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I Have A Dream Speech Rhetorical Essay

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I Have A Dream Speech Rhetorical Essay
Famous for his many speeches, the most well-known being his “I Have a Dream” speech, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr changed the world. Not all of his speeches were viewed with such positivity. King’s speech on the Vietnam War received harsh words and spoiled critiques. This however did not stop it from being one of the most influential. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr used repetition, metaphors, personification, and rhetorical questions to intrigue, persuade, and influence his audience.

Dr. King’s speech on the Vietnam war was one of the most famous speeches about non-violent protest and how war is not an effective way to be heard. In the middle of the speech Dr. King uses anaphora to emphasize his point that the Vietnamese are people too. He says, “Surely we must understand their feelings… surely we must see that we pressed them to their violence.” In this passage Dr. King repeats the phrase, “surely we must" saying that we have to understand and help our county, not just leave it to the unwilling soldiers. By using anaphora Dr. King makes his point clear that we have to act if we want to help.

The next rhetorical device that King uses are metaphors. These metaphors are simple, but sent such powerful and effective messages. “If America's soul becomes totally poisoned, part of the autopsy must read Vietnam” Here, King is comparing America to a single entity. …show more content…
“Where are the roots of the independent Vietnam we claim to be building? Is it among the voiceless ones?” This is effective to the fact that Vietnam gained independence just before America got involved with the war. Our country was supposed to be helping them build their country, not tearing it down. This is also another nod to the problems of being silent. “...the voiceless ones?” Who will help the people of Vietnam if we are silent? King’s wording of “the voiceless ones” helps paint a picture of the people being affected, making Americans want to speak up and
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