Martin Luther King and John F. Kennedy argumentative essay Martin Luther King better utilizes reference to the past in his speech, “I Have a Dream” compared to John F. Kennedy’s “Inaugural Address”. However, President Kennedy’s usage of reference to the past does not highlight important goals. Prominent examples of references to the past are used in Martin Luther King’s speech, “I Have a Dream”. Specifically referencing the “...Constitution and the Declaration of Independence...”. The ideals the Constitution promotes align with what King preaches in his speech, where all are to be equal. Furthermore, the Declaration of Independence also helps drive this home as it establishes what every American is promised - that all are equal. This is similar …show more content…
Reference to the past is not only used to highlight how the nation is meant to treat others, but it is also used to highlight the main goal of his speech. The “Emancipation Proclamation” is a document that was signed 100 years before the “I Have a Dream” speech. Referencing this document is used to clearly showcase that they, the African Americans, have still been fighting for their rights ever since that day. Where that is specifically showcased in “One hundred years later.”. These support King’s goal of making it known that the African Americans, while they are supposed to have the same rights, do not have the same rights. He makes it clear that his goal is to find a way to deliver these rights to his people and help create equality as it was originally promised through his use of reference to the past. In John F. Kennedy’s “Inaugural Address” reference to the past is used to promote more religious qualities, which is why most people strongly believe in the persuasiveness of his speech. “For I have sworn before you. nearly a century and three-quarters ago.” showcases how President Kennedy uses religion to back up his reference to the creation of the United States of
On August 28th, 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C, Martin Luther King Jr., spoke to roughly twenty-five thousands people attending the March on Washington for jobs and freedom. In Dr. King’s speech, “I Had a Dream”, he uses rhetorical devices to convey that all people are created equal and to educate the importance of the Civil Rights Movement.
Two great men who stood their ground and fought for what they believed in gave two incredible speeches in the 1960s that may have changed America forever. These two men had no idea what this country would accomplish after these great addresses. John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther king’s speeches to the nation appeal to emotions, call action to different audiences, and have differing opinions on the nation that make them comparable but not completely different.
In 1960, John F. Kennedy was elected president of the United States. During his campaign he had promised to lead the country down the right path with the civil rights movement. This campaign promise had brought hope to many African-Americans throughout the nation. Ever since Lincoln, African-Americans have tended to side with the democrats and this election was no different. The Kennedy administration had noticed that the key to the presidency was partially the civil rights issue. While many citizens were on Kennedy’s side, he had his share of opposition. Malcolm X differed on the view of the President and observed that the civil rights movement wasn’t happening at the speed Kennedy had pledged. Malcolm X possessed other reasons for his dislike of John F. Kennedy and his brothers, especially Robert. The Kennedy government stood for racial liberalism and Malcolm X argued their true intentions for the civil rights movement weren’t in the best interest of the black population. This tension streamed both ways. John Kennedy and the Federal Bureau of Investigation felt that Malcolm X had become a threat to national security. James Baldwin has written essays that have included the repeated attacks on the white liberal and supports Malcolm in many of his theories and actions.
Martin Luther King uses a lot of repetition in his speech. They are scattered throughout but very close. One of the repetitions in his speech is “I have a dream.” He uses this phrase to show what he sees in the future of America. One of the phrases he uses with it is: “I have a dream that one day this nation will and live out the true meaning of its creed: we hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.” Another is “I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their nature. I have a dream today.” (King, M. L. Jr. (1963, Aug.28) Para 12) Two other repetitions he uses is “Let freedom ring” and “Free at last.” (King, M. L. Jr. (1963, Aug.28) Para 16&17)
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr wrote a letter to fellow clergymen after being arrested for civil disobedience in Birmingham, Alabama. I agree with his statements towards the differences between just and unjust laws. A just law is one that abides by the law of God and the moral law. An example of this is when the majority party puts a law into place and are willing to follow that law along with the minority. On contrary, an unjust law is not put into place for the sake of the majority and the minority. An unjust law seems unfair to the group that is least likely to be represented. These laws are not made for everyone that's why Dr. Martin Luther King didn't have a problem with breaking unjust laws because they were just that, unjust. Unjust means not behaving according to what is morally right and fair. He says that there is a difference between law, just and unjust and with morality (good and bad). Dr. King also says that it's
Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy were two very commendable men. They were two very different men that I feel had the same incredible amount passion for human beings. Both Dr. King and President Kennedy had such high hopes for this country and regardless of the sad and devastating time era, they both spoke with much poise and compassion. I truly believe they are exactly what this country needed and still needs to this very day.
