Preview

Martin Luther King Essay

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
599 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Martin Luther King Essay
Speeches in which this is observed include "I Have A Dream" by Martin Luther King and "The Gettysburg Address" by Abraham Lincoln which have been valued and remembered throughout time as being historically influential and valued, as such, as they use the values of their time and audience to inspire, persuade and unite the public with their message.

Martin Luther King electrified America with his pivotal speech, dramatically delivered from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC in 1963, sharing his dream of a new future for black and white people before more than 200,000 people.

King, part of an extensive black movement, challenged the white Americans to extend genuine freedom to his people and drew on all his powers to inspire black Americans to believe in such freedom for themselves. The key message from the speech was, and is, that all people are created equal and, although not the case in America at the time, King felt it must be the case in the future which is why this text is valued still, even today.

Abraham Lincoln, the American president at the time delivered his speech at the Gettysburg Cemetery during the heart of the civil war in 1863. This was to honour and dedicate the new cemetery to the soldiers who had died in the recent Battle of Gettysburg which was pivotal in the American Civil War. The quality of patriotism is seen in Lincoln's allusion to the Declaration of Independence and constant references to democratic ideals.

............

Martin Luther Kings’ “I have a dream....” speech is one of the most memorable speech’s of all time but why? In thi s essay we’ll have a look at why it’s such an effective speech. In the speech, King especially likes to use repetition and metaphors to convey his ideas. These devices are the foundation of King’s unique and effective style.
Anaphora and repetition are commonly used in Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream....” speech because repeating the words and phrases helps to emphasise the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    King’s Rose to Prominence In the Article by History Net says, August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his phenomenal “I Have a Dream” speech around the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. This speech discusses the different forms of rhetorics that are mentioned. Theme, pathos, tone and audience capture the same perspective in which it makes this speech pleasant and positive. With these rhetorics, King accomplished his purpose for this speech.…

    • 617 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    On August 28, 1963, in Washington, D.C., Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered the prominent speech “I Have a Dream” at the Lincoln Memorial to over 250,000 civil rights supporters. King’s speech was compelling and potent; it moved everyone. Furthermore, he helped change the world where there is justice. He believed in the equality between whites and blacks and died believing it. In addition, he strongly believes freedom exists for the blacks. He states, “[The white’s] destiny is tied up with [the black’s] destiny.” This quote emphasizes the problem of injustice in this world, and it makes the audience move into action. King’s speech was widely known, due to the effective tone he creates throughout his speech. His use of literary tropes and syntactical schemes help make this formidable tone. King’s speech influences the whites and blacks to listen by using extensive anaphora, metaphor, and diction to create a tone of necessity in his “I Have a Dream” speech.…

    • 547 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Repetition in Martin Luther King’s speech is used overall to evoke emotion within the audience members. He often repeats the using sentences that begin with “go back to …”. The repetition of this phrase expresses his passion and relates it to the audience by showing that is just as worked up over the situation they are in just as much as they are, if not more. By repeating the phrase “I have a dream that …” Martin Luther King gets the audience emotionally involved and , and gives them the same dream and hope that it will one day be a reality, not just a dream. The more the phrase is used the more emotion it evokes. The more emotion that is evoked, the more the audience want to make change in the nation.…

    • 566 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1963 Martin Luther King gave the most powerful and famous speech in the history of the United States. 40 years later, no other speech has been able to overcome the effect that this speech has had on the American people generation after generation. Despite the fact that the message of the speech is perhaps the most enduring aspect of the speech, the rhetorical strategies Martin Luther King used were instrumental in captivating the attention of millions people then, and now. The purpose of “I have a dream” was to awaken awareness about the importance of equality and to transcend his vision through the use of pathos, ethos and biblical imagery, among other elements; these are the strategies that enabled him to compose a dialogue that is essentially as motivating as a work of poetry.…

    • 1053 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Introduction: I have a dream, by Dr. King. Background: Martin Luther King Jr. made one of the most famous speeches known to mankind, “I Have a Dream”. Thesis: The most effective rhetoric appeal in the “I Have a Dream” speech is pathos, show by how serious he is, it makes you motivated, and it can make you feel sad.…

