Rhetorical Analysis Of Dr. King's 'Where Are We?'

In a speech Rev. Martian Luther King Jr. gave to the Riverside Church in New York City, King conveyed his beliefs on the horrific atrocities currently present in the Vietnam War. King began by stating that no longer Vietnam was a oversea issues, "Vietnam [had to be brought] into the field of my moral vision". Likewise, King stated the issues at home such as the overwhelming majority of the nation's poor were fighting in the Vietnam War. In King's mindset, a nation that held it self on the acclaim that all men are created equal, was in fact not equal. King uses a variety of persuasive elements including, but not limited to: concrete examples and analysis, a robust tone, and powerful rhetoric. While King was only one voice out of many of those who were on both sides of the war, King still managed to change others views about politics through the usage of his persuasive elements. In all, King posses a natural eloquence that allows him to spread his message far and wide with the hopes that America will never forget the testatrices that took place at home and oversea during the Vietnam War.

On August 28, 1963 on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered a 17-minute public speech to over 200,000 supporters of the Civil Rights Movement. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech was a response to continued racial bias nearly 100 years after the end of slavery and a call to action, meant to unify the country in the fight to end segregation. King used his time at the historic event to urge Americans, of all races, to work together throughout the country to ensure equality for all citizens. Though King’s delivery of the speech is widely recognized as impactful because of his passionate sermon-like delivery, the context of the speech contains many rhetorical components. Those rhetorical efforts

“Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation… But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free...the Negro is sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chain of discrimination,“ (King 261). During the civil rights movement Martin Luther King, Jr. had a speech about how they were treated and does not have much right like others, even they were supposed to be free long ago. During the 1960s, the group of people was treated poorly than another group of people. People who are treated unwantedly wanted a right, freedom, and change in society. Like what Martin Luther King told his audiences they were supposed to have the same

Martin Luther King Jr. built his speech around fighting unjust conditions placed on both African Americans and soldiers of the Vietnam war with non-violent protest. King is arguably the best speaker the world has seen, he knows how to get his audience passionate about the problems America faces while also informing them of what causes these problems.

For generations African Americans have been disadvantaged in America and effects of these injustices have made a lasting impression. Education is one of the leading problems in the black community. Though there have many reforms in education over the years, racial injustices still exist because no attention in placed on how legislature affects people of color. I was raised in a middle-class family of educators. My entire life I’ve been told to “stay in school, get an education, and work hard so that you can beat the system.” Recognizing the structural forces in my life has helped me understand my place in society. Being able to “understand everyday life, not through personal circumstances but through the broader historical forces that

Discrimination has afflicted the American society since its inception in 1776. The inferiority of the African American race – a notion embedded within the mindset of the white populace has difficult to eradicate – despite the efforts of civil rights activists and lawmakers alike. Many individuals are of the opinion that discrimination and racism no longer exist and that these issues have long since been resolved during the Civil War and the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. However such is not the case. Discrimination is a complex issue – one that encompasses many aspects of society. The impact of discrimination of the African American race is addressed from two diverse perspectives in the essays: “Notes of a Native Son” by James Baldwin and “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King .

In the most paramount time of racism in America, there a voice that enacted a call for change. Martin Luther King was a Baptist minister and social activist who spent countless years, fighting for a civil rights. It was on the date of August 28th, 1963, on the steps of the Lincoln memorial is where King made his leap of faith and spoke out on the injustice of African Americans. His dream for African Americans to be equal, appealed to the emotions of his audience. The desire to live a civil life and not be oppressed was felt by many. Martin Luther King delivered a speech that would immensely make an impact on the country.

This sample of Dr. King's writing is from an extremely contested point in American history. He wrote this letter from a jail cell in Birmingham where he was roughly placed after the peaceful protests for human rights that took place in the city in April of 1963. He was responding to an article in a paper from some of his fellow clergymen who denounced his actions in the city calling them untimely and unwise. The response penned by Dr. King in his cell is a lengthy one, written full of emotion in an attempt to show these so called fellow Christians the folly of their thinking. They accused him of being an extremest in his spreading of the message of love and acceptance in the segregationist south of the time. They accused him of leading a movement

In the summer of 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. went to Birmingham due to a large amount of segregation happening there. Dr. King was invited to Birmingham because of his connection with the Southern Christian leadership conference. Because he was the president of the conference he felt the need to be in Birmingham to fix the segregation there. While Dr. King was in Birmingham he and fellow protesters were arrested. In his letter Dr. King’s letter he answers statements that white leaders said to him. In his letter, Dr. king’s rhetoric, tone, sentence structure, diction, and appeals were all presented well.

