Martin Luther King: The Three Dimensions of a Complete Life
Week 4 Assignment- Martin Luther King Jr.
Question #21: What does the writer assume about the background knowledge of his audience in this essay?
The sermon “The Three Dimensions of a Complete Life” by Martin Luther King Jr assumes that all of the audience came from a religious background and that the audience had much knowledge about the stories in the Bible. The three dimensions that Luther King Jr. mentions are quite straight forward and not hard to misinterpret. The three dimensions start from “You”, then works his way over to the second dimension of “You and I” and then finally to the last dimension which is “God”, in other words these dimensions are known as length, breadth, and height. He says that you must reach and complete these dimensions to have a complete life. Many will disagree with this statement as not everyone believes in a God or has a religion they follow.
The dimension of “You” is quite an interesting topic. King mentions that you must love yourself first in order to love and help others. King says “If one is not concerned about himself he cannot be totally concerned about other selves”. This line from the sermon mentions that you will not able to understand ones problems unless you have the capability to understand your own. Many religious and non-religious people in the world can find themselves to believe that this true. This dimension does not totally relate to religion like the third dimension, which is the height (God). Again, King finds himself assuming that every reader and listener come from a religious background as he relates the first dimension to a story about a Rabbi.
Once you have found the capability to understand and love yourself, King mentions that you shouldn’t stop there, as it can be dangerous to stop after the first dimension. King says that you can now reach the second dimension, which is breadth (You and I). Helping the people that surround your everyday life is something every human being should aim to do. King
Question #21: What does the writer assume about the background knowledge of his audience in this essay?
The sermon “The Three Dimensions of a Complete Life” by Martin Luther King Jr assumes that all of the audience came from a religious background and that the audience had much knowledge about the stories in the Bible. The three dimensions that Luther King Jr. mentions are quite straight forward and not hard to misinterpret. The three dimensions start from “You”, then works his way over to the second dimension of “You and I” and then finally to the last dimension which is “God”, in other words these dimensions are known as length, breadth, and height. He says that you must reach and complete these dimensions to have a complete life. Many will disagree with this statement as not everyone believes in a God or has a religion they follow.
The dimension of “You” is quite an interesting topic. King mentions that you must love yourself first in order to love and help others. King says “If one is not concerned about himself he cannot be totally concerned about other selves”. This line from the sermon mentions that you will not able to understand ones problems unless you have the capability to understand your own. Many religious and non-religious people in the world can find themselves to believe that this true. This dimension does not totally relate to religion like the third dimension, which is the height (God). Again, King finds himself assuming that every reader and listener come from a religious background as he relates the first dimension to a story about a Rabbi.
Once you have found the capability to understand and love yourself, King mentions that you shouldn’t stop there, as it can be dangerous to stop after the first dimension. King says that you can now reach the second dimension, which is breadth (You and I). Helping the people that surround your everyday life is something every human being should aim to do. King