Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the leader of the civil rights movement in the 1960’s. His speech, entitled “I Have a Dream” was given in front of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963. Dr. King used his speech as a rally for people, blacks and whites alike, who desired equality and social justice, but there is so much more to it than what appears on the surface. Dr. King employs a number of stylistic techniques, all of which serving a purpose too subtle for the naked eye to pick up. Dr. King uses the stylistic techniques of word choice, metaphors, and repetition to fuel hope and bring about change. One of the many stylistic techniques Dr. King employs to end segregation and bring about equality is word choice. At the beginning of the speech, Dr. King says, “Five score years ago.” Those words are extremely effective at making his audience of African Americans and the millions watching at home think of one of the most famous Americans to have ever lived, Abraham Lincoln. At a time in America’s history when racial injustices are beginning to become too much to bear, Dr. King had to find a suitable figurehead for his movement that all Americans could believe in and trust. It was Dr. King’s intention to have his audience think about Lincoln, as it was Lincoln who freed the slaves with the Emancipation Proclamation, and that affects every African American in the country. Dr. King also intends that the phrase “Five score years ago,” bring up thoughts of Lincoln because Lincoln held the country together through great turmoil during the Civil War. If Lincoln could stop the violence of a civil war in only one term of presidency, Dr. King wanted to show that he and anyone willing to join him could also stop the violence against Afri... ... middle of paper ... ...highlights the fact that Dr. King’s dream is not for his race to be better than any other, or for any race to be superior, but that everyone should be brothers. Dr. King’s choice of repetitive lines is powerful and effective. Dr. King brilliantly weaves so many subtleties into such a relatively short speech that almost 50 years later it still must be analyzed to no end. Dr. King was a southern Baptist preacher before he was sucked into the leading role of the civil rights movement, I’m sure that had a great effect on his ability to give a speech. Dr. King knew just what to say, when to say it, and how to say it. From this we can see Dr. King’s lasting effect, and the fact that although we have come far in the area of civil rights, we still have a long way to go and it will be Dr. King’s timeless words that usher us into a new era of prosperity and brotherhood.
...pair”. (King, M. L. Jr. (1963, Aug.28) Para 11). In the beginning of his speech he says “five score years ago,” which is in relation to Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address’s opening, “four score and seven years ago.” (King, M. L. Jr. (1963, Aug.28) Para 2). He also uses the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence as references. He says, “This note was a promise that all men would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” (King, M. L. Jr. (1963, Aug.28) Para 4).
Dr. King first starts out all pumped up on a very light note. He is very optimistic about his speech in the very first line. However he bluntly addressed the issues of hardship, which African-Americans endured while America was beginning to become a stronger symbol of hope and freedom. He acknowledged the experience of wealth which his race became accustomed to, the ghetto poverty. He recognized the right of each color and pale man who contains the right to live, liberty, and the pursuit of true happiness. As bluntly as he began his speech, he boldly pointed out the Supreme Law of The Land- the Constitution - and quoted the Declaration of Independence as all.
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 comprehension 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.
On August 28th, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his famous and powerful speech I Have a Dream, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. The purpose of his speech was to fight for the civil rights, equality, and to stop the discrimination against African-American people. His use of imagery, repetition, and metaphor in his speech had created an impact with his audience. King used the three rhetorical devices, ethos, pathos and logos to help the audience understand the message of his speech.
Dr. King was speaking as if he was Moses on Mount Sinai, bringing down the Ten Commandments. As if he was seated with Christ speaking to his apostles at the last supper. He felt this moment in time, on those steps before the Lincoln Memorial was his time to make his spirit, dedication and fervor for justice for the entire negro race be known from the hilltops of New Hampshire to the slopes of California and back to every hill and molehill of Mississippi.
In conclusion, King’s “I Have a Dream,” played a major step in inspiring generations of blacks to never give up and made thousands of white Americans bitterly ashamed of their lack of moral and Godly values, forging a new start for the American society that embraces racial equality. The speech’s heart-warming and moving content coupled with King’s effective voice and the usage of literary devices such as Aristotle’s Art of Rhetoric have made this speech the greatest of the 20th century.
