them on tablets of stone. May you mend our every flaw, confirming our soul in self-control, our liberty in law.
We pray for all those who seek honest labor, as we thank you for the spirit of generosity to those in need with which you so richly blessed this nation.
We beseech your blessing on all who depart from here this evening, and on all those, in every land, who seek to conduct their lives in freedom.
Most of all, Almighty God, we thank you for the great gift of our beloved country.
For we are indeed “one nation under God.”
And “in God we trust.”
Dear God bless America. You who live and reign, forever and ever,
Amen!
Just a note about the Governor Crist speech today at the DNC:
Just a note about the Governor Crist speech today at the DNC: The CNN
International news crawl at bottom of my screen in Taiwan read when he
first got up to speal "Governor Christ of Florida"...I kid you not! I
was corrected in like one nanotenth of a second because just seconds
later the next image read "Governor Crist of Florida"....-- this is an
example of what newsrooms now call "an atomic typo" -- a typo so small
that even spellcheck cannot "See" it....it needs the human touch.
Fixed now.
http://atomictypo.blogspot.com
International news crawl at bottom of my screen in Taiwan read when he
first got up to speal "Governor Christ of Florida"...I kid you not! I
was corrected in like one nanotenth of a second because just seconds
later the next image read "Governor Crist of Florida"....-- this is an
example of what newsrooms now call "an atomic typo" -- a typo so small
that even spellcheck cannot "See" it....it needs the human touch.
Fixed now.
http://atomictypo.blogspot.com
10 rhetorical strategies that made Bill Clinton’s DNC speech effective
10 rhetorical strategies that made Bill Clinton’s DNC speech effective
by Mallary Jean Tenore
Published Sep. 6, 2012 2:53 pm
Updated Sep. 6, 2012 4:21 pm
Bill Clinton’s speech at the Democratic National Convention has gotten a lot of attention — and understandably so.
While Factcheck.org called it “a fact-checker’s nightmare” and criticized it for being too long, there’s something about Clinton’s speech that made it stand out: good writing.
There are several factors that made the writing in the speech so strong. Here are a few of them.
Contrast
Clinton strengthened many of his points by setting up contrasts — about President Barack Obama and about the differences between the Republican and Democratic parties.
•“I want to nominate a man who’s cool on the outside – but who burns for America on the inside.”
•“If you want a winner-take- all, you’re-on-your-own society, you should support the Republican ticket. But if you want a country of shared opportunities and shared responsibility, a we’re-all-in-this-together society, you should vote for Barack Obama and Joe Biden.”
Repetition
Clinton repeated a few different refrains, words and phrases throughout his speech. The repetition made these parts of his speech more memorable.
•“I want to nominate a man who’s cool on the outside.”
•“I want a man who believes with no doubt that we can build a new American Dream economy…”
•“I want a man who had the good sense to marry Michelle Obama.”
•“I want Barack Obama to be the next president of the United States.”
•“One of the main reasons we ought to re-elect President Obama is that he is still committed to constructive cooperation. Look at his record. Look at his record.”
•“And if you will renew the president’s contract, you will feel it. You will feel it.”
Inclusive language
Clinton often used the pronouns “we,” “us” and “y’all,” and the phrase “my fellow Americans.” The language made his message inclusive and emphasized partnership over partisanship.
•“We Democrats — we think the country works better with a strong middle class…”
•In Tampa — in Tampa — did y’all watch their convention?”
•“My fellow Americans, all of us in this grand hall and everybody watching at home, when we vote in this election, we’ll be deciding what kind of country we want to live in.”
•“You see, we believe that ‘we’re all in this together’ is a far better philosophy than ‘you’re on your own.’”
•“My fellow Americans, if that is what you want, if that is what you believe, you must vote and you must re-elect President Barack Obama.”
The “rule of three”
Writers often rely on the rule of three to add rhythm to their writing and emphasize points they want to make. Clinton relied on it several times throughout his speech.
•“We think the country works better with a strong middle class, with real opportunities for poor folks to work their way into it with a relentless focus on the future, with business and government actually working together to promote growth and broadly share prosperity.”
•“Now, are we where we want to be today? No. Is the president satisfied? Of course not. But are we better off than we were when he took office? … The answer is yes.”
•“The arithmetic tells us, no matter what they say, one of three things is about to happen.” (He then goes on to explain these three things, starting off each point with the words, “one,” “two,” “three.”)
The power of one
Words hold weight when they stand alone. Two words in particular stuck out during Clinton’s speech — “zero” and “arithmetic.” They were powerful all on their own because Clinton paused before saying them, enunciated them and repeated them.
