...Rhetorical Analysis – I Have a Dream. A speech, that will be remembered by many and be passed down from generation to generation, had shaped the future of America by the time Martin Luther King had stepped off the stage on August 28th, as he called for an end to racism in the United States during the March on Washington in 1963. This was one of, if not, the most powerful speech America has seen to this day. A beautiful way to begin! Good job! Martin Luther King stood on that stage with confidence and determination to make a change in the United States of America and it was shown through this rhetorical masterpiece titled “I Have a Dream”. The first line of the speech makes the audience aware of not only how serious he is, but also how determined and sure he is that his speech will change the civil rights in the United States of America; he could not have been more right about it. From the very first line, Martin Luther King had his audiences’ undivided attention. “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.” (Line 1-2, Page 1) His audience in this case would not only be his fellow Negroes who are still not free, but the rest of the Americans that attended the March on Washington. Little did he know that the whole world would be his audience… Good! In this first line we see him start off with using logos. He refers to the USA as “our” nation. We see this throughout the...
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...The speech “I Have a Dream” have 78 sentences in total, included 9 sentences with over 30 words in each. The longest sentence has 77 words; the shortest one has only 4 words. The whole speech consists of the mid to long length of sentences, which clearly stated the claim: improve the human right for African Americans. In a peer article written by Joe Ciesinski, he stated that Martin Luther King Jr. contrasts light and dark metaphors in his speech” (Ciesinski, p.18). In the first paragraph, the phrase “beacon light”, is a metaphor that referred to the Emancipation Proclamation that gives hope to the Negro slaves suffering from the injustice. The joyous daybreak is another metaphor of the and end the long-term of captivity. King chose the words...
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...The speech, “I Have a Dream,” by Martin Luther King Junior, was directed towards hundreds of thousands, addressing the serious matter of equality amongst all the races to point. In order to invoke certain connections to the audience, King uses rhetorical devices. All of which can be grouped into the three main groups, ethos, pathos, and logos. Firstly, King builds the trust of the audience by adding credibility, through the process of ethos. Add Sent.- The first such allusion was a reference to the Emancipation Proclamation. In which King states,“ 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.” This helps the audience/reader gain a sense of King’s background knowledge of the subject. Another example of such an allusion is brought forth from the Bible, in which King includes the line, “No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream.” The...
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...hate; only love can do that.” These lines stated by King are very crucial as it was said in a time period where these words were weighed heavily. King is known as a social activist who led the Civil Rights Movement during the mid-1950s. He has made many speeches throughout the Movement in which he is best known because of them. During the Civil Right Movement the main goal of it was to end racial inequality. According to Merriam Webster’s Dictionary inequality means, “an unfair situation in which some people have more rights or better opportunities than other people.” Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” is the most compelling...
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...and acclaimed civil rights leader -- is possibly the best remembered for his effective speech, “I Have A Dream,” in which he expressed his ambition for peace and racial equality. The 17-minute speech was given to thousands of people at the Lincoln Memorial and televised live to millions on August 28, 1963. King urged America to acknowledge people of all races to be united and free. He used his knowledge as a preacher and used anaphora, parallelism, and historical references to grab the attention of his audience. King’s experience as a preacher and as a civil rights activist was evident in the artistry of the speech. With King’s experience as a preacher, he has given numerous sermons in his lifetime. He has formed a technique that he continuously practices in his sermons, so his audience can relate to him and make the sermon more effective. His technique includes rhetorical devices such as anaphora and parallelism. An essential element of a preacher is being charismatic. This is a part of his technique because that charm is so compelling that it inspires devotion in others. King’s charisma also affects his...
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...RHETORICAL ANALYSIS 1 Rhetorical Analysis of “I Have Dream” Speech Alfonso Gonzalez Itt Technical Institute Instructor Deana Schoneberg EN 1320 RHETORICAL ANALYSIS 2 The main point of Dr. Kings speech was that an injustice had been done to the black people. They were promised freedom from the emancipation proclamation and up to that point they still were not free. They were segregated and treated like second class citizens. Were they suppose to sit down and let white men at that time humiliate them, beat them, bomb their houses, and strip them of human dignity? No! Dr. King was preaching to all who listened, that now was the time to metaphorically cash this check, a check that will give them upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice. But to do this, not with violence or retaliation, “we must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence.” (Carson, 1998, p225) This would be the way Dr. King would want to see his dream played out, with non -violence. Were all his efforts done in vain? On August 28, 1963, The March on Washington was organized by Bayard Rustin and led by union leader A. Philip Randolph. The backdrop ironically took place on the steps...
