President Obama’s State of the Union Address

Hi folks!  Sorry for the delay in getting out a new post.  Sometimes my teaching schedule prevents me from having enough free time to write these lengthy analyses.  Just in time for Presidents’ Day weekend, I offer a brief summary of the metaphors in President Obama’s recent State of the Union Address.

The speech was an inspiring call to action for Congress and the American people to make progress to solve our nation’s problems.  It was not rhetorically flourishing, but it did have a fair number of interesting political metaphors.  There were three conceptual metaphors that seemed to be central to his message:  sports, motion, and personification, all designed to invoke unity between the president and the American people.   The examples are taken directly from the speech; italics are mine.


Most Americans are familiar with our popular sports of football, baseball and basketball.  It is very common for politicians to speak of the government and people working together as a sports team.  President Obama uses several sports metaphors to suggest the importance of working together with common strategies for success.

the playbook

The book of strategies used by the coaching staff to win a game is called the playbook.


blog - sports - footballstanding on the sidelines

In football, the coaches stand on the side or sidelines of the field while the athletes play in the middle of the field.  Being on the sidelines metaphorically indicates that a person or group is not directly involved in an important activity.

Example:  Listen, China and Europe aren’t standing on the sidelines; and neither — neither should we. We know that the nation that goes all-in on innovation today will own the global economy tomorrow.

the game

Most sporting competitions are called games (although in other sports they may be called matches (tennis) or tournaments (golf)).  Coaches always put their best players in the game to increase the odds of winning the competition. In this case, President Obama described a woman who lost her job a week after she and her husband bought their first home.


a full team

In some cases, athletes get injured and cannot play on the team.  If there are many injuries the coaches may not even have enough players to play a game. This is referred to as having a full team.




As mentioned in other blog posts about speeches and writings, politicians often invoke metaphors of motion or journeys to indicate how a group or government is making progress.  In the President’s State of the Union Address, he uses many such metaphors to explain how his policies are helping the country make progress in important areas.


When an animal or person is trapped, it means that they cannot move or escape.  Being trapped metaphorically indicates the opposite of a journey in that it means that a person or group cannot move forward or make progress towards a goal.



When an engine is not working properly, it may stall and die.  Similarly, when an airplane loses speed and lift, it stops moving forward and falls toward the earth.  Metaphorically, a lack of progress toward a goal may also be described as being stalled.

Example:  Upward mobility has stalled.


Even worse in terms of progress than an engine stalling is putting it in reverse and going in an opposite direction. However, when something bad is happening, it is good to reverse the trend to stop the negative effects of the action.  In this example, President Obama laments the high number of Americans who are still unemployed.

Example:  So our job is to reverse these trends.

blog - journey - derailmentderail

We often use journey metaphors specific to certain kinds of transportation.  Trains must stay on the rails to be able to move forward.  If they fall off the railroad tracks, this is known as a derailment.  Metaphorically, when progress towards a goal is interrupted or broken, we may say that it is derailed.  In this case, President Obama is talking about the success of imposing sanctions on Iran.


stay on track

Similarly, forward progress can be made metaphorically if the actions of a group stay on track.



We also talk about a quick beginning to a journey metaphorically compared to the launch of a rocket.



When a rocket is launched, it travels along a path through the air called a trajectory.  Figuratively, a person or group making progress toward a goal may be described as being on a correct upward trajectory.


get on board

Another way of speaking of starting a journey to describe as a person getting on a ship, known as getting on board (the word board itself an example of synecdoche as the piece of wood indicates the platform used to allow people to walk onto the ship). In this case, President Obama talked about asking the government to raise the minimum wage for American workers.

Example:  Of course, to reach millions more, Congress does need to get on board.

America does not stand still/take steps

A journey always begins with the first few steps.  A person cannot stand still and expect to go anywhere. Metaphorically, standing still indicates that no progress is being made towards a goal.  A person needs to start moving and take the first steps to begin the journey.


blog - journey - footsteps

race to the top/big strides

Some journeys are competitions between people or groups.  These competitions are known as races.  A winner is sometimes considered the person at the top of the winners’ podium so that a competition may be described as being a race to the top.  One of President Obama’s programs to improve public education in the United States is called the Race to the Top.  In an extended metaphorical passage, Obama also describes the necessary progress as making big steps or strides toward solving the problem.



speed up/picking up speed

Once a journey or race has begun, a person may need to increase speed to win the race.  This may be known as speeding up or picking up speed. 