•“So here’s another job score. President Obama: plus 4 1/2 million. Congressional Republicans: zero.”
•“Here – here’s another job score: Obama, 250,000; Romney … zero.”
•“What new ideas did we bring to Washington? I always give a one-word answer: Arithmetic.”
•“It was a highly inconvenient thing for them in our debates that I was just a country boy from Arkansas, and I came from a place where people still thought two and two was four. It’s arithmetic.”Humor
It’s not easy to incorporate humor into writing, especially when talking about heavy subjects. But Clinton managed to get a few laughs. The jokes emphasized his points, and balanced the seriousness of his speech.
•“Now, when Congressman Ryan looked into that TV camera and attacked President Obama’s Medicare savings as, quote, ‘the biggest, coldest power play,’ I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.”
•“You got to give one thing: It takes some brass to attack a guy for doing what you did.”
Instructional language
Clinton often instructed viewers to listen to what he was saying. Instructional language is especially effective on TV when people might be distracted and in longer speeches because it helps redirect our attention if it’s been diverted. (Clinton’s speech, by the way, was nearly 6,000 words long.)
•“Now you’re having a good time, but this is getting serious, and I want you to listen.”
•“Listen to me, now. No president — no president, not me, not any of my predecessors, no one could have fully repaired all the damage that he found in just four years.”
•“So here’s another job score. Are you listening in Michigan and Ohio and across the country?”
•“And listen to this. Listen to this. … Now, finally, listen to this.”
Explanatory language
Like good explanatory journalism, Clinton’s speech made complicated subject matters easy to understand. He was conversational when talking about issues such as health care reform, and used the phrases “here’s what it does” and “here’s what really happened.”
•“Now, look. Here’s the challenge he faces and the challenge all of you who support him face.”
•“So the president’s student loan reform is more important than ever. Here’s what it does – here’s what it does.”
•“Let’s take a look at what’s actually happened so far, when talking about healthcare.”
•“Now what does this mean? What does this mean? Think of it. It means no one will ever have to drop out of college again for fear they can’t repay their debt.”
•“Look, here’s what really happened. You be the judge. Here’s what really happened.”
Questions and answers
Clinton didn’t just pose questions; he answered them. And like a good journalist, he asked a lot of “why” questions. His answers conveyed confidence and hope.
•“Now, why is this true? Why does cooperation work better than constant conflict? Because nobody’s right all the time, and a broken clock is right twice a day.”
•“Now, why do I believe it? I’m fixing to tell you why. I believe it because…”
•“Are we better off because President Obama fought for health care reform? You bet we are.”
The end
Strong writing ties together beginnings and ends. Clinton began his speech with the refrain “I want.” He ended it with the same verb, but placed the emphasis on the American people: “If you want America — if you want every American to vote and you think it is wrong to change voting procedures — just to reduce the turnout of younger, poorer, minority and disabled voters — you should support Barack Obama.”
Similarly, at the beginning of his speech, Clinton said Obama is “a man who burns for America on the inside.” At the end, he returned to the fiery analogy, saying: “We come through every fire a little stronger and a little better.”
by Mallary Jean Tenore
Published Sep. 6, 2012 2:53 pm
Updated Sep. 6, 2012 4:21 pm
Bill Clinton’s speech at the Democratic National Convention has gotten a lot of attention — and understandably so.
While Factcheck.org called it “a fact-checker’s nightmare” and criticized it for being too long, there’s something about Clinton’s speech that made it stand out: good writing.
There are several factors that made the writing in the speech so strong. Here are a few of them.
Contrast
Clinton strengthened many of his points by setting up contrasts — about President Barack Obama and about the differences between the Republican and Democratic parties.
•“I want to nominate a man who’s cool on the outside – but who burns for America on the inside.”
•“If you want a winner-take- all, you’re-on-your-own society, you should support the Republican ticket. But if you want a country of shared opportunities and shared responsibility, a we’re-all-in-this-together society, you should vote for Barack Obama and Joe Biden.”
Repetition
Clinton repeated a few different refrains, words and phrases throughout his speech. The repetition made these parts of his speech more memorable.
•“I want to nominate a man who’s cool on the outside.”
•“I want a man who believes with no doubt that we can build a new American Dream economy…”
•“I want a man who had the good sense to marry Michelle Obama.”
•“I want Barack Obama to be the next president of the United States.”
•“One of the main reasons we ought to re-elect President Obama is that he is still committed to constructive cooperation. Look at his record. Look at his record.”
•“And if you will renew the president’s contract, you will feel it. You will feel it.”
