Direct Address and Ethical Performance of Political Discourse: An Analysis of Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang’s Inauguration Speech

This chapter offers an alternative consideration of the concept of feminine style as distinct, marked, and inferior. It adopts African feminist theory to analyze Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang’s inaugural speech as the vice-presidential candidate for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) on July 28, 2020. The chapter argues that stylistic choices and patterns identified in Opoku-Agyemang’s speech are the consequence of the rhetor’s constitutive myriad identities and networks and not her social roles or skills associated with her womanhood as theorized in dominant feminist rhetorical/communication theories. Analysis of her speech shows that Opoku-Agyemang adopts direct address to harness collective experiences and to ignite collective action toward achieving a shared national aspiration of self-actualization. Thus, she challenges dominant assertions about feminine communication style and practices by introducing unconventional and alternative performance of political discourse and ethical ways of politicking that circumvent normative delegitimization of political opponents.