Joyce 1

Veronica Joyce
Dr. Lyn J. Freymiller
CAS 137H
7 October 2014
Always Use the Buddy System
Friends, Romans, countrymen: lend me your beers. Amy Poehler begins her Class Day
speech with a humorous reference to Julius Caesar (American Rhetoric: Amy Poehler -Harvard University Commencement Address (transcript-Audio-Video)). Amy Poehler is a
prominent comedian in todays mainstream. She has been an actress on SNL, on Parks and
Recreation, and in myriad comedic films through the years. Although she is an alumnus of
Boston College, in 2011 Harvard asked her to be the speaker for their Senior Class Day
(Anonymous). Class Day is less serious than graduation and the students are in charge of picking
the speakers. It is a day of mixed emotions for the graduates so they try to keep it light hearted
(A Poehler-Ized Class Day). I will be analyzing a video and the full text of her speech from
www.americanrhetoric.com. I chose to examine her speech because I think she has important
ideas that should be better discussed. She uses her ethos to appeal to the pathos and logos of the
audience in order to make her main point: you cant do it alone. Her speech is so effective
because she mixes the right amount of humor with intelligence. Her speech is tailored to her
audience of soon-to-be college graduates. Though her speech was not given on a very large
platform, I think her messages can resonate with anyone who hears it.

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Ethos refers to the speakers background, pathos to the emotional appeals, and logos to the
logical appeals (Slagell). Amy Poehler uses her background to tap into the emotions and the logic
of the audience. She is known for being a strong, funny woman. She gets on stage and jokes
around with the audience, which is exactly what everyone would expect from her. Her humor
was the reason she was asked to talk this day (QUICK TAKES; Harvard Likes Poehlers
Style). She is able to use comedy and her platform as an esteemed actress to impart her wisdom
on the masses (Avery).
In her speech, she uses humor and intelligence to appeal to the emotions of the crowd.
She shares personal experiences and speaks passionately about the lessons she has learned
through her life. After telling them how great they are, she jokes that if you add kindness and
the ability to change a tire, you almost make up the perfect person. She is reminding them that
they are in a world full of people so kindness goes a long way (Amid a Stream of Jokes, Amy
Poehler Gives Earnest Advice to the Class of 2011). Deep down inside, everyone hopes to be
thought of as the perfect person. In viewing her speech, I feel an emotional connection that I
think most of the audience would probably be able to relate to. In sharing personal stories, she
becomes more relatable to the students. They can see her as a normal person and empathize with
her awkward moments.
Live television can be very nerve-wracking and I remember one time being
nervous, looking into the eyes of the host and feeling better. I should point out I
was wearing a chicken suit at the time. The host was Donald Trump. He was
wearing a bigger, more elaborate chicken suit. I looked into his eyes, I saw that he
looked really stupid, and I instantly felt better.

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She shares an embarrassing, private experience with the audience to illustrate her point. They
feel more connected to her because they can probably relate to her story; it makes her less
intimidating. As graduation draws near, they must be feeling something similar to her
nervousness that day; she is using that emotion to bond with the audience. The concept she talks
about is exceptionally relevant to soon-to-be college graduate. She tells them that they never
have to be alone. When you feel scared, hold someone's hand and look into their eyes. And
when you feel brave, do the same thing. (American Rhetoric: Amy Poehler -- Harvard
University Commencement Address (transcript-Audio-Video)). She is making the audience feel
safe and secure with her. They are not alone; they do not have to be afraid.
She also taps into the audiences logic. She does not make outlandish claims or ludicrous
promises to the graduates. She tells them not that they are amazing super-humans, but that they
are people. They cannot do it all on their own. Its a very logical piece of advice to give. "No one
is here today because they did it on their ownYoure all here today because someone gave you
strength. Helped you. Held you in the palm of their hand. God, Allah, Buddha, Gagawhomever
you pray to (Amid a Stream of Jokes, Amy Poehler Gives Earnest Advice to the Class of
2011). She knows what it means to look to others for help and confidence (Avery). She has had
enough experience to advise the students on this subject. She imparts knowledge she gained
from being an actor onto the Harvard students (Amid a Stream of Jokes, Amy Poehler Gives
Earnest Advice to the Class of 2011).
I learned some rules that I try to apply still today: Listen. Say "yes." Live in the
moment. Make sure you play with people who have your back. Make big choices
early and often. Don't start a scene where two people are talking about jumping