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...When I was ten I witnessed my first public execution. I thought it was normal. I rationalised the execution as punishment for betraying the Great Leader. Everything in North Korea is about unwavering loyalty to the Great Leader. Every novel. Every newspaper. Every movie. Every podcast. Every form of public information is dominated by one topic – the Great Leader. Roads are named after him, slogans praise him, and posters of him are displayed in every school. As human beings we believe what we are taught. We submit to authority and rarely question societal values. We accept what we see and hear as the ‘truth’. We fail to think critically about our nation’s ideology. Today I address you as a North Korean defector. I urge you to question societal belief systems. Your leader, Donald Trump, recently spoke about the ‘cruel dictatorship in North Korea’. His admonition towards North Korea reflected existing perceptions, with 51% of all Americans considering North...
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...“I have a dream” spoken by Martin Luther King Jr. was verbalized in 1963 on August 28. It was a national turning point for America. In his speech, he uses many literary expressions to portray his beliefs such as Metaphors and Allusions. These are heavily used to depict his ideas about the injustices of African American people and where these injustices thrive. Martin Luther King was an activist for civil rights. He, along with many, wanted to bring to light the terrible injustices that belong to an African American. He uses many metaphors to paint a vivid picture of the world as he saw it. In his speech he declared, “This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality.” He uses this metaphor to compare the time a segregation to a excruciating summer. He expresses that people will not rest until they are all considered equal. This time would be joyous just like the autumn, out of the heat and suffering. Later in the speech, Dr. King also states,”The...
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...apart. Then during the 1960’s, Martin Luther King began to speak up. He was a simple minister from Alabama, until he became the figurehead of the Civil Rights movement. King had witnessed racial injustices for many years, but even he couldn’t have imagined the impact he would make by standing up to those injustices.He organized boycotts, led rallies, and gave speeches; however, he is best known for one speech. The "I Have a Dream..." speech was given during the March on Washington on August 28, 1963. Over 250,000 civil rights supporters witnessed one of the most famous speeches in history. King used powerful, emotional metaphors, repetition, Logical appeal, and Emotional appeal to rally the audience by painting a picture of what the world could be. At the time King gave his...
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...Comparative/Contrast Journal The “I have a Dream” speech written and preached by Martin Luther King has a greater impact in effectively persuading their message to the audience than the speech written by Chief Dan George. While Martin Luther King uses Greek philosopher Aristotle’s three “proofs” or appeals; ethos, logos pathos throughout his speech, Chief Dan George only uses two out of the three proofs; ethos and pathos. Though both leaders hold the desire to send out a strong message to their audiences, the speech written and spoken by Martin Luther King contains all three proofs which results in having a greater impact on the people as they are more easily convinced by his vision. Ethos being Greek for “character” is used heavily in King’s...
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...Rhetorical Analysis Paper Martin Luther King Jr.: I Have a Dream According to Aristotle, there are three ways for a speaker to persuade his audience: ethos, logos, and pathos ("American rhetoric: Aristotle's rhetoric - selected moments," n.d.). Aristotle noted that a speech should “engage both the rational and non-rational elements of the listener's soul” (Wardy, 1996, p. 63). The speaker must have credibility with their audience and appear fair, open-minded, honest, and knowledgeable (ethos). He/she must also have logical appeal with strong, valid arguments based on facts and, perhaps, with personal experience and observations (logos). And, finally, the speaker must emotionally appeal to the audience and create a personal connection to draw and hold their attention (pathos). Of the three, Aristotle believed that ideally arguments should be made with reason, or logic, alone (McKay & McKay, 2010). However, it is often a speaker’s emotional appeal that creates the personal connection, as well as captivates and motivates the audience … and few have done that better than the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. If you say the words “I have a dream”, Americans from age 18 to 80 immediately think of Martin Luther King Jr. They may not know the words achieved notoriety from a speech given at an equal rights march on Washington, DC in August 1963. They may not know that 250,000 blacks gathered at the National Mall to demand "jobs and freedom" (Hampson, 2013). Additionally, they...
