Exploring Afrocentricity: An Analysis of the Discourse of Barack Obama

摘要

President Barack Obama is widely recognized as a talented public speaker, and his historical election has generated much discussion about his rhetoric. While in office as the first African American President of the United States, Obama’s words have been dissected and scrutinized. On the road to the White House, Obama spoke to diverse audiences, covered many topics and employed a variety of rhetorical strategies. This research examines five of Obama’s pre-presidential speeches to uncover whether his rhetoric would qualify as Afrocentric discourse based on the criteria outlined by Molefi Asante (The Afrocentric Idea, 1987).