From the steps of the Lincoln Memorial more than two score years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King electrified America with his momentous "I Have a Dream" speech. Aimed at the entire nation, King’s main purpose in this speech was to convince his audience to demand racial justice towards the mistreated African Americans and to stand up together for the rights afforded to all under the Constitution. To further convey this purpose more effectively, King cleverly makes use of the rhetorical devices — ethos, pathos and logos — using figurative language such as metaphors and repetition as well as various other techniques e.g. organization, parallel construction and choice of title.
On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered a speech to more than 200,000 people during the March on Washington. King's speech was one of the most influential during the era of the Civil Rights Movement and is to this day recognized as a masterpiece due to its effect on the audience as well as for its eloquence and language. Many components went into this passionate speech that portrayed King's hopes for racial equality and a brighter future made the speech as moving as it was. It is doubtful that any person can guess that this speech was written without forethought regarding what goals King wished to accomplish in this speech. Martin Luther King Jr.'s eloquent language was perfectly suited to his audience, both his immediate and secondary audience, and his carefully chosen diction helped to shape arguable one of the most touching works ever spoken.
He starts to use repetition and saying, “I have a dream…” then goes on to say. “I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers” In this quote, he is trying to get people to visualize that one day they will have to put all the discrimination and prejudice aside and come together as one and support each other in a loving manner. As he proceeds to say, “Let us not wallow in the valley of despair.” Dr. King is applying that they should not get discouraged and continue to see into the positive side of
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)
He also uses several "theme" words over and over to leave the listener with a clear understanding of the underlying message. The most apparent theme is probably the phrase "I have a dream". By repeating "I have a dream", he emphasizes these words and makes them memorable to the listener. The first half of King's speech was in part, painting a n ugly picture of racial discrimination, and called the audience to action by refusing complacency, idleness, and aggression. The repetitive words are passionate and almost militant. But his tone in the latter half is more unifying, positive, and peaceful. He leaves his audience with an alternative future and ends with the hopeful Negro Spiritual, "Free at last, free at last, Thank God Almighty, We are free at last."
In Martin Luther King Jr’s legendary speech, “I have a dream,” Dr. King addresses his desire and hopes to eliminate racism and spread equality throughout America. Throughout his speech, Dr.King uses various literary techniques in order to get across his message and persuade his audience of both blacks and whites. Dr. King’s introduction begins with a slow pace, placing emphasis on each word. The slow pace approach, allows the audience to fully grasp MLK’s belief that his speech “will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.” In his speech, Dr.King also incorporates the three rhetorical appeals: logos, pathos, and ethos. The beginning of the second paragraph, “five score years ago,” demonstrates
Unjustified criminalization, racial segregation, and national bigotry created a breeding ground for the rise of many formal civil right movements fighting for the equality of all people marginalized under a strict social structure during the early 1950s and 60’s. While this era contained many influential activists, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. reigns superior as one of the most notable civil rights advocates in recent history. Dr. King is renowned most for his peaceful and nonviolent protests in the civil rights movement, his most famous moment being his “I Have A Dream” speech. In this argumentative essay, I will pursue the argument that Dr. King uses the rhetorical strategy, Pathos, most effectively throughout his famous speech, due to his
The 1960’s were a turbulent time during our country. We were in the Vietnam War. President Kennedy and Robert Kennedy were murdered. Yet, despite all this turmoil, a voice of calm and reason rang through the country; Martin Luther King, Jr. served as light for civil rights equality. He led marches and gave brilliant speeches. One of his most famous speeches was the “I Have a Dream” speech in which he appealed to the three rhetorical elements of ethos,pathos and logos.
King begins his speech by referencing important historical documents such as the Constitution of the United States and the Emancipation Proclamation. This is emphasized when he states, ”Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation...But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free”. Which shows how even though the Emancipation Proclamation freed the African Americans from slavery, they still are not free because of segregation. He then transitions to the injustice and suffering that the African Americans face. He makes this