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Sydney Lamkin
Dr. OConnor
CIS 110
September 9, 2015

Speech Analysis
The National Prayer Breakfast is an event held each year in February in Washington
D.C., with attendance of 3,500 people from 100 different countries. In 2013, Dr. Benjamin
Carson, a pediatric neurosurgeon from Johns Hopkins Hospital, gave a revolutionary speech. His
tenacious words challenged the minds of the population and sparked controversy among many.
He spoke on matters in our country like education, debt, healthcare, unity, and the importance of
courage, to speak your beliefs even if offending some one is a possibility. Dr. Carson apologized
for his unfiltered words. He believes political correctness is harming our society and saying what
should be said is more important than being liked.
Dr. Ben Carson graduated from Yale University with a degree in Psychology and received
his M.D. from the University of Michigan Medical School. He became a neurosurgeon at Johns
Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore and is known for famously separating conjoined twins
successfully. Dr. Carson was also the director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins. He has
received many awards like the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George Bush,
which is the highest civilian honor, the Fords Theatre Lincoln Medal, meaning he exemplified
qualities like Abraham Lincoln, as well as serving on The Presidents Council of Bioethics. In
2014, Dr. Carson was sixth on a poll of the most admired men in the world. He retired shortly
after his speech at The National Prayer Breakfast in 2013, to focus on his political campaign.
Dr. Carson displayed passion throughout his speech and maintained eye contact with the
audience. He did not shy away from the difficult topics, but tackled them tenaciously. One of his

main points was the importance of education. He said, Our government was designed for a well
informed and educated populous. The less informed we are, the more vulnerable we become.
He believes when a man is educated, he is liberated. Although long, he used his time well, he
held for applause and paused throughout the speech to emphasize certain topics. He also used
humor to lighten the mood in such a serious setting. Dr. Carson speaks very knowledgeable and
uses examples to help the audience understand, like this one: if a number is counted every
second to get to 16.5 trillion, the amount of our countrys debt, it would take 500,700 years! Dr.
Carson believes Republicans and Democrats need to work together to solve problems, not just
compete in a competition to obtain the win for their side. He provides a great vivid picture for
the audience: an Eagle has a left and right wing and both are needed to fly.
The speech was very informative and felt conversational, but Dr. Carson may have used
too may personal experiences. Most added to the speech, but some details were unneeded.
Political correctness is a problem in todays society and he made it clear that he did not agree
with holding back. Dr. Carson relates political correctness to a muzzle on a person, yet another
vivid image for the audience to ponder, but he may have spent too much of his time on this issue
before diving into what he had to say. His speech sparked controversy with many, but he
apologized multiple times throughout, which made it seem like he was aware of the outcome.
With President Obama next to him, he made it relatively clear that he was not in agreement with
all of his decisions as president. Dr. Carson may have been blunt with his opinions, but with his
view on political correctness, this was appropriate in his speech.
Dr. Benjamin Carson exemplified qualities I wish to carry over into my speeches. He was
very laid back and conversational with the audience, not trying to fill every second with words. I

get incredibly nervous in front of a classroom setting and wish to be more relaxed like Dr.
Carson while giving a speech. I hope to be passionate about each topic and connect with our
class throughout my speeches. I think it is important to say what you believe is needed but not to
come off over confident and rude, making it harder to connect with your audience. Dr. Ben
Carson gave a speech according to what he thought needed to be said even if he knew it may
have not been what society wanted to hear. He looked at each problem and gave a solution, all
for the greater good of this country.