Para. 51

51 I would not be running for President if I didn't believe with all my heart that this is what the vast majority of Americans want for this country. This union may never be perfect, but generation after generation has shown that it can always be perfected. And today, whenever I find myself feeling doubtful or cynical about this possibility, what gives me the most hope is the next generation-the young people whose attitudes and beliefs and openness to change have already made history in this election.

Q1: What do paragraphs 51-60 mainly talk about?

A1: It is on the rationale for making the changes.

Q2: What can be known from paragraph 51?

A2: It is on the rationale for Obama’s election.

Q3: How do you paraphrase the following knowledge points?

1.I would not be running... for this country. (Para.51)

Obama puts forward two points here. One is that he believes the people wanted "change"-the theme of his campaign. The other is that his running for President was for the purpose of change so he was representing the interests of the people.

This puts him on a moral high ground.

2. This union... it can always be perfected. (Para.51)

The idea is organized around the different grammar of the word "perfect," the noun and the verb. This is a way of putting across the idea in a more powerful way.

This union may not become faultless, without defect, but generations of Americans have proved that it can be improved and made better and better.

3. And today... history in this election. (Para.51)

The young people who were active in Obama's campaign team encouraged and inspired Obama. These young activists played an important role in mobilizing people, in reaching out to wavering voters through door-to-door calls, through e-mail, through blogs. This was a breakthrough and the key players were young people.

Paras. 52-58

52 There is one story in particular that I'd like to leave you with today-a story I told when I had the great honor of speaking on Dr. King's birthday at his home church, Ebenezer Baptist, in Atlanta.

53 There is a young, twenty-three-year-old woman, a white woman named Ashley Baia who organized for our campaign in Florence, South Carolina. She had been working to organize a mostly African-American community since the beginning of this campaign, and one day she was at a round-table discussion where everyone went around telling their story and why they were there.

54 And Ashley said that when she was nine years old, her mother got cancer. And because she had to miss days of work, she was let go and lost her health care. They had to file for bankruptcy, and that's when Ashley decided that she had to do something to help her mom.

55 She knew that food was one of their most expensive costs, and so Ashley convinced her mother that what she really liked and really wanted to eat more than anything else was mustard and relish sandwiches. Because that was the cheapest way to eat. That's the mind of a nine-year-old.

56 She did this for a year until her mom got better, and until Ashley told everyone at the round table that the reason she had joined our campaign was so that she could help the millions of other children in the country who want and need to help their parents too.

57 Now Ashley might have made a different choice. Perhaps somebody told her along the way that the source of her mother's problems were blacks who were on welfare and too lazy to work, or Hispanics who were coming into the country illegally. But she didn't. She sought out allies in her fight against injustice.

58 Anyway, Ashley finishes her story and then goes around the room and asks everyone else why they' re supporting the campaign. They all have different stories and different reasons. Many bring up a specific issue. And finally, they come to this elderly black man who's been sitting there quietly the entire time. And Ashley asks him why he's there. And he does not bring up a specific issue. He does not say health care or the economy. He does not say education or the war. He does not say that he was there because of Barack Obama. He simply says to everyone in the room, "I am here because of Ashley."

Q1: What do these two paragraphs tell?

A1: It is an exemplification of the rationale.

Q2: How do you paraphrase the following knowledge points?

1. Paragraph 56

Ashley said she helped organize Obamas campaign in Florence, South Carolina because she wanted to help millions of children who wanted to help their parents to fight against injustice, to fight for health care reform which Obama promised to do if he were elected.

2. Paragraph 57

The reason why Obama thinks Ashley's decision was significant: Obama thought Ashley's decision was significant, because Ashley is a white girl who does not follow the views of those who put the blame on ethnic minorities. Obama praises her for choosing to seek out allies in her fight against injustice.

3. He simply says to everyone in the room, "I am here because of Ashley." (Para.58)

The old man meant he was there to show support for the work of a young white girl in a mostly African-American community. He wanted to make her presence a sign of racial unity.

Paras: 59-60

59 "I'm here because of Ashley." By itself, that single moment of recognition between that young white girl and that old black man is not enough. It is not enough to give health care to the sick, or jobs to the jobless, or education to our children.

60 But it is where we start. It is where our union grows stronger. And as so many generations have come to realize over the course of the two hundred and twenty-one years since a band of patriots signed that document right here in Philadelphia, that is where perfection begins.

Q1: What do these two paragraphs tell?

A1: It is a reiteration of the rationale.

Q2: How do you understand the following knowledge points?

1. Paragraphs 58 to 60

At the end of Paragraph 58, Obama brings up racial unity. In Paragraph 59 he further points out that this recognition of common goals and common stakes might not bring about change but it is the starting point. Then in the last paragraph Obama brings this idea of starting point back to the signing of the constitution to show that this is "where perfection begins." The ending echoes the title and the beginning, making a perfect completion.

2. A Few Summary Points

1) The Approach of the Speech The purpose of Obama's speech is obvious: His opponents in the Democratic Party as well as in the Republican Party were using the remarks of Reverend Wright, Obama's former pastor, to attack Obama, spreading doubt about his qualifications as a presidential candidate. Responding to the political slur takes great skill. To concentrate on refuting the attacks would show that Obama could not see the issue in a broader perspective and on a higher plane. Talking about the race issue without directly addressing Wright's remarks would give the impression that he shunned the issue and would intensify suspicion.

Obama worked out a brilliant approach. He put the race issue in the context of perfecting the union, in the context of upholding the U.S. Constitution, the job of a president. A historical approach puts the race issue, the legacy of slavery. in the course of historical development and shows the current conflicts are the continuation of historical struggle. And Obama stated that he meant to carry on the struggle. He also adopted an approach in a straightforward way, facing the doubts in the minds of the voters and the arguments of blacks and whites.

He described his relationship with Wright and the Trinity United Church, condemned Wright's statements but pointed out the other side of Wright and the influence of the church. He said he could not disown him any more than he could disown the black community. This comes as a shock to many but this is a clever strategy because Obama was linking this up with black experience, with history. He also listed the grievances and anger of the blacks and some segments of the white community. These angers were real and powerful but if people adopted an approach of mutual acrimony, the result would be counterproductive.

Then Obama came to his theme; unity for perfecting the union; he once again related this to the founding fathers and the Constitution.

In this way Obama addressed the doubts of many but put the issue in a much bigger context the issue of making the union more perfect. This calls for unity and this is the slogan of his campaign: united for change.

2) Personal Touches In the speech Obama talked about his personal experience, his relation with Wright and the Trinity United Church and the story of Ashley Baia. These personal touches make the speech more human, establishing a closer relationship between the speaker and the audience. This is the practice of many public speakers.