Martin Luther King Jr. was a civil rights activist and first hand witness of mistreatment of African Americans from the mid-1950s until April 4, 1968 when he was assassinated. He was a black man who grew up during a time of segregation and injustice. King Jr. came from a loving and structured home in which his father was an influential role model and a had a big impact on his future professions. Religion was also a large part of his life and was one of the biggest influences for his involvement in the Civil Rights Movement. In this contextual analysis I will be summarizing the historical context of King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream Speech” and how it impacted his social standing and life's work. I will be exploring how Martin Luther King Jr.’s upbringing set the stage for his civil rights activism involvement and allowed him to become one of the most famous African Americans in the twentieth century. Martin Luther King Jr. was originally born as Michael King Jr. on January 15, 1929. His family was very religious and his father had changed his own and five year old King Jr.’s names from Michael to Martin, in honor of the sixteenth-century German Protestant religious leader, Martin Luther. King Sr. was from a poor farming community and had risen in social status through marriage and education (Berg). After the death of his father-in-law, King Sr. became the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church, he was a successful minister and served as president of the Atlanta chapter of the NAACP.
Martin Luther King was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. He was born Michael Luther King Jr. he was the second child of Reverend Martin Luther King, Sr and Alberta Williams King. Growing up, he attended Booker T. Washington High School. He skipped the ninth and the twelfth grade. He went to Morehouse College at the age of 15 without graduating from high school. Later, he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology. He became a minister at the age of 18. He was ordained in his father’s church. He later married Coretta Scott and they had two sons and two daughters. Martin Luther king lived a rough journey.
Near the end of Martin Luther King’s speech a gospel singer Mahalia Jackson shouted to Dr. King saying, “Tell them about the dream, Martin”. At this point Dr. King stopped reading the speech and expressed his inner feelings saying “I have a dream..”(Mlk, 4). He continued to tell the crowd of his dream for the Negros to be free and equal and that they would be able to live happily and do as they pleased. He had a dream that America would live out the meaning of the constitution stating “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal”. He tells the crowd that at the end “We are free at last”. Dr. King’s choice of words and the tone in which he delivers his speech is enticing and pleasing to the crowd of America.
In a period of time where few were willing to listen, Martin Luther King, Jr. stood proudly, gathered and held the attention of over 200,000 people. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech was very effective and motivational for African Americans in 1963. Many factors affected Kings’ speech in a very positive manner; the great emotion behind the words, delivering the speech on the steps of the memorial of the President who defeated slavery. And not only was this message beautifully written for the hope of African Americans, but the underlying message for white people, revolution and peace. To stimulate emotion from both parties of his listeners, King used a selection of rhetorical devices such as allusions to historical
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an African American Religious speaker.He was born on January 15th, 1929 in Atlanta. Martin’s father, grandfather, and great-grandfather were Baptist ministers. Martin although he tried to deny it, he followed their footsteps and became an ordained minister in 1948. King studied at Morehouse College, Crozer Theological Seminary, and finally went on to receive his doctorate from Boston University School of Theology. He graduated with his doctorate in 1955 two years after he married his wife Coretta.
Individuals that could be described as icons in their respective countries have delivered speeches meant to change their thinking pattern and inspire change. In the course of doing this, these icons have employed rhetoric devices and figurative language unbeknown to some of their listeners. Tommy Douglas and Martin Luther King Jr. did these to much effect. The general idea is that application of rhetoric devices always serves a purpose. Some may argue that application of more rhetoric devices or less rhetoric devices is useful. However, this paper shows that despite the small or full application of rhetoric devices, if done correctly will always serve its purpose. Douglas’s Mouseland and King’s I have a Dream speeches are both persuasive speeches even though the former uses one predominant literary device, while the latter combines multiple devices. The objective of this paper is to show that no application of rhetoric devices – whether in large or small magnitude or whether in combination or sole use – is superior or secondary to another if applied appropriately.
