Martin Luther King Jr. Speech Evaluation Essay
When Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his speech in Washington D.C., he used many effective metaphors that got the people motivated. One of the most motivating examples was: “America has given the Negro a bad check, a check which has been marked ‘insufficient funds’.” This was extremely effective because the people could easily relate to having no money left in the account, as they sensed the fact that there simply wasn’t any justice left. They knew that America promised them freedom 100 years before, but they still had been given nothing. Therefore, Dr. King had made that metaphor extremely effective on the people. In addition, the African Americans could relate to having no money in the account. They knew exactly how frustrating having nothing left could be, while they felt robbed of their freedom. “The life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.” This quote shows that the people sensed that they had no chance at all anymore at gaining their rights. Struggling and fighting, the African Americans felt helpless. To African Americans, it seemed that there wasn’t any justice remaining in the world. And no matter how hard they had tried, they felt that there wasn’t a chance. “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon of light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity. But one hundred years later, the Negro is still not free.” If we look at this specific quote more closely, we see it shows that they couldn’t find anyone to turn to but each other, and that is why all the people had come to Washington D.C. They were praying for their freedom. There simply wasn’t anything anymore, and they felt lied to. The