Example:  With the economy picking up speed, companies say they intend to hire more people this year.

get by/get ahead

In a race, the person who speeds up the most may get ahead of the competitors.  In cases of evenly matched competitors, one person may struggle to pass or get by another competitor. Metaphorically, just barely making progress toward a goal may be described as getting by, while making a great deal of progress could be referred to as getting ahead.


Race to the finishin the lead

A person who gets ahead of his or her competitors may be described as being in the lead.  Metaphorically, being in the lead indicates that the person is moving ahead towards a common goal.


move this nation forward

Advancing one’s position in a race may also be described as moving forward.  Figuratively, any progress towards a goal may be referred to as moving forward.  In a common political metaphor, we can talk about moving this nation forward.  In this example, President Obama talked about making sure that all moms make sure their children get health insurance.

Example:  After all, that — that’s the spirit that has always moved this nation forward.


Despite the best efforts to advance on a journey, sometimes a person loses his or her footing and may stumble or fall.  Metaphorically, stumbling indicates that there is a break in the progress towards a goal.  Towards the end of his speech President Obama admits that the journey towards progress is not always easy, but they will persevere.


Personification – Metonymy

this chamber speaks

Personification is a rhetorical or poetic device that allows a writer to compare an idea or action to a person. Personification can take many different forms.  In one type known as metonymy, the actions of people in a place are represented by a person.  In this case, the building where Congress meets, known as the chamber, is described as a person who can speak.


Personification – Synecdoche

war footing

In another type of personification called synecdoche, the words for parts of the human body can be used to represent the actions done by those parts.  In this case, having a footing on something indicates that a person or country has a strong position for acting or moving forward.


into the wrong hands

Similarly, the terms hands is used figuratively to represent the work done by the people with those hands, as in the famous military phrase, “all hands on deck.”  In this case, saying something falls into the wrong hands indicates that dangerous materials are in the possession of criminals or terrorists.


blog - synecdoche - hands

Personification – Body Position

More commonly, the use of personification involves the description of businesses or governments as people using their eyes, arms, hands, backs and shoulders to get things done.


People see accurately by focusing their eyes on a certain object.  Metaphorically, being focused means that a person or group is working together towards a common goal.



To see an object precisely, one’s eyes must be clear of obstructions.  Figuratively, being clear-eyed or seeing something clearly indicates that the goal is precisely determined.


reaching out/ reach their potential

People can use their arms and hands to reach out and touch other objects or people.  Collectively, groups or governments can metaphorically reach out to people or other groups as well.


seize this opportunity/ stand ready

We can also grab or seize an object with our hands.  Figuratively, we can seize an opportunity.  We can also stand ready to perform an action after seizing an opportunity (more on standing metaphors to follow).


standing up/weakened/strengthen

Another common metaphor of body position is standing up.  When a person stands up, he or she is in a position to attack or defend oneself in a battle.  Thus standing up means to act in a position of power or protection.  Also, we may also speak of groups, governments or even programs as being strong or weak as a person. Certain actions may strengthen or weaken a program.



blog - body - standing upwe stand for

We can also describe a position of power or authority as standing for something.


drain our strength

Another way of describing weakness is by saying that it drains a person’s strength, or metaphorically a government’s power to accomplish its goals.


backed/backed by pressure

The back of a person or animal is one of the strongest parts of a body.  People can use their backs to apply pressure or force to move objects.  Metaphorically, backing someone or something means that a person or group is supporting a project.



at their side

People who work together may be physically close to each other or work side by side.  We can also say that one person who supports another is at their side.


shoulder to the wheel of progress

As mentioned, we can conceive of a journey as the movement of a vehicle.  In a common metaphor we can speak of the wheel of progress as if movement towards a goal can be described as a turning wheel.  In a sort of double metaphor, President Obama talks about using our collective shoulders to physically move objects or make progress towards a goal.


feet planted/eyes cast towards tomorrow/ within our reach

President Obama ends his speech by combining three metaphors of journeys and personification.  He speaks of the country’s attempts to improve the lives of its citizens, and refers to Army Ranger Cory Remsburg who was seriously injured in battle but has been an inspiration to many people in his recovery.  President Obama describes the readiness of the country to move forward as having our feet planted, while our eyes are fixed on the future, and our goals within our reach.


In sum, as commander in chief, the president naturally needs to inspire and motivate American citizens to work with him and Congress to solve our problems.  A State of the Union address is the perfect way to achieve this goal. I believe President Obama and his speech writers deliberately used metaphors of sports, journeys and personification to relate his messages of unity and progress to the American people.

Next time:  Metaphors of Silver and Gold