Speech by Martin Luther King
Daniels
12/10/2013
On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr presented one of the most rhetorically inspiring speeches ever delivered. Titled the “I Have a Dream Speech,” Dr. King presented this speech to the “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom” group. As a civil rights activist he gave this speech to not only black Americans but to all Americans so that he could promote the idea of equality. He was cleverly able to rhetorically make his speech with the goal for Americans to understand and agree with him. He brought up issues of society in a way that affected his entire audience emotionally and logically. Martin Luther King’s speech successfully brought up the issue of civil rights using many rhetorical strategies to a racially mixed audience who he viewed as equal, not different.
One key quality of Martin Luther King is his bravery. At the time of his speech there was a vast amount of controversy facing civil rights. He was even arrested a few months before his speech during one of his anti-segregation protests, but he continued to fight for civil rights. Ever since slavery ended black Americans did not have the rights that they, which would be the point of Martin Luther King giving his inspirational speech. Dr. King’s main goal was to end all problems between the different races of Americans, especially Black versus White. In his speech he says: “But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free.”(King 1)
King, Martin. I Have a Dream. American Rhetoric, n.p, n.d. Web
Dr. King directly states what the problem in America is in the quote. Right from the beginning Martin Luther King brings you back to the beginning of America when the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, which freed all slaves and gave hope to the former slaves of America. But immediately after Dr. King points out how after 100 years Blacks still do not have the freedom that they deserve. Through this he points out the irony of America and begins to develop his argument on why black Americans deserve equality. Immediately after he alludes to another American document, the Declaration of Independence. He points out how it stated that all men were created equal and that means black Americans are equal to white Americans. Once again this shows the irony of the beliefs during Dr. Kings time and the ideals on which the country was founded upon.
After Dr. King refers to America’s past, he transitions into the present and inspires people to take action. Dr. King says, “This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy.”(King 1) Martin Luther King is urging people to take action immediately without hesitation so that America can truly be democratic. He is always referring to how America was supposed to be created on these ideals. Also, Dr. King uses the rhetorical device of anaphora to emphasize the urgency of the situation. He repeats, “Now is the time” followed by his strategy for helping America. This repetition makes his audience realize how important it is to Dr. King for people to act immediately. The strongest way Martin Luther King Jr. uses anaphora is by repeating the title of the speech: “I have a dream.” Through this repetition he is able to portray what he envisions as a racially equal America. He dreams that Americans will live by the saying that people are created equal and thus everyone can get along. He wants everyone to get along even if it’s a former slave owner and slave. But the reason why the repetition of “I have a dream” is so convincing is that everyone knows that you should follow your dreams. And Dr. King’s dreams that he presents to his audience are very powerful and inspiring. The repetition makes people think about their own dreams and allow them to be inspired my Dr. Kings dreams. Through this Martin Luther King Jr can spread his idea of equality everywhere in America. There is one paragraph that emotionally stands out in his speech because it so personal and heart-warming. Martin Luther King says, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”(King 1) This paragraph is so emotionally inspiring that it brought tears to so many members of his audience. Dr. King gets his beloved children involved in the speech by saying what he wants most for them. The dream that Dr. King wants the most is not even about him, it is about the children that he loves, which is one reason that makes the quote so emotional. Another reason is that it makes his audience think about their own children. None of the parents in the audience want their children to go through the same horrible problems they went through with civil rights. This is extremely inspirational for the audience to do their best to put an end to racism.
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