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...University Rhetorical Analysis of Dr. Martin Luther Kings “I Have A Dream” (Revised) Introduction On August 28th 1963, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave the “I Have a Dream” speech which was addressed to not only the 200,000 white and black Americans but people all around the world. The “I Have A Dream” speech has been considered one of the most greatest and powerful speeches in history. Why was it given? Simply to rectify that all me were created equal despite their race or color. In this Analysis I will be explaining some literary terms he used as strategies in his speech, and also explain how Dr. King used two rhetorical patterns to help him support his argument, those two patters are Ethos, & Pathos. Strategies Dr. King used many literary terms in the “I Have a Dream” speech such as Alliteration, which is the repetition of sounds. For example he says, “I have a dream that my four little 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 character.” The “c” in those three words of that sentence gives it a repetitive rhythm feel which will make that important part of the speech catch and memorable. Also from that same sentence he used Anaphora, which describes the most famous part of the speech, where in this case is “I Have a Dream”. Although he used it many times just buy naming this speech “I Have a Dream” it will make everything he...
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...Martin Luther is well known for his famous speech, "I Have a Dream". He delivered the speech in 1963 in Washington D.C. the theme of the speech was to describe the dream he had of a better America that was free from racial discrimination especially that of the black people. Luther begins his speech by illustrating the historical context of the injustices done to the black people due to their skin color. The introduction creates a base for the main theme of the speech where he shares his dream with the people about the America he wishes to see in the future. The discussion of the paper illustrates the effectiveness of the speech using the five canons of rhetoric. Invention The topic that Luther chooses is very captivating, and it is crucial to having a significant effect on the audience. First, the topic is in line with the current situations that are affecting the people. The people, therefore, feel they are part of what Luther is speaking about. The invention gives the black activists a future they are supposed to dream of. Secondly, the invention of the topic instills hope to the people. In a time of oppression and discrimination, the choice of the topic is efficient because it creates a sense of hope and a brighter future for the people. Connecting with the people's emotions determines the extent a speech has to the audience. Lastly, the topic motivates the audience to think about the future they would like to have. In the process of jogging their minds, they internalize...
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...CRITICAL THINKING ANALYSIS OF MARTIN LUTHER KING’S SPEECH, “I HAVE A DREAM” Martin Luther King uses a strong approach to deliver a speech full of encouragement and motivation for the deprived freedom of blacks living in American in the mid-1900s. With a recording break crowd in attendance in Washington in August 1986, Martin Luther King expresses the experienced suffering and demand for change in the lives of blacks. His purpose is clear and without hesitation. As I listener, I felt his passion that was supported by his appropriate boundaries to live equally. With the limitations and challenges King faced during that time, I can understand why his speech is a significant milestone in our country’s history. King makes the listener understand that his purpose is to fairly achieve the long overdue equality blacks have been robbed of. He is clear in his mission and has no intentions of entertaining such an mission with wrong doings or harm. I can only imagine, while during this time in American history the blacks had lived with so much oppression and discrimination, how challenging it would have been to approach such freedom with proper actions. Although King is trying to gain something in his speech, he is not driven by a selfish motive. He distinctly states his purpose and strategizes on the actions needed. At the end of his speech, I ask myself, “Do I agree with the necessity of blacks’ freedom?”. King presents his speech in a manner that is realistic, future...
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...On August 28, 1963, in Washington DC Martin Luther KingJr.,gave one of his most famous speeches titled “I have a dream” on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.King’s purpose for delivering this speech was to inspire people to unite as one.He wanted to end racial discrimination and lead a progression of civil rights for all human beings regardless of race or cultural background. He dreams one day that his children will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. He introduced his topic with three words “ I Have a Dream”, he unified the concept of where there was no social hatred,where people were treated equally, and where it wasn’t a crime to be a minority. The speech was split up into two sections, the...
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