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Adrienne McChrystal
Megan Keaton
ENC 2135-07
5 August 2016
Defining and Analyzing Genres: Graduation Speech
Genres are categories, which change according to the way people use them. The Bedford
Book of Genres: A Guide and Reader says that Genres give us a way to categorize or describe
types of compositions (Braziller and Kleinfield 5). On the surface this quote sums up the
traditional definition of genre, a category or way in which we group things. After furthering my
understanding of genres it is clear that this quote embodies much more than simply categorizing
types of composition. By categorizing texts and compositions we can then associate the
appropriate rhetorical devices. In turn, effectively conveying thoughts and ideas by following or
breaking rhetorical conventions adds structure to text.
Genres are comprised of rhetorical situations that have appropriate responses. Rhetorical
situations consist of two main factors purpose and audience. Assessing the purpose of a text and
who it is for allows the composer to understand the rhetorical situation and choose an appropriate
genre. Different genres produce different responses. For example, at the end of a graduation
speech it is expected that the audience will applaud the speaker, regardless of their performance.
This response is not expected after every speech because of differences in the rhetorical situation.
It is not unlikely that parts of the crowd during a political speech refuse to applaud the speaker.
During a political speech it is common for more controversial claims to be made than in a
graduation speech, explaining the differing expectations for applause. The rhetorical situations
differ even though both compositions fall under the broader genre of speech. After responses
have been accepted, they are then repeated, creating expectations and norms.

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The Brief McGraw-Hill Handbook states Different genres of writing predominate in
different disciplines (Maimon, Pertiz, and Yancey 18). This is significant because not every
genre is applicable in every situation. For example, it would be unnecessary for a composer to
create a blog, when trying to communicate with an older, less tech-savvy community. To produce
an effective composition, the writer must use an appropriate genre to convey their ideas.
Prior to this class I spoke as the president of the class of 2016 at my high school
graduation ceremony. This text would be classified under the genre of speech or even further
graduation speech. Traditionally, a graduation speech is a narrative, telling the story of the past
four years. In some cases it can be persuasive, inspiring graduates to chase their dreams. Overall,
it is seen as a final goodbye. There are different sub-genres within the classification of
graduation speech. This is due to the fact that multiple people speak during the ceremony.
These people each play a different role within the class, and are used to represent the population
of attendees as a whole. The sub-categories within the genre are based upon the speaker and their
qualifications. For example principal, valedictorian, salutatorian, class president, city official,
etc. The principal and city officials speeches are assumed to be the most attractive to the parents
and other adults within the crowd. Based on their positions within the school system, they have
the most credibility among the adults in the crowd. The valedictorians, salutatorians, and class
presidents speeches are likely to be most appealing to the students they are graduating with.
Based on their standing among the school system, they most directly reflect the students
viewpoints. While there may be a considerable variation between the high school experiences of
the valedictorian and the class president, both speakers are considered a representative of the
student population. The class president may have the least credibility, from the perspective of
parents and other high ranking adult members of the audience, but is arguably the most relatable

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speaker to the graduating students. This peer credibility stems from the fact that the students
chose this speaker by voting in an election the previous year. The class president is likely to have
made speeches to the students prior to graduation, which may also increase his or her credibility
among the class. Most students imply that the class president will incorporate more humor and
have a more relaxed tone, but both elements are often compromised due to nerves. When
preparing to give my speech, I made sure to rehearse on stage while speaking into the
microphone. This allowed me to target a few visual points around the room, giving the effect that
I was speaking to the entire audience. I felt that delivering a smooth, natural speech would
increase my credibility because I would appear to be an experienced speaker. This preparation
method relieved the majority of my nerves during my live presentation, allowing me to focus on
the content of the text.
While composing my speech I unconsciously took multiple genre conventions into
consideration. The audience was made up of school faculty, staff, families, city officials, friends,
and, of course, our schools seniors. Evaluating the audience I would be speaking to, helped me
keep the content appropriate for all ages. Considering the audience holistically, made up of many
parts, allowed me to include rhetorical features that would be understood by each age group and
status in the community. These features included quotes, jokes, use of sarcasm, and statements of
gratitude. Each was used to acknowledge the presence of different parts of the audience. The
audience was unified for the common purpose to view the graduation ceremony, but each part
played a different role. The seniors were there to participate, family and friends to congratulate
the graduates, and city officials to deem the ceremony credible.
The speech was a narrative, mostly geared to the senior class. The purpose being to
reflect on our past four years together, share one last milestone as a class, and thank those who

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had helped us up to this point. Throughout the text the underlying tone was humorous,
encouraging the audience to reminisce positively on their high school experiences. Sentences
were kept relatively short, mirroring that of a conversation. Brief sentence structure was
purposely executed to maintain the crowds attention and keep them engaged throughout the
entirety of the speech. To fulfill my main goal of speaking for and to the students, most elements
were directed towards them. Presenting as class president allowed me to speak on behalf of the
class, without putting myself on a higher level. I was the only speaker on stage that was not
distinguished from the crowd based on prestige within the community or academic achievement.
I was there to represent the graduating class as a whole, not myself individually. Essentially
being the voice of the class contributed to the large use of plural pronouns like we and us.
Specific features for the students were expected to only be understood by their intended
audience, which is an acceptable practice in the genre of graduation speeches. I assumed when
speaking about bringing a petting zoo to school or motherly figures within the staff, only
students would be able to relate. References to class pranks, memorable teachers, and
unforgettable memories are common elements included in this genre, as well as my own speech.
In order to prove my credibility during the actual graduation ceremony, I included a joke
in my speech about my position as class president: I began thinking why am I up here to give
this speech? Im not the smartest and Im not part of the staff. Im just the only one who thought
class president had a nice ring to it. Apparently winning an election qualifies me to speak
before you today. Lets just forget that I ran unopposed last year. I noticed that some
professional speakers incorporate humor, especially when referring to themselves. I mirrored this
convention with the intent to seem like Ive been in this situation before, speaking in front of

