Award Winning Ceremony: an Opportunity to Have a 'Voice'

“If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door,” Milton Berle once said. Joaquin Phoenix is an American actor, environmentalist, and social activist, widely known for his disdain for the concept of award ceremonies. Over time, however, he built a door by transforming his obligation to attend these ceremonies into platforms to advocate for his social causes. He recently won an Oscar for Best Actor for his role in the film Joker in 2019 and used his acceptance speech to address the fight against injustice. But was his exegesis, or critical explanation, successful, considering the rhetorical situation and Kairos? The answer is both yes and no.

Acclaimed Awards Event: A Chance to Be Heard

Kairos is translated as “the right time” from Ancient Greek and refers to an “opportune presentation.” It is the God of opportunity, which is different from exegesis, meaning the critical explanation of something. Kairos is important because of the rhetorical situation, which consists of five basic underlying principles: the text, the author, the audience, the purpose(s) for communication, and the setting, which includes the time, place, and environment surrounding a particular communication (Bitzer, 1968). Authors use Kairos and the rhetorical situation in their writing, whether it is a speech or a love letter, to convey their point to the audience in a way they will understand.

Actors have been using award show ceremonies for political statements for years, taking advantage of Kairos to engage with their audience. One of the most famous Oscar speeches occurred in 1973 when Marlon Brando won the Best Actor Oscar for The Godfather. His speech was delivered by Sacheen Littlefeather, a Native American actress and rights activist. Brando's intention was to support the American Indian Movement (AIM) and draw attention to the ongoing situation at Wounded Knee, a site of a previous Native American massacre in 1890, where Native Americans were under siege from government forces. As a protest against Hollywood’s treatment of Native American identity, Brando regretfully declined the award. This is a prime example of using Kairos and the rhetorical situation to full advantage because his speech focused solely on Native American discrimination (Deloria, 1988).

The most common criticism of actors who use award-winning platforms for personal or political speeches is that it defeats the purpose of the rhetorical situation or is “not the time or place.” Critics would prefer winners to simply receive the award, express gratitude, and exit the stage. People do not watch The Academy Awards, better known as The Oscars, just to hear celebrities give political speeches. They watch to see which celebrity won the Best Actor award or Best Motion Picture award. While most award winners thank their directors and crew, some celebrities, like Joaquin Phoenix, have been building a door of opportunity to speak to the world about their concerns.

Joaquin Phoenix: Advocating for Social Causes

Joaquin Phoenix has been using his award wins as a chance to express his thoughts on various distressing topics around the world, addressing different concerns at each ceremony. At the Golden Globes, Phoenix used his speech to discuss the wildfires in Australia and thank the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for their reference to climate change with a plant-based menu. Later that month, at the Screen Actors Guild Awards (SAG), he acknowledged his fellow nominees and the late Heath Ledger. At the British Academy Film Awards (BAFTAs), he delivered a speech about systemic racism and the lack of diversity in the entertainment industry. At The Academy Awards, instead of focusing on one particular controversial issue, Phoenix tied them all together, stating, “I think at times we feel or are made to feel that we champion different causes,” when, “whether we’re talking about gender inequality or racism or queer rights or indigenous rights or animal rights, we’re talking about the fight against injustice” (Phoenix, 2020).

His speech was partially successful because he was placed in front of a broad spectrum of society, enabling him to reach a wide audience. He discussed the commonality between different causes: the fight against injustice and how people's passion is fueled by it. This inclusivity made his speech accessible to everyone. The main message of his speech emphasized using “love and compassion as guiding principles” to address societal impacts on the world. He mentioned being “disconnected from the natural world” as an environmentalist advocating for animal rights. However, when he singled out the dairy industry, the speech lost effectiveness because not everyone is directly involved with agriculture. By focusing on the dairy industry, he deviated from an inclusive message to one centered on the animal rights movement. The challenge is that it’s hard for people to connect to the animal rights movement, as it doesn't affect society like gender inequality and racism do. Gender inequality and racism involve everyone, fitting under his overall idea of an inclusive message.

Joaquin Phoenix's speech didn’t utilize Kairos and the rhetorical situation to its fullest advantage as Brando’s speech did. Phoenix’s message wasn’t as focused. Had he omitted the information about the dairy industry, his speech would have been more driven. “Run to the rescue with love and compassion and peace will follow.” Phoenix ended his speech with a song lyric written by his brother when he was seventeen. This lyric encapsulates the main idea of his speech. In Brando’s speech, Littlefeather expressed hope that “our hearts and understanding will meet with love and generosity” in the future. Phoenix also mentioned love and compassion multiple times, stating, “when we use love and compassion as our guiding principles, we can create, develop, and implement systems of change that are beneficial to human beings and the environment” (Phoenix, 2020). Brando’s speech advocated using love as a solution to Native American discrimination, while Phoenix aimed at fostering peace between humanity and the environment. Both used the concept of love and compassion to address critical problems affecting people, which Phoenix claims represents “the best of humanity.”

Conclusion

Joaquin Phoenix is a social activist fighting against injustice. In his speech at the Oscar Awards, he expressed his love for the film industry, saying, “the greatest gift it has given me...is the opportunity to use our voice for the voiceless.” He took the opportunity to speak about social activism. His exegesis was, for the most part, successful, considering the rhetorical situation and Kairos. His speech would have been more effective without the discussion about the dairy industry, but he concluded with an outstanding message.

Overall, not everyone believes in animal rights or is directly involved with agriculture because everyone has different backgrounds and cultures. For example, some people are raised to see animals as mere sustenance, while others are taught to treat every living creature with the same respect as a person. Everyone is different and holds diverse beliefs.

In conclusion, the award-winning platform may not be the ideal place for sharing personal statements regarding global and individual issues. It is more appropriate for speeches connected with the award ceremony, career achievements, and expressions of gratitude.

References

Bitzer, L. F. (1968). The rhetorical situation. Philosophy & Rhetoric, 1(1), 1-14.

Deloria, P. J. (1988). Indians in unexpected places. University Press of Kansas.

Phoenix, J. (2020). Acceptance speech at the 92nd Academy Awards. Retrieved from [insert URL here].