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A Rhetorical Analysis of I Have a Dream
Rhetorical analysis of ethos, logos and pathos
A Rhetorical Analysis of I Have a Dream
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Martin Luther King Jr. is known as one of the best speech writers, and the “I Have a Dream” speech proves that. He is a visionary, and inspiring when it comes to speeches. On the step of the Lincoln Memorial, August 1963, is where he gave this extraordinary speech. The speech was given to protest the unequal treatment of African Americans, but the speech also had a reason why it was so effective. The goal was to inspire people to change, and the speech was structured in a way that made it so. The speech was so successful, because it was a master piece of rhetoric and literary devices that King fully utilized to get reactions out of the people. Martin Luther King Jr. was a well know civil rights activist, but this speech made him know worldwide because the eloquence of the speech. He repeated certain phrases, used metaphors, showed the world he was confident, specific places, and most importantly he appealed to the audience emotions. Dr. Martin Luther King uses the three main rhetorical devices know as pathos, ethos, and logos, to persuade …show more content…
the audience for a change in the world. Dr. King proved to the people, and the United States government that he was the best man qualified to speak on the topic of civil rights. He showed the world that he could be an exceptional leader and gain the rights African Americans were promised so long ago. Dr. King showed through his words that he had the knowledge, the experience, and the capability to speak out against the unfair treatment of African Americans, during this time period. Dr. Kings use of President Lincolns own words to describe the unfair treat meant of African Americans, gave his speech the authority for hope and change, “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand, signed the emancipation proclamation”(King). President Lincoln was a powerful man who inspired African Americans to fight for their civil right, and Dr. King is calling them to do the same. Dr. King also adds that the Declaration of Independence wrote a check to the African American people for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. He showed the American people that this wonderful nation was not built on segregation or equality. Kings knowledge of history established his credibility, and gained the trust of the people. By using President Lincoln’s words, and the Declaration of Independence, Dr. King is proving to the nation his credibility, and the right to speak up about this unjust treatment. Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr. uses pathos to appeal to the audience emotions and get them to stand up and call for action. The way Dr. King uses pathos draws white and black Americans together, and gives them a reason to join hands. King used the bible to gain the people’s faith, trust, and hope that change will come by the grace of god. King spoke these words to enunciate that everybody, on god’s green earth, would come together and see his dream come true, “And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and the all flesh shall see it together” (King). He reiterated that no man or women should be denied their rights based on their skin color. King’s use of the bible and poetic structures drove home his points on equality. “I Have a Dream” was repeated multiple times throughout Dr. King’s speech, and gave the people optimism that things would soon change. Dr. King inspired the people to push forward no matter what and to never give
up. The use of logic in the “I Have a Dream Speech” showed the world a reason why there needed to be change in the world. Martin Luther King Jr. was not some sheltered little boy. He was a man who has seen, and been through what his people go through on a daily. He would not stop till it changed. He appealed to the audience sense of beliefs and values. King used metaphors to highlight the contrast between too abstract concepts throughout his speech. King is showing the people through metaphors the result of his dream if everybody stands together, and peacefully fight for what is right by stating that, “A desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice”(King). He stated through personification that “America has given the negro people a bad check which has come back marked “insufficient funds”, by doing this he made sure that everybody understood what the American government was doing(King). Overall the “I Have a Dream” accomplished what it was meant to do, but it also showcased that Dr. King could be very influential man. King also takes the prizes for one of the best pieces of work ever written. The “I Have a Dream” speech stills impact today’s youth forty years later, and is a prime example on how to use rhetoric to better your speech or writing (National Public Radio). He motivates each generation after the next to strive to change the world just like he did those forty years ago with their words. Kings became a legend with his use of rhetoric and many people strive to get the reaction king did with his words. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a colored black minister who had a dream that came true, but it’s a shame he couldn’t see how inspiring his words actually were.
