Obama's Argumentative Essay

“At the center of nonviolence stands the principle of love.” (Martin Luther King Jr.) Martin Luther King Jr. is a well-known activist who fought for his people and equal rights. He gave a speech while accepting his Nobel Peace Prize in which he spoke about how far he has come and how far the movement he has been a part of has changed the United States for the better. Barack Obama also gave a speech while accepting his prize on the same topic of freedom and how he has been inspired and moved by the actions of the past. Martin Luther King Jr. and Barack Obama both feel strongly about the idea of a peaceful world but Obama considers the thought that violence has to occur from time to time.
“I conclude that this award which I receive on behalf
of that movement is a profound recognition that nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral question of our time” ( King Jr. P4) Martin Luther King Jr. gave a speech as he accepted his Nobel Peace Prize. Martin Luther King Jr. is a well-known activist who took a stand amongst many others to fight for what they believed in. This quote expresses how King Jr. was inspired by the huge change in our world that his movement has caused. “Sooner or later all the people of the world will have to discover a way to live together in peace, and thereby transform this pending cosmic elegy into a creative psalm of brotherhood.” (King Jr. P4) Martin Luther King Jr. is a strong believer on the idea that our world and our future will be supported by the foundation that all men are created equal and that there is no need to resolve to violence.
“I refuse to accept the cynical notion that nation after nation must spiral down a militaristic stairway into the hell of thermonuclear destruction.” (King Jr. P7) King Jr. during his speech spoke about the possibility of our world leading to destruction and poverty. Instead of accepting the idea that this scenario could happen in the future, King Jr. remains optimistic about the hope for our future to flourish. This quote is part of a thread of other terrible outcomes for our world in which King Jr. refuses to believe our country will stoop to that level of disgust. “I believe that even amid today’s mortar bursts and whining bullets, there is still hope for a brighter tomorrow.” (King Jr. P7)
“America led the world in constructing architecture to keep the peace: a Marshall Plan and a United Nations, mechanisms to govern the waging of war, treaties to protect human rights, prevent genocide, and restrict the most dangerous weapons.” (Obama P9) Obama’s idea of peace in our world is a bit different.
Obama believes that our world will require violence from time to time to balance all countries out and be able to create world peace through the belief that everyone is at the same level. In this quote, Obama explains the thought that due to the Marshall Plan and the United Nations, it has kept all countries on the same level and has kept the possibility of war between each other to a minimum to protect our rights and the destruction of our world as a
whole.
“The service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform has promoted peace and prosperity from Germany to Korea, and enabled democracy to take hold in places like the Balkans.” This quote is another example that Obama presents on how our world has achieved a type of peace due to the help from our fallen soldiers. Obama feels strongly about the fact that violence and war plays a crucial role in our journey to world peace. He gives many examples throughout his speech on this topic. One of the examples that Obama provided that stood out the most to me was, “For make no mistake: evil does exist in the world. A non-violent movement could not have halted Hitler’s armies.” (Obama P15)
Barack Obama and Martin Luther King Jr.
had the same hope of a peaceful world. Martin Luther King Jr. hoped for a peaceful world to be accomplished by his voice and his devotion to a non-violent world. Barack Obama had a bit of a different idea. Obama wanted a peaceful world to be achieved by violence from time to time to keep people in their places and balance out all strong forces. I believe that although it would be spectacular to see our world achieve world peace without having to resort to violence, I think that our world will have its ups and downs in terms of war and violence and that hopefully, in the end, we will all be able to live on this world together and peacefully as
one.