I think Dr King had a better argument because he spoke for the community in an intelligent manner with a sense of equality at hand. I think he also is more appealing on an emotional level and used pathos more efficiently while calling out injustices and demanding change in a peaceful manner. His overall message really came across as if he was speaking for all the people in his community. When he talked about the police and how he simply couldn't agree with what they are doing, he still was respectful when stating his grievances. I think a level headed mindset is something people can gravitate towards too, especially in a time of racial tension. Dr.King also uses some rhetorical devices to convey the indisticed of segregation.

To begin, Martin Luther King Jr. was an African American rights activist and an impressive preacher. One day during a peaceful protest, he was arrested and sent to the Birmingham Jail. In jail, he wrote a detailed, metaphoric letter to the clergy men, speaking about the recent racism problems and how to fix it. He wrote page after page of issues, using several examples and many iconic phrases from history. Martin Luther King Jr. was not an uneducated fool, as many seen him. He knew that if he used ethos, pathos, and logos, he would get many people on his side, consisting his notable character known by the church, his ability to evoke sympathy, and his logical way to present this problem.

We have all heard Martin Luther King’s famous speech, I have a Dream. His main goal was to convince everyone across the country to comprehend racial equality and to reinforce a solution for those individuals already engaged in the Civil Rights movement. You could say his speech was part of what made the movement successful. By him taking a stand, much attention was put into the problems that were going on. He was and still is viewed as an important leader who was an activist in the Civil Rights Movement. Here we will basically dissect parts of his speech and define the points he was making and trying to make. Throughout the paper, you will see how Dr. King uses Ethos, Pathos, and Logos to show his audience and make them feel what went on.

The cynical cycle of enslavement has ravaged on throughout the history 's great civilizations; the victor holding reign over the defeated, the enslaved succumbing to the forces of bondage. There has always been, and always will be, a discord between peoples of different groups. Until the advent of modern democracy, the distraughted had no voice which to be heard by the masses. Democracy has paved a way for all citizens to have equality. In 1863, the United States of America joined other nations by emancipating those in bondage. Slavery had begun it’s way out in the modern world. However, due to years of indoctrination and social appropriation, there was a discord between those who were white and those who were colored. One hundred years after the emancipation proclamation was given, there was still social and systemic oppression and discrimination against colored people in American Society. Martin Luther King Jr. was an advocate during the Civil Rights Era who fought for the equal treatment of all people. In 1963 MLK gave his timeless “I have a Dream Speech” that sought to both help bring the end of systematic discrimination in America and to unify the country through love and peace.

August 28, 1963 (Eidenmuller) marked a very important day in history that had an impact not only on America, but the whole world. On this day, Martin Luther King Jr. presented his well known I Have a Dream speech that aimed to eliminate racism, inequality and discrimination. He strongly believed that one day people would put their differences aside and come together. So, what happened to that dream? Along with other equality initiative ideas, they rarely make it past the idea stages or end in the actual eradication result. It is clear to us that even after 51 years, our societies still struggle with accepting full equality. Within those 51 years we have made a mass amount of progress but, a common thought would be that after this long the issue should have been eradicated. Two essays that can be used as an example of proof that racial inequality still exists in our society are, Black Men in Public Spaces by Brent Staples and Who Shot Johnny? by Debra Dickerson. In these essays, both provide solid evidence to support their main goal with the use of different writing styles, tone, and rhetorical devices to display how African Americans are perceived and treated by society.

In the text, “The Other American,” by Rev. Martin Luther King Junior, he compares the different conditions that African Americans have sustained to compared to white Americans. Dr. King uses excellent phrases that allow the reader to become emotionally attached to the piece of writing they are reading such as, “Every city in our country has this kind of dualism, this schizophrenia, split at so many parts, and so every city ends you being two cities rather than one.” (King, 1) This text provides Dr. King’s point of how segregated the cities throughout America are for the different people of color. The text goes on with different examples of how African Americans are treated different compared to other American such as, education, jobs and poverty.