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Martin Luther King Jr. have dreams of the nation they are trying to form. These instances of envisioning are prevalent in March and are often touching. Dr. King in the text makes an bold statement that demonstrates to the reader why great leaders in this time period in history made a great change in our nation. While talking to Robert Kennedy regarding the unlawful arrest of African Americans in Jackson Mississippi, King speaks to him about why they must continue protesting. King implores, “I’m deeply appreciative of what the administration is doing. I see a ray of hope, but I am different from my father. I feel the need of being free now.” (Lewis and Aydin 96). Martin Luther King not only speaks in terms of a dream when he uses the words ‘ray of hope’, but when he says that he ‘feels the need of being free now’, he envisions a world that could be different. A world contradicting the racism and hate that those of African descent have experienced since the beginning of American history. Though this isn’t Martin’s famous ‘I have a dream speech’, it is evident that he has had a dream and a plan to fulfill it long before the speech that America will remember for the rest of its history. John Lewis had the pleasure of working with Dr. King and sharing his values in the text. John Lewis also has dreams of what America could become—John sees excellent value in the potential of individuals to change America. After Robert Kennedy pulls him aside to reverence the change that has occurred in him being ‘woke’, John explains why People like Kennedy make his dream for America come true. John speaks, “It showed me something about Robert Kennedy that I came to respect: even though he could be a little rough—ruthless, some would say—he was willing to learn, to grow, and to change.” (Lewis and Aydin 152). John has dedicated his life to this movement—giving up an education and other possible opportunities to address injustices among his brothers. In the text, the
The speech given by Martin Luther King, Jr. to the African Americans and to the white Americans in the August of 1963 was undoubtedly a motivator for many. It is no wonder why a vast majority of people living in the United States can recite words from the speech of a now deceased man. Because his language and diction spoke to all believers in freedom as well as to freedom's adversaries, his message was universal and had a meaning to all who heard it. This continues today. Freedom and equality are something to be attained, for all of us.
Martin Luther King did not know that his “I Have a Dream” speech would still be iconic 50 years later. In 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington. He was facing the problem of racial injustice for himself and everyone like him. He needed to create a speech that everyone could and would understand, could learn from, and could draw inspiration from. He had to address blacks and whites, he had to say things that everyone could relate to and he had speak in a way that he get the
In his speech, King uses different types of rhetorical guidelines. He uses them to show his points in a better and easier way to understand .At the beginning he successfully uses a mythos. A mythos has a deep explanatory or symbolic resonance for the audience. In mentioning the Emancipation Proclamation he shows that our ancestors signed a contract, in which all human beings are created equal, and therefore should be treated in the same way as others. He also visualizes his ideas with visual examples, which everybody can understand. “America has given the black population a bad check, which has come back marked insufficient funds”( I Have a Dream)
The civil rights movement in the 1950s-1960s was a struggle for social justice for African Americans to gain equal rights. One activist who became the most recognizable spokesperson and leader in the civil rights movement was Martin Luther King Jr, a christian man dedicated to the ideas of nonviolence and civil disobedience. Although the Civil war had officially abolished slavery, blacks were still treated as less than human for many years after. Martin Luther King Jr has positively impacted the world with his peaceful protest approach to gaining social justice; but with the increase of hate crimes being committed, I believe individuals today need to pick up where King left
On the day of his “I Have a Dream” speech, King stood upon the steps of the Lincoln Memorial located in the heart of our nation’s capital. This location was essential to King’s success because it was a symbol of our nation’s historic efforts to abolish the enslavement of African-Americans; an act which was made possible due to the valiant efforts of Abraham Lincoln. As the preponderance of the speech began, King made reference to the former president in what Peter Paris said was a “Declaration proclaimed to America on behalf of all African people”. King stated, “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice” (I Have a Dream 2). Through these words, he was able to mimic the tone and style of Lincoln’s famous Gettysburg Address while also evoking remembrance of the nation’s harsh past. The signing of one such bill, the Emancipation Proclamation, was the first time in history that African-Americans were able to progress in the social order. King tied this into his argument by introducing the concept that other laws could be enacted in order to allow the African-American population to continue
What has our society classified as a prisoner of war? A prisoner of war is someone who is a member of regular or irregular armed forces of a nation at war held by the enemy. After two years of war with the Middle East our society wonders what happens to the prisoners in jail. The other conflicts of prisoners of war is how they are treated in jail, also what did they do to be detained as a prisoner of war? In most situations, there is a legitimate reason why these people are taken captive. So many might ask what is happening to the Iraqis detained under Coalition forces custody, and do the prisons comply with standards set fourth in the Geneva Conventions? This subject is very controversial to the U.S and other nations. The controversial part of this subject is the alleged abuse of prisoners in jail in custody of U.S soldiers. There are many cases of prisoners dying in prison but is it because of abuse by American soldiers. This subject of abuse upon prisoners of war has reach all over the world especially to the United States. Our president George W. Bush, along with Congress, has arranged investigations on the events that happen inside the prisons. He has addressed to the nation that such things have not occurred, but what a U.S soldier knows may be a little different. This kind of action toward prisoners of war is illegal according to US law, which is dictated by the Geneva Conventions. If a soldier is found guilty of abuse, or other forms of mistreatment, that soldier will be recommended for court-martial. The other issue about this subject is that there are so many different opinions on this matter. One opinion is that U.S personnel really did cause the death of many prisoners of war. The other question i...