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out of a plane. Start the scene having already jumped. If you are scared, look into
your partner's eyes. You will feel better.
Sometimes, high-achieving students forget that they are allowed to look to others for assistance.
Her speech is a gentle reminder of the reality that they can. She tells them in a smooth, logical
manner that they can make it; everybody needs somebody. She is an accomplished woman;
logically the audience will take her advice to heart. She was able to achieve her dreams so she is
sharing her secrets to success with the up and coming generation.
Amy Poehler uses wit and charm coupled with experience and intelligence to speak to the
graduates. She even says that she is not there to teach them but to simply impart knowledge on
them. Her humor can be witnessed in the very beginning of her speech. It makes the audience
laugh. She leaves a little pause before continuing on with the rest of her speech. This engages the
audience, establishing a rapport with them from the start. She jokes for the first two minutes of
her speech. By the time she reaches her serious topics, they are comfortable and trusting of her
(American Rhetoric: Amy Poehler -- Harvard University Commencement Address (transcriptAudio-Video)). Her jokes are focused on poking fun at Harvard for its distinguished status as
one of the best places of higher education. If she were offering the graduates advice as a
Bostonian, Poehler said, she would remind you that just because youre wicked smart doesnt
mean you are better than me (Amid a Stream of Jokes, Amy Poehler Gives Earnest Advice to
the Class of 2011). In a way this brings the Harvard graduates to the same level as her. She is
making sure that they are not sitting there thinking that they are the greatest people on the earth.
Her jokes point out that they are still just people (A Poehler-Ized Class Day). Her speech is not
the generic spiel every graduate hears. She incorporates accents, jokes, sarcasm, allusions, and

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anecdotes; anything that can make an audience love her. She uses hand motions and facial
expressions to emphasize her ideas (Amid a Stream of Jokes, Amy Poehler Gives Earnest
Advice to the Class of 2011). She makes fun of herself and laughs along with the audience
(American Rhetoric: Amy Poehler -- Harvard University Commencement Address (transcriptAudio-Video)). All of this allows her to draw them in. She becomes one with them. She does
not try to be above them or talk at them.
An significant part of rhetoric is the audience at whom the speech/ad/argument is geared
towards. Along with this, the style and wording of a speech dictates whether it will be effective
or not (Slagell). Amy Poehlers 2011 Class Day speech is a paradigm of the best way to engross
an audience. Her jokes keep the day light-hearted while her serious moments truly reach the
listeners. Humor mixed with humility is a highly successful way to deliver a speech. She
perfectly combines the two together when she says I graduated from Boston College, which
some call The Harvard of Boston with a completely straight face (Amid a Stream of Jokes,
Amy Poehler Gives Earnest Advice to the Class of 2011). She is able to deliver this kind of joke
because of her audience. They are the elite of the higher education but she jokes them down to
the level of everyone else. If she were delivering the same jokes to a crowd of high-school
students, they would not land the same way. She is talking to a group of students who are about
to graduate after four strenuous years at a behemoth of a higher education. They need to relax, to
joke, and to be guided into what is ahead of them.
Amy Poehler goes beyond her standard role as a comedian to become an example to not
only the Harvard graduating class of 2011, but also to anyone who views her speech. She is not
typically thought of as someone who would give thought provoking speeches yet she

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accomplishes just that. She is able to connect with the audience on an emotional level. Through
anecdotes and sentiment, she bonds with the students in order to teach them her lessons. She also
appeals to her viewers logical side. She gives them advice based on what she has learned
through life to help them in their lives. She blends intelligence and humor seamlessly which
results in an effective speech. She is able to communicate her intelligent ideas through humor in
order to help the graduates-to-be later in their lives. I am sure her words will stay with them long
after they graduate. They will never be alone.
Bibliography
American Rhetoric: Amy Poehler -- Harvard University Commencement Address (transcript-AudioVideo). N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Oct. 2014.
Amid a Stream of Jokes, Amy Poehler Gives Earnest Advice to the Class of 2011. Harvard
Magazine. N.p., 2011. Web. 3 Oct. 2014.
A Poehler-Ized Class Day. Harvard Gazette. N.p., 2011. Web. 3 Oct. 2014.
"Poehler, Amy." Newsmakers 2009 Cumulation. Ed. Laura Avery. Detroit: Gale, 2009. 88-90. Gale
Virtual Reference Library. Web. 30 Oct. 2014.
QUICK TAKES; Harvard Likes Poehlers Style. Los Angeles Times. N.p., 6 Apr. 2011. Web. 3 Oct.
2014.
Slagell, Amy R. "Rhetoric." Encyclopedia of Communication and Information. Ed. Jorge Reina
Schement. Vol. 3. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2002. 896-900. Gale Virtual Reference
Library. Web. 30 Oct. 2014.