During the 1960s inequality was a major problem in the United States. One advocate for making things right was Dr. Martin Luther King. Dr. King organized many marches, sit-ins, and boycotting events. But one of Dr. King’s greatest and memorable works has to be the “I Have a Dream” speech. During this speech Dr. King was conveying a message of freedom for all, to 250,000 civil right followers and many more people listening to the radio broadcast. To spread his message Dr. King uses rhetorical appeals like logos to appeal to the reason of his audience, ethos by his examples of practicing what he preached, and his metaphorical language and repetition.
Alleged by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in his “I Have A Dream” speech on August 28, 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. Dr. King said “This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. Meaning there shall be equality between one another. Dr. King grew up around pastors in a Baptist Church, so when he gave his speeches he sounded like a preacher. He was a well-educated person who graduated from Boston University and received his Doctorate degree. Plus he was a strong worker for civil rights for members of his race. Being a strong worker and having knowledge of civil rights made him more of a confident and convincing speaker. Therefore, In Dr. King’s “I Have A Dream” speech, he pointed out to African Americans, that in the near future the African Americans would have equal rights and liberty like all the other Caucasians have. In this speech I have found Dr. King using logos, ethos, and pathos to get his attention across about equality and to make his speech sound more effective. Out of the three rhetorical appeals I have found that Dr. King used ethos the most predominately followed by the second most effective, pathos, and how King is a convincing speaker to his audience.
The iconic speech “I have a Dream”, originally named “Normalcy, Never Again”, is dubbed to be one of the greatest speech of all time. It was expertly delivered by civil rights activist Dr Martin Luther King, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. The speech was delivered during the March on Washington on the 28th of August, 1963. Dr King urgently called for the end of discrimination and racial prejudice between the Americans with different colour. He delivered his speech with finesse, inspiring and persuading his audience through the use of written, audio codes and body language. The written techniques Dr King utilized were repetition and metaphor and in addition, audio codes, which were volume and pace.
On August 28, 1963 more than 250,000 civil-rights supporters attended the March on Washington. Addressing the protesters from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. Profoundly, he proclaimed for a free nation of equality where all race would join together in the effort to achieve common ground. King stated his yearning for all colors to unite and be judged by character, not by race. African Americans would not be satisfied until their desire for freedom from persecution, bitterness, and hatred prevailed. Not only were the points in his speech powerful, but also the delivery he gave was so persuading and real that it changed the hearts of many people across America. By using four artificial proofs, mythos, logos, ethos, and pathos, Martin Luther King was able to open the eyes of people who were blinded by the color of skin.
Dr. King is an emotional, inspiring and strong speaker. His " I Have A Dream" speech tugs a deep root war of emotions in every American’s heart; therefore, this speech is the perfect display of pathos. Even though pathos overwhelm logo and ethos, they also very much present in his speech.
In Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech, King makes use of an innumerable amount of rhetorical devices that augment the overall understanding and flow of the speech. King makes the audience feel an immense amount of emotion due to the outstanding use of pathos in his speech. King also generates a vast use of rhetorical devices including allusion, anaphora, and antithesis. The way that King conducted his speech adds to the understanding and gives the effect that he wants to rise above the injustices of racism and segregation that so many people are subjected to on a daily basis. Throughout King’s speech, he uses the rhetorical mode, pathos, to give the audience an ambience of strong emotions such as sympathy.
King uses in his speech is Pathos, which is the appeal to someone 's emotions or beliefs. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. presented a strong feeling towards African-American people about how they were treated as equal individuals “But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination” (King par. 3). Another example of pathos that Dr. King used was when he uses vocabulary and phrases, such as “I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream” (King par. 12). He uses the appeal of emotion, especially the word of choice and diction to let his audience’s know what he would like to see in the
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
On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. gave one of the most notable speeches in American history, at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. King started off his famous “I Have a Dream” speech by stating the impact it would have on America’s civil rights movement: “I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation” (King 1). With knowledge of rhetoric and persuasion, King had a substantial impact on the civil rights movement. Martin Luther King Jr.’s use of ethos, pathos, and logos appeals enable King to persuade the audience to achieve equality.