Born as Michael Luther King Jr. in January 15 1929. Martin Luther King Jr. was the child of Michael Luther King Sr. and Alberta Williams King. The King and Williams families were from Georgia. Martin Luther King Jr.'s grandfather was a rural minister for a long time and then he moved to Atlanta in 1893. He took over a small struggling Ebenezer Baptist church with about 13 members and he made it into a very strong congregation. He then married Jennie Celeste Parks and they had one child that survived, which was Alberta. Michael Luther King Sr. came from a sharecropping family in a very poor farming community. He then married Alberta in 1926. The couple moved to a home in Atlanta. Michael Luther King Sr. stepped in as pastor
Michael Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia but years later he would soon change his name to Martin. Martin in the Michael King Sr. and Alberta Williams king family was the middle child in it. M.L.K grandfather, A.D. Williams, was a was a rural minister for years and later on would moved to Atlanta in 1893. He was in charge of a small struggling Ebenezer Baptist church which contained 13 individuals and turned into a powerful religious group. A.D. Williams would soon encountered a woman named Jennie Celeste Parks And would soon get married. They both had one child survived, Alberta. Michael King Sr. Came from a family which was living in the condition of a poor farming family. He married
Martin Luther king jr is was Baptist minister and social activist who led the civil rights movement in the United States from the mid-1950s until his death by assassination in 1968. He was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. King, a Baptist minister and civil-rights activist, had a seismic on race relations in the United States beginning in the mid-1950s. Born as Michael King Jr. on January 15, 1929, Martin Luther king jr was the middle child of Michael King Sr. and Alberta Williams King. The King and Williams families were rooted in rural Georgia. In 1946, Martin Luther king jr. earned a sociology degree from Morehouse College and he attended the liberal Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania. He thrived in
Martin Luther King, Jr., was conceived Michael Luther King, Jr., in Atlanta, Georgia, on January 15, 1929. His dad, in a 1957 meeting, said that both he and his child should be named for the pioneer of the Protestant Reformation yet false impressions prompted Michael being the name on birth records. The kid turned into the third individual from his family to serve as minister of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, following in the strides of his granddad and dad. His preparation and experience as a priest without a doubt added to his prestigious expressive
Martin Luther King Jr. was born in January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia. He grew in a Christian family that his father was strict, but his mother was full of gentle. King had been baptized when he was 7 years old in 1936. His family was filled with love. King started to learn at the age of 5. He was so smart that he skipped ninth and eleventh grades. After that, he went to Morehouse college to learn more things. Many happened in his time of college. He questioned Christianity though he lived in a Christian family. In the third year of college, King met the president of this college, Mays, who taught King that religion could help people to change society. From that time, he decided to become a baptist minister and help to fight people’s rights.
Martin Luther King Jr. was a social activist and Baptist minister. He played a key role in in the civil rights movement. Martin Luther king Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, Atlanta GA. He married Coretta Scott King in 1953 and had four children. His two boys, Martin Luther King Jr. III and Dexter Scott King. His two girls, Yolanda King and Bernice King. Martin’s famous speech was, “I Have a Dream”. Sadly Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated fighting for civil rights on April 4, 1968, Memphis TN. Martins grandfather became a pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta from 1914 to 1931. Martin's father served as a pastor until his death in 1960. Martin luther King Jr. acted as a co-pastor. Martin attended segregated public schools in
From the steps of the Lincoln Memorial more than two score years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King electrified America with his momentous "I Have a Dream" speech. Aimed at the entire nation, King’s main purpose in this speech was to convince his audience to demand racial justice towards the mistreated African Americans and to stand up together for the rights afforded to all under the Constitution. To further convey this purpose more effectively, King cleverly makes use of the rhetorical devices — ethos, pathos and logos — using figurative language such as metaphors and repetition as well as various other techniques e.g. organization, parallel construction and choice of title.
The current political and social climate of our country is in disarray. As I reflect on the current state of our nation, I am often reminded of a quote from George Santayana, an American philosopher, which reads, “Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.” This quote is particularly relevant when comparing our current world view with the one of the 1960s when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was advocating for political and social freedoms. However, it seems the American people have learned very little from the crises of the past and as they reappear years later in various forms, we still remain unequip in our pursuit to mend them. His “I Have a Dream” speech can undoubtedly be considered one of the most prominent contributions to African American’s acquisition of freedom. However, less than a century later, the same tiresome acts of violence toward African-Americans and other ethnic groups are present once more. Considering the impact that Martin Luther King Jr. and his followers had on the civil rights movement, I can only imagine, the disappointment he might display to see the current state of our world.
Did you know that African-American compose 40% of the prison population, because of racism because approximately all the time white people commit the same crime and are excused for it (Ben and Jerry’s)? However, I will be informing you about how we can fix this and how we can make Martin Luther King Jr's I have a dream speech come to alive. As Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s showed us in his life work to eliminate racism, we can act to bring peacefully demonstrate a love for humanity. Three actions we can take to eliminate the violence of racism are working together, changing and helping them to live better lives, and by just talking about it.
The civil rights period encompasses the time where society begins to reform and end segregation between whites and colored, specifically African Americans. More importantly, this period had abolished slavery, but discrimination towards African Americans did not disappear. Therefore, nonviolent protests from African Americans begin to stir up the societal norms and present on how unfair they are treated by the whites. They protest on how their lives are at a disadvantaged with not being able to own/rent a house, vote, or proper education based on their color. The African Americans’ main objective during this period is to be considered equal to that of a white. During this period, the 14th and 15th amendments were constructed in order to give citizenship and the right to vote for any race/color. This period was the pinnacle of the social struggles African Americans had to endure to have the same opportunities of a white in terms of legality.