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nearly two thousand audience members. Joking about my leadership role allowed me to
effectively set a humorous, light-hearted tone in the opening of the speech.
Speeches are usually expected to include quotes, used to articulate and summarize the
speakers intended message. Keeping this in mind, I quoted two public figures, one a student
another a celebrity. While the addition of quotes to my speech mirrored a widely accepted
practice, the source and style of the quotes were less compliant with the traditional genre
conventions. I quoted one student from the graduating class directly from Twitter. The class of
2016 is like the cast of Friends. Once it was gone, TV was never the same. Once we are gone,
Charter will never be the same. The second quote was from Ellen DeGeneres, Follow your
own path and never someone elses, unless you are lost in the woods and you find a path; then by
all means follow it. While the message from the first quote is common to those found in other
graduation speeches, the use of social media as a source is more uncommon. Books and other
similar text are usually the source of quotes in a graduation speech. It is also common to quote
public figures, but the whimsical tone in the second quote is uncommon to most quotes found in
a graduation speech. Including quotes in my speech was one way I complied with the genre
conventions of the text. I purposely gathered quotes from unique sources that also had unusual
tones to separate my speech from the more traditional ones found within the same genre. I felt
the need to deviate from the traditional genre conventions because the two years I spent working
as class president could be described as wildly unpredictable. Our class had already broken many
school traditions like changing our color for Spirit Week, hosting Prom at a nightclub, and the
massive scale to which our pranks effected the students, not including the seniors. In a sense, I
was living up to my own reputation.

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Due to the rhetorical situation of my speech, I decided I could break some of the norms,
but to an extent. My school emphasized the professional manner in which a graduation ceremony
was to be performed. For example, they call it a Commencement Ceremony rather than a
Graduation Ceremony. When I did stray from the norms of a graduation speech, I reminded
myself that I could only get away with so much. I also kept the fact that the principal and vice
principal would review my speech ahead of time, in mind. The administrative team highlighted
that any students who decided to tarnish the schools reputation in their speech would not be
receiving their diplomas. Their strict policy on graduation speeches explains why I only pushed
the boundaries so far. This policy kept me from adding any material that could be taken the
wrong way by anyone in the audience. Specifically, making fun of teachers for their habits or
appearance. Even if it was in good fun I didnt want to risk these jokes being taken the wrong
way. I was also given an outline of what the speech should include. This list stated that I must
recognize those who had a defined role amongst our class, thank the city officials for being
present at the ceremony, etc. I was basically told that I was on stage to thank everyone for being
there. That sounded like a very boring speech to compose and present. I followed most of the
traditional conventions to satisfy the expectations of the school administrators and other
distinguished guests, but managed to incorporate jokes and unprofessional flashbacks to
entertain the rest of the crowd and satisfy my own expectations. This seemed to keep the
audience on their toes while keeping my diploma in my hand.
Following a common convention, I based the majority of my speech off of the people
who had the most influence on the graduating class. I specifically mentioned five adults by name
and gave a brief summary of their time spent with the graduating class. I gave thanks to
influential role models, a convention that ties into the purpose of the speech. When expressing

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gratitude to such a role model, it is common to address them by name and share the ways in
which they have contributed to the classs overall success. I took this element a step further by
including some humorous memories each figure shared with the class. For example, when
referring to my vice principal, I said, Wed like to thank her for always being a good sport, even
when chickens laid eggs on your desk. This line was used to refer to the time when our class
brought a petting zoo to school, and specifically put three chickens in her office. The anecdotal
addition to this common convention helped solidify the colloquial tone of the speech as a whole.
Since I was not only talking to my peers, but to parents, relatives, and other adults, the
text included various traditional elements of a graduation speech, such as formal
acknowledgements of gratitude and recognition. The social expectations were to be appropriate
for all ages yet more personal to those graduating. Due to my main purpose- reflecting with the
class- a bulk of the speech included embarrassing moments and life lessons. These life lessons
include how to clean up after a petting zoo, inflate a slide in the middle of a hallway, etc.
I portrayed the design elements of my speech through my body language, facial
expressions, and hand gestures. Since I was the one presenting the text, the audience was relying
on me as the medium. I stressed certain phrases to thoroughly communicate the message of the
speech. For example, in the sentence, Its essential to measure the size of the hallway before
inflating a slide, the word before was stressed to evoke laughter from the audience. Multiple
people that were included in my speech were also on stage during the ceremony. The principal,
vice-principal, dean of students, and city commissioner, just to name a few. This allowed me to
square my shoulders, so I would be facing both the audience and the specific person I was
talking about. As I said On behalf of the graduating class, Id like to thank Mr. Springer for
always reminding us that we are capable of more than we think, I looked in Mr. Springers

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direction to make the text more personal. I incorporated visual elements, on the printed copy that
I read from. Elements including large font and adequate spacing were seen by me only, used as a
way to improve the verbal presentation of the text.
I followed the basic genre conventions of a graduation speech, but may have broken
some norms by adding my own ideas to the genre. Including untraditional quotes and referencing
embarrassing moments were among the ways I strayed from the typical conventions of a
graduation speech. Even though I added various untraditional elements, the overall structure of
the composition can easily be identified as belonging to the category of graduation speech.

Work Cited
Braziller, Amy, and Elizabeth Kleinfield. The Bedford Book of Genres: A Guide and Reader.
FSU edition. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2014. Print.
Maimon, Elaine P., Janice H. Peritz, and Kathleen Blake Yancey. The Brief McGraw-Hill
Handbook. FSU edition. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2012. Print.