Martin Luther King Jr. was a civil rights activist and a very influential person. He is known for his speeches and marches. He would never lead a violent march and never fight back if people were hurting him because it would make things worse. Martin Luther King Jr. led the boycott of Montgomery, which risked his life, but the result of it was that supreme court outlawed segregation on public transportation. His “I Have A Dream” speech is one of the most famous and persuasive speeches of all time. He had many literary elements in his speech to grab the audience's attention and keep it. The two most important literary elements are metaphors and anaphoras.
From the steps of the Lincoln Memorial more than forty years ago, Martin Luther King electrified America with his momentous "I Have a Dream" speech. This speech demanded racial justice towards the mistreated black community of America. The theme of the speech was that all humans were created equal and that this should be the case for the future of America. King's words proved to touch the hearts of millions of people and gave the nation a vocabulary to express what was happening to the black Americans. This did not happen by chance. Martin Luther King's speech was carefully constructed so it would have the most appropriate diction to propose his facts and ideas. His speech involved multiple different literary techniques which were very significant in persuading the audience as well. The structure of his speech was an important part of the fluency and persuasiveness of his speech. Sentence lengths, paragraph lengths and the grouping of his ideas drew the audience into his speech. King also used excellent diction throughout his speech using some important literary techniques. One of the techniques which King used was repetition. This helped to drum his points into the audience's mind. King also used figurative language very frequently to persuade the audience. However, none of these literary techniques would have been convincing without some sort of factual evidence backing it up. King used facts to shock the audience and evoke empathy from the white Americans, as well as evoking anger from the black people about how they were treated. He then spoke of not letting the anger cause violence but inspire them to speak out and meet, "physical force with soul force."
Informing Americans across the nation of his dream, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. proposed an unforgettable speech that would one day change the United States of America forever. In analyzing “I Have a Dream”, there are a few rhetorical purposes that are reflected throughout. These purposes are repeatedly focused on a particular audience in which King speaks. Using different types of appeals and literary elements, his speech produced a meaningful purpose that the audience could relate to. The issue of racism in the mid twentieth century played a huge role in Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
King’s persuasive strategies demonstrate ethos, pathos, and logos to help the audience understand Martin Luther King Jr’s message and purpose.“I have a dream…” had the power to move millions of people and to get them to fight for their freedom. With the use of persuasive techniques Martin Luther King Jr achieved this with this one speech. This speech demonstrates the diction, symbolism, and metaphorical language needed to create an emotional, logical, and credible appeal that influenced the nation positively. The efforts King had in fact changed America and the world for the better. His vision has ensured that African-Americans have a voice.
Martin Luther King Jr’s speech “I Have a Dream” is a commonly known speech that has had a great influence on its audience. The speech was presented by Martin Luther King (MLK) on August 28, 1963, as a way for him to reach out to those who grief and feel the same way he did about the segregation that was going on at that time period. Martin Luther King Jr. was an American civil rights activist who was fighting the Jim Crow laws. The Jim Crow laws were a series of anti-black laws which caused considerable amount of segregation in the South. Martin Luther King Jr. presented his speech to be heard by American’s in power to consider getting rid of the segregation. MLK used rhetorical strategies such as symbolism, diction, and metaphorical imagery to influence his audience. In order to influence his audience, MLK proved these rhetorical strategies by indicating ethos, pathos, and logos to aid his spectators to fully understand his speech and the message of it and what his purpose for it was.
Well known leaders receive popularity and support from the audience by creating a strong speech that catches listeners’ attention. On August 28, 1963, people from all over the world listen to Martin Luther King Jr.’s most famous speech, “I Have a Dream.” Dr. King’s persuasive language stirs the crowd and encourages the country to put an end to segregation towards African Americans. His “dream” stimulates the audience to work for equality in the United States by using literary techniques. He tells people to put an end to the civil disobedience being practiced in America. Dr. King uses allusions, anaphoras, and imagery in his speech, causing listeners to desire and feel the need to advocate change.