Problem, Solution
Let’s analyze the “Problem, Solution” speech structure with a focus on Barack Obama’s 2008 victory speech.
Let’s get started:
We’ve broken this speech structure analysis into two sections: an overview of the “Problem, Solution” structure and an analysis of Barack Obama’s 2008 victory speech to see how he used it.
Overview
What is the “Problem, Solution” structure and when do you use it?
The “Problem, Solution” structure is foundational for persuasive advocacy. It begins by identifying a pressing issue that resonates with your audience—something they feel is wrong or unjust. Then it transitions into a proposed solution that feels actionable, effective, and morally or emotionally compelling. This format is about storytelling with purpose: presenting the stakes clearly, offering hope, and inspiring involvement.
Use this structure when your goal is to mobilize people—whether it's in a grassroots campaign, educational environment, or policy-oriented event. The structure is ideal when there's an emotional element to the issue or when public misunderstanding or inaction has let a problem worsen. Remember: you are raising as much awareness to the problem as well as the solution.
Audience: General public, peers, school boards, elected officials.
Setting: Protests, classroom debates, community forums, youth advocacy events.
Cause: Labor justice, environmental issues, educational equity, human rights.
Problem: Clearly define what is wrong. Use statistics, vivid language, or a real story to highlight the urgency. The audience should feel that the issue cannot be ignored.
Solution: Present your plan or belief. Make it tangible and explain how it will address the root of the problem.
Call to Action: Invite your audience to act. Give them something specific to do—sign a petition, support legislation, volunteer, vote, or change a mindset.
Analysis
How did Barack Obama use the “Problem, Solution” structure in his 2008 Victory Speech?
Problem
Barack Obama begins his speech by describing a nation in crisis:
“For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime — two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage, or pay their doctor's bills, or save enough for college.”
He frames this moment as a test of American resilience, creating an emotional anchor around struggle and perseverance— that’s the rhetorical theme he lays out.
To emphasize this, he creates a visual narrative— show, don’t tell.
“The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year, or even one term, but America — I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you: We as a people will get there.”
This works especially well because of the context of this victory speech. At this point, Barack Obama is still a relatively new politician. His position and background means he can outline the problem as an outsider seeking change.
The speech is aimed at the general public: the crowds of people that waited for his election results and the broader American constituency. Obama can’t give a 30-minute speech, dive into the technical details, or recount the long history behind the problems he outlines. This type of speech— one that requires the speaker to illustrate their points in broad strokes— requires a “Problem, Solution” structure.
Solution
Barack Obama then transitions into his solution by planting hope of a better reality:
“We may not get there in one year, or even one term, but America — I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you: We as a people will get there.”
Then, he asks his audience to transfer that hope into service and involvement. He asks Americans to work harder, pitch in, and look after each other. He calls back to his emotional anchor of perseverance:
“So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other.”
Obama emphasizes this rhetorical theme by using another example of show, don’t tell by creating a visual:
“And, above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it's been done in America for 221 years — block by block, brick by brick, callused hand by callused hand.”
Finally, his call to action comes in the form of a parallel. He tells the story of 106-year-old Ann Nixon Cooper. Obama walks us through her journey— through the Great Depression, World War II, and the Civil Rights Movement— in order to emphasize his theme of perseverance and struggle. Obama hopes to persuade the audience into believing that they can get through tough times together with hard work and engagement— just like we have years before. His call to action couldn’t be more simple and apt:
“This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time — to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.”
Read the full transcript of Barack Obama’s 2008 Victory Speech.
Watch the full Barack Obama 2008 Victory Speech.
Barack Obama uses a lot of rhetorical techniques and tools in his speech. To learn more about rhetoric, click here.