Great Expectations--For Young Adults

As I began my post about audience analysis, I could not help but notice that a certain aspect of kairos was similar to the idea of audience analysis. Kairos, when effectively used, includes making an argument to the "right people under the right circumstances." In President Monson CES Fireside Broadcast "Great Expectations," he definitely follows this guideline.

First of all, his audience is given to the students of Brigham Young University and is additionally broadcasted to young adults at other Church Universities and Religion institutions around the world. Young adults are in a very important time in their lives. It is a time when they will decide what majors and careers to pursue, decide who to marry, and what they want to do with their life. It's a time of great decisions. The audience is "close to completing [their] formal education. Others...have additional periods of academic preparation ahead. Each is what could be called the race of life." President Thomas S. Monson message is written "at the right time" to help direct the paths of these young adults and therefore addresses "the race of life," education and academics, spirituality, pitfalls, and goals.

President Monson discusses a book that most of the high school graduates and college students should be familiar with: Charles Dicken's Great. By understanding his audience, President Monson's message becomes persuasive since he also quotes scholars, scientists, influential writers, and other important figures that these young adults may know about or trust.

Additionally, President Monson addresses the issues that young adults face now. This includes the job hiring process, "[struggling] for that grade point average" (p. 4, par. 3), pornography, inappropriate movies, books, and music, and that "permissiveness, immorality, and the power of peer pressure cause many to be tossed about on the sea of sin and crushed on the jagged reefs of lost opportunities, forfeited blessings, and shattered dreams." (p. 5, par. 9)

Secondly, President Thomas S. Monson addresses the "right people." A simple example is that President Monson explains "[he's] always been an ardent sports fan" (p. 6, par. 2). Since many college aged adults enjoy sports, he connects with them by explaining that he too shares that same interest. A more complex example is that President Monson speaks to a mostly LDS population, where he is able to discuss matters about eternal life, Heavenly Father, children of God, and important Church figures. Additionally, he includes scripture from all stand works. By knowing his audience, he is then able to deliver is speech without much explanation about the people, doctrine, or history unlike delivering a speech to those not of the LDS faith or background information. He uses phrases such as "spirit children," "mortality," and "Quorum of the Twelve." He stated, "you have great expectations-not a s the result of an unknown benefactor, bust as the result of a known benefactor-even our Heavenly Father-and great things are expected of you." This statement becomes very powerful to the audience since most are LDS and as members know that we are children of God. There are many people who do not understand this concept, and therefore it would not be as beneficial to them. I also find that his quote is one that encourages both the strong and the struggling young adults. It goes to show that President Monson knows that the faith of the audience varies between individuals.

These various examples demonstrate President Thomas S. Monson's awareness of the audience allowing him to create a convincing message to remind the young adults that they "are a choice generation with great expectations...[and that they may] strive always to achieve those great expectations" (p.8, par. 4).