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Martin Luther King Jr’s “I Have a Dream” speech is one of the greatest speeches of all time. He achieves this status because the speech is brilliantly written and flawlessly presented. The speech’s clear purpose is to persuade the audience of the problem that is segregation and to call people to fight for civil rights. King’s language is simple and direct, yet very powerful and well-chosen. The speech itself appears to be easily understood. However simple, it very impactful. He uses analogies throughout the speech, these prove the speech to be more accessible to everyday people. He also treats his audience with a huge amount of respect, acknowledging their troubles, as well as, encouraging them to keep going. His use of the phrase “I have a…

    • 247 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Martin Luther King Jr. “I have A Dream Speech” (Primary Source Document) 1. Master File Complete, ESBCO host. Assessed April 17, 2013…

    • 2009 Words
    • 58 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Ihaveadreamessay

    • 319 Words
    • 1 Page

    Martin Luther King’s intention for giving his famous I Have a Dream speech is to encourage his audience to recognize that all men are created equal. King supports his argument through a critical tone and through the use of the following rhetorical strategies: repetition of phrases and theme words.…

    • 319 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “ I have a Dream” speech to hundreds of people at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C revealing the ideals of the current world and encouraging his audience to envision his dream of a new America where segregation and discrimination were abolished. To do this King intelligently chose words, phrases, references that appealed to his audiences commonalities such as religion, their common struggle, and their desire to make the nation great.…

    • 362 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Kings speech is based heavily around repetition. He uses this in the lines, One hundred years later, I have a dream and Let freedom ring. All repeated to gain suspense from the audience as well as emphasising his themes of equality and justice. King says them with such authority and power to further drive home the importance of these themes. Using his voice to create a sense of urgency about the issue.…

    • 838 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. gave the infamous “ I have a dream” speech, a speech that became a pivotal moment in the history of Civil Rights. King’s address took place during the march on Washington rally, where 250,000 civil rights activists had gathered to join the peaceful protest. Martin Luther King Jr.’s purpose is to unite and inspire those fighting for justice, through the use of repetition devices, syntax devices, and figurative language.…

    • 851 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    MLK Rhetoric

    • 711 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Martin Luther King uses a lot of Rhetoric in his speeches, which he addressed to the public back in the 1960s. Most of his speeches where telecast and were watched by the whole nation most famously the I Have a Dream Speech. King used a lot of anaphora, antithesis, Allusion, parallelism and metaphors in his I Have a Dream speech, which appealed to people’s emotional side.…

    • 711 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The speech “I have a dream” by Martin Luther King is acknowledged as one of the best speeches ever delivered. His escalated rhetoric demanding racial justice and an integrated society became a slogan for the black community. King’s words proved to be the basis for understanding the social and political upheaval at the time and gave the nations people a voice of their own to express what was happening. The key message King hoped to get across in his speech was that all people are created equal and that it must be the case for the future of America. King’s speech was by no means improvised, it was well researched and in preparation he studied the Bible, The Gettysburg Address and the US Declaration of Independence as he alludes to all three in his address. The speech can only be described as a political work of poetry and a well delivered, unintentional, yet beautiful, sermon full of biblical language and imagery. As well as rhythm and frequent repetition, alliteration is a key device, used to hit home major points.…

    • 1332 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Martin Luther King's "I have a Dream"speech uses clear and memorable language strategies such as repetition and concrete language effectively. Repetition means, "An instance of using a word, phrase, or clause more than once in a short passage."…

    • 819 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    I Have A Dream Dissection

    • 520 Words
    • 3 Pages

    A few examples are: Towards the end of the speech King uses repetition to drive home just how passionate he is by repeating the phrases "Let freedom ring...", and "I have a dream...". In the original spoken version by Dr. King himself, he uses aposiopesis to draw listeners in as evident in the line, "I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.' ". (King, stanza 14) King also uses allusion to draw a parallel to another great speech to strengthen his argument that we all have a collective national ancestry. "Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation." (King, stanza…

    • 520 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays