Tow #4: (IRB) Dreams from My Father by Barack Obama

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance is the autobiography of the 44th President, Barack Obama. Even as a young child, Obama never knows much about his father except from the stories his mother and grandparents tell him. When his mother and father finally divorce and his mother marries Lolo, an Indonesian surveyor, Obama goes to Indonesia as well. He eventually returns to Hawaii to live with his grandparents and finish schooling. He goes to college, eventually transferring to Columbia, where he learns that his father has died in a car crash. Obama eventually decides to become a community organizer from Chicago, where he begins after initial doubts, to make some changes.
Although I have finished the entire book, there are many examples of rhetorical devices used throughout. In particular, Obama employs in media res to hook the reader, starting with the news of the death of his father before backtracking and filling in the other details of his life. He also uses a lot of foreshadowing. Obama writes, “Beneath the layers of hurt, beneath the ragged laughter, I heard a willingness to endure. Endure-and make music that wasn’t there before.” (pg. 112). These rhetorical devices add to the readability of the text because the story is constantly moving along. I think Obama’s purpose overall is to allow the public to know him more; to know his background, what he’s experienced, and show that he’s not an average candidate. This autobiography was published as he was running for junior U.S senator from Illinois, so it was definitely written as a way for voters to know him beyond his speeches and policies. Although I have not yet finished the autobiography, I do believe that President Obama has achieved this purpose. He is honest in telling his story, careful to show his true character and at times, flaws. Today, President Obama is the 44^th president of the United States of America. As his autobiography states, he was a community organizer in Chicago before graduating from Harvard Law School. After graduating, he became a civil rights attorney and taught at the University of Chicago Law School. In 2009, President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize.