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Martin luther king speech rhetorical pathos
Martin luther king speech rhetorical pathos
Martin luther king speech rhetorical pathos
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Delivered one of the greatest speeches of the civil right movement on August 28th, 1963, exactly one-hundred later after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, an executive order freeing slaves in the United States. The purpose of the speech was to call for action on the oppressive racism and civil laws, to make a change. Dr. King was an impressive public speaker and knew how to persuade and awe the audience of his peers to help him and so many others with the civil right movements of the 1960s. Dr. King uses major metaphorical speech, pathos, and symbolism tied with illusion to get the point across to the audience. Metaphors are one of the main rhetorical strategies widely used thought the speech. When King Uses Metaphorical speech like in the paragraph where King says, "But we …show more content…
refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt", King does not actually mean that there is a literal bank of justice but that the opportunities the government has given the blacks with the supposed justice of the Emancipation Proclamation and other supposed privileges to just be free is not true freedom, it’s a “bad check, a check which has come back marked ‘insufficient funds'”. This “bad check is not justice to King and he believes it should be paid in full which is why he uses metaphors to convey this aspect of the false freedom that was given and the freedom that is deserved. The example of the bank and check metaphors was only one of the many metaphors Dr. King used through the speech. Dr king uses metaphors and pathos to help the audience interpret what kind of treatment is being forced down the people that are suppressed, with “cup of bitterness and hatred” that Dr. King describes or maybe even the “tranquilizing drug of gradualism” as the solution in which king sees to stop the oppression. Dr. King knew that the people wanted that type of freedom, freedom in which there was no segregation, no racism in which people were put in front of each other based on ethnicity, race, culture, gender, and even financial status. Based on the basic nature of humans to want peace Dr. King used pathos thought the speech to pull on the heart strings of the suppressed and have them fight with him on the path to justice that Dr. King wanted for all. Some of the ways that he used pathos in the speech was like when he involves the people as a “creed” stating “ we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day”. This involves repetition and strong pathos having the audience want to strive for this “brotherhood” that Dr. King describes. Making his own symbolism of humanity as a broken up brotherhood that can be mended . The symbolic Illusion is present through the entire speech, from the occasion of being the 100-year anniversary, to Martin quoting Abraham Lincoln directly when he says, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal”.
He did this so he can have the most effect to himself and have a historical context to have as a comparison to his speech. The ambition alone with the statement “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”, had been backed up with the anniversary. He then references Lincoln through the passage not only in the Emancipation Proclamation aspect but even mimicked the type of language used in the Gettysburg address when Dr. King said, “five score years ago…”. He did this as to use the symble of Abraham Lincoln, freed the slaves and believed that everyone should be treated the same, to help portray how he felt early on. Before Dr. King had to put in his own input on the subject people would know where Dr. King stood for and what his basic beliefs were, indirectly telling the audience where this speech is going to
lead. Martin Luther King wanted humanity to live together in tranquility, in peace, no violence, no segregation, or no oppression of any kind. He wanted to get his point across in a ground-breaking fashion. He did this with the use of rhetorical methods that he executed flawlessly through the entire speech, grasping at the hearts and minds of all the people that worked along side him to end segregation, and cripple racism.
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.
Martin Luther King, Jr., born on January 15, 1929, was well known for his nonviolent movement to bring justice and to an end to the segregation of the people in the United States back in the 1950s. With King being the leader of a peaceful protest, it failed to bring equally to the colored people. Martin Luther King, Jr. was labeled as an “outsider” who was “hatred and violence” and that his actions were “unwise and untimely” from the Public Statement by Eight Alabama Clergymen (clergymen). In response, on the day of April 16, 1963, he wrote the Letter from Birmingham Jail to declare and defense his movement was not “unwise and untimely” at all. To analyze his points, King used the powerful literary devices of pathos- use of an emotional appeal.ethos-
Dr. King’s speech starts off with a very strong and well calculated use of logos. He starts his speech with a historical background of African Americans situations in America. He enlightens the audience that 100 years earlier Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation which gave all the slaves their freedom. Then after that statement he says that 100 years later African Americans are still not free. Yes, they are no longer sl...