Inclusive language
Clinton often used the pronouns “we,” “us” and “y’all,” and the phrase “my fellow Americans.” The language made his message inclusive and emphasized partnership over partisanship.
•“We Democrats — we think the country works better with a strong middle class…”
•In Tampa — in Tampa — did y’all watch their convention?”
•“My fellow Americans, all of us in this grand hall and everybody watching at home, when we vote in this election, we’ll be deciding what kind of country we want to live in.”
•“You see, we believe that ‘we’re all in this together’ is a far better philosophy than ‘you’re on your own.’”
•“My fellow Americans, if that is what you want, if that is what you believe, you must vote and you must re-elect President Barack Obama.”
The “rule of three”
Writers often rely on the rule of three to add rhythm to their writing and emphasize points they want to make. Clinton relied on it several times throughout his speech.
•“We think the country works better with a strong middle class, with real opportunities for poor folks to work their way into it with a relentless focus on the future, with business and government actually working together to promote growth and broadly share prosperity.”
•“Now, are we where we want to be today? No. Is the president satisfied? Of course not. But are we better off than we were when he took office? … The answer is yes.”
•“The arithmetic tells us, no matter what they say, one of three things is about to happen.” (He then goes on to explain these three things, starting off each point with the words, “one,” “two,” “three.”)
The power of one
Words hold weight when they stand alone. Two words in particular stuck out during Clinton’s speech — “zero” and “arithmetic.” They were powerful all on their own because Clinton paused before saying them, enunciated them and repeated them.
•“So here’s another job score. President Obama: plus 4 1/2 million. Congressional Republicans: zero.”
•“Here – here’s another job score: Obama, 250,000; Romney … zero.”
•“What new ideas did we bring to Washington? I always give a one-word answer: Arithmetic.”
•“It was a highly inconvenient thing for them in our debates that I was just a country boy from Arkansas, and I came from a place where people still thought two and two was four. It’s arithmetic.”Humor
It’s not easy to incorporate humor into writing, especially when talking about heavy subjects. But Clinton managed to get a few laughs. The jokes emphasized his points, and balanced the seriousness of his speech.
•“Now, when Congressman Ryan looked into that TV camera and attacked President Obama’s Medicare savings as, quote, ‘the biggest, coldest power play,’ I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.”
•“You got to give one thing: It takes some brass to attack a guy for doing what you did.”
Instructional language
Clinton often instructed viewers to listen to what he was saying. Instructional language is especially effective on TV when people might be distracted and in longer speeches because it helps redirect our attention if it’s been diverted. (Clinton’s speech, by the way, was nearly 6,000 words long.)
•“Now you’re having a good time, but this is getting serious, and I want you to listen.”
•“Listen to me, now. No president — no president, not me, not any of my predecessors, no one could have fully repaired all the damage that he found in just four years.”
•“So here’s another job score. Are you listening in Michigan and Ohio and across the country?”
•“And listen to this. Listen to this. … Now, finally, listen to this.”
Explanatory language
Like good explanatory journalism, Clinton’s speech made complicated subject matters easy to understand. He was conversational when talking about issues such as health care reform, and used the phrases “here’s what it does” and “here’s what really happened.”
•“Now, look. Here’s the challenge he faces and the challenge all of you who support him face.”
•“So the president’s student loan reform is more important than ever. Here’s what it does – here’s what it does.”
•“Let’s take a look at what’s actually happened so far, when talking about healthcare.”
•“Now what does this mean? What does this mean? Think of it. It means no one will ever have to drop out of college again for fear they can’t repay their debt.”
•“Look, here’s what really happened. You be the judge. Here’s what really happened.”
Questions and answers
Clinton didn’t just pose questions; he answered them. And like a good journalist, he asked a lot of “why” questions. His answers conveyed confidence and hope.
•“Now, why is this true? Why does cooperation work better than constant conflict? Because nobody’s right all the time, and a broken clock is right twice a day.”
•“Now, why do I believe it? I’m fixing to tell you why. I believe it because…”
•“Are we better off because President Obama fought for health care reform? You bet we are.”
The end
Strong writing ties together beginnings and ends. Clinton began his speech with the refrain “I want.” He ended it with the same verb, but placed the emphasis on the American people: “If you want America — if you want every American to vote and you think it is wrong to change voting procedures — just to reduce the turnout of younger, poorer, minority and disabled voters — you should support Barack Obama.”
Similarly, at the beginning of his speech, Clinton said Obama is “a man who burns for America on the inside.” At the end, he returned to the fiery analogy, saying: “We come through every fire a little stronger and a little better.”
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