The Analysis of J. K. Rowling's Commencement Speech at Harvard University in 2008 Essay

Analysis of JK Rowling Commencement Speech for Harvard University 2008JK Rowling in her commencement address, The Fringe Benefits of Failure and the Importance of Imagination, to Harvard University graduates gathers one of the largest crowds that the university has ever seen for a graduation. She gave an iconic speech that Harry Potter fans and many others will remember for years to come. Rowling starts out saying that she is nervous but the crowd is supportive of her, cheering for her in an uplifting way. She is a very humble woman and was saying how surprised she was when Harvard asked her to give this speech. With a slightly humorous tone, Rowling tells the graduates that she is happy that they asked her to speak and thanks them because not only is this an extraordinary honor, but the weeks of fear and nausea I have endured at the thought of giving this commencement address have made me lose weight. A win-win situation! The crowd appropriately laughs and Rowling gives a little chuckle herself. She then moves on to talk about her own commencement and says that she remembers nothing from Baroness Mary Warnocks address so it must not have been that memorable. She appropriately tells the crows that because she cannot remember anything that she does not have too much worry about influencing any of them to abandon their dreams and careers and become a gay wizard. You see? If all you remember in years to come is the gay wizard joke, Ive come out ahead of Baroness Mary Warnock. The crowd then laughs and it takes a moment for them to quiet down. Rowling has a way with words and the rest of her speech exemplifies how eloquent of a speaker she can be, as well as a writer. This part of the speech is focused on the benefit of failure and how she...

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