In King's Letter, he clearly states his views and beliefs to not only stand up for himself, but also to stand up for equality and justice for all. His actions also show his commitment to his belief. King later goes on to tell how he was going to achieve his goal. He states that he will be doing it in a non-violent manner which was influenced by Mahatma Ghandi. He also says that this will be done in a well-thought-out, civilized manner. Next, he begins to show them some of the actions that the police force took, such as letting dogs loose on the people and their harsh treatment of the people. Dr. King states that he saw the dogs sinking their teeth into unarmed, nonviolent Negroes. They refused the give them food because they wanted to sing
Martin Luther King Jr’s most compelling point was that every person has the same rights
Martin Luther King’s speech was very persuading due to his ability to use language. His use of language was brilliant, with the combination of all lit elements, most importantly anaphoras and allusions. Dr. King uses allusions all throughout his speech, an allusion is an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly. An allusion is used to refer back to something in the past and help emphasize a piece of writing. As shown in the text on page 1 paragraph 2, Dr. King uses a piece from the Gettysburg address to start his speech, “ Five score years ago.” Dr. King used a piece from the Gettysburg Address because that was a very important piece of writing in American history and it really helped emphasize his speech. Another allusion used in Dr. King’s speech is stated in the text on page 1 paragraph 4 “ When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the
considered one of the most influential letters written throughout history. Martin Luther King is also considered one of the most influential individual in the history of the American Civil Rights movement. King’s contribution is critical not only evidenced through his active participation in boycotts, but also through his writings. A significant example of contributions through writings is the Birmingham Letter that he wrote from jail after being accused of demonstrating against racial segregation in Alabama. To help air his complaints against racial segregation, King uses rhetorical tools that comprise of ethos, pathos, and logos.
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.
One of the most influential speeches ever given on the earth was given on a podium at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. on August 28th 1963. The great speech was given by Martin Luther King Jr. who dedicated his time on earth to prove that all people are equal. Martin Luther used different parts of the English language to enhance the meaning of his speech and bring out the details. The different rhetorical devices, allusions to historic documents, and metaphors seemed to have brought about the emotions that King was trying to arouse in his listeners. This helped him influence his listeners towards wanting equality for all and changing what was happening in the present so they didn't repeat things in the past.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most important voices of America, who used non-violent methods to fight for freedom and equality for all in his nation. On August 28th, 1969, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., King delivered his most iconic speech “I Have a Dream.” In this speech, repetition, ethos, pathos, and logos are used to persuade the audience about the importance of the Civil Rights Movement. To create the greatest demonstration for freedom, he used these literary devices to “dramatize a shameful condition” (“I Have a Dream”). Although his life was taken away, his legacy continues to live on today.
Dr. King uses ethos, logos, and pathos effectively throughout his letter to address a large audience. He intertwines the three rhetorical strategies seamlessly to support his argument. Although Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. has his critics in the clergy who argue against his civil rights demonstrations in Birmingham, he effectively uses all three types of rhetorical strategies to effective persuade his critics by explaining why his actions are just and timely in his “Letter from Birmingham Jail.”
Overall, Martin Luther King’s purpose of this speech was to unite African Americans and Caucasians to fight together for the same cause, equal rights for all people no matter the color of their skin. To successfully convey this purpose, King employed several tools of persuasion in his speech. He did indeed present an example of what could qualify as the "greatest demonstration" of arguments for true freedom for all Americans. He employed the techniques of ethos, pathos and logos with such skill that his audience likely was only aware of a single steering man towards a national unity.
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.
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 purpose of the speech was to address the issues of segregation and racism as a whole. King speaks about the issues of racism and segregation in America during the 1960’s. He encourages the use of non-violent protests and to fight for equality to help America solve the issue. 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.