Rhetorical Analysis Of I Have A Dream Speech

Within this quote there are multiple metaphors that help bolden King’s thoughts: “crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination,” “island of poverty,” and “vast ocean of material prosperity.” These metaphors explain how it still felt nearly impossible to end discrimination, and how Negroes are on their own with no support. The use of the metaphors display a deeper and stronger meaning to the topics that King was passionate about. These rhetorical devices brought to the non-colored portion of the audience’s attention of how difficult the life of a Negro was and that freeing the slaves one hundred years ago was not enough.

In the beginning of this speech, King used a simile that really popped out. Martin said, “It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.” Here he is speaking about the Emancipation Proclamation and that it gave hope to Blacks. King was explaining how the signing of this was like a “breakthrough” for blacks. It gave blacks hope that one day they would be completely free, except even one hundred years after the signing of this by Abraham Lincoln, colored citizens were still not treated equally. He uses this figurative

Dr. King starts off his speech with a powerful message, “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro Slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.” His use of historical context and the use of a technique known as ethos would help draw in his audience and intrigue them to listen. By utilizing historical context, such as the Emancipation Proclamation, Gettysburg Address, the Constitution, and Declaration of Independence, Dr. King was able to embrace every aspect of what his speech was about. Dr. King states, “When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the ‘unalienable rights’ of ‘Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” Further, with the appropriate allusions, context and quotations Dr. King was able to gain lots of credibility with his speech. Thus, allowing his audience to gain his trust.

From the steps of the Lincoln Memorial more than forty years ago, Martin Luther King electrified America with his momentous "I Have a Dream" speech. This speech demanded racial justice towards the mistreated black community of America. The theme of the speech was that all humans were created equal and that this should be the case for the future of America. King's words proved to touch the hearts of millions of people and gave the nation a vocabulary to express what was happening to the black Americans. This did not happen by chance. Martin Luther King's speech was carefully constructed so it would have the most appropriate diction to propose his facts and ideas. His speech involved multiple different literary techniques which were very

By using allusion to historical leaders and documents, he reminds the audience of the past and strengthens his argument the time for change was long overdue. Repeating the phrases “I have a dream”, “Now is the time”, “Let freedom ring” and “Free at last”, King used anaphora and repetition to bring the speech to a great climax and leave the audience completely energized. King also used parallelism to unify the movement’s effort into one group of equal parts by urging the audience to “Go back to” Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, as well as “the slums and ghettos of our Northern cities”. He also used parallelism to send a message of unification to all parts of the country by repeating the phrase “Let freedom ring” combined with names of many of our country’s mountain ranges, just as in the song “America” by Samuel Francis Smith (My Country! ‘Tis of Thee). Perhaps it was King’s use of metaphors that made the speech draw in the audience. He described the circumstances of racism and inequality with phrases descriptive of slavery including “flames of withering injustice”, “chains of discrimination” which connected the audience to their past while inspiring them to change their future.

In 1963, minister and rights activist, Martin Luther King, Jr. gave a speech in front of Lincoln memorial to bring awareness to the unfairness of injustice for black people. King's speech was an effort to try and mandate the coming together of the black and white race and finally have the equality between us all be put into force for a free nation. As the speech left King’s mouth and entered 250,000 citizens ears, it left them to think about what point he was trying to make because he uses pathos, logos, and ethos.

Martin Luther King Jr. gave a speech titled “I Have a Dream” on August 28, 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C. In this speech, Dr. King is trying to persuade all races specifically Blacks and Whites to take action in order to gain freedom and harmony in the community. He tries to do this by using different techniques to appeal to his audience. It is shown that he uses pathos or emotional appeal throughout his speech. Also there are clear signs of logical appeal which is called logos. In addition, to logos and pathos, Dr. King uses ethical appeal to strengthen his argument. One of the key main techniques that Dr. King uses is figurative language which gives his speech more emphasis on why action is needed.

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 addition to King’s uses of allusions, the speech contains many contrasting metaphors and similes that influence his audience very effectively. He begins by pointing out that even though Negros are freed from slavery, they are still slaves “crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.” King then goes on about how “America has given the negro people a bad check” whereas the check in this instance symbolizes their right to equality because the mistreatment of the Negroes and racial discrimination is evident and the check “has come back marked ‘insufficient funds’” meaning they have yet to feel what they too, are guaranteed. With that understanding of human nature, Martin Luther King, Jr. compares gradualism to a tranquilizing drug, implying that people have a tendency to relax when things are “cooling off.” But he urges for his people not to relax and to take charge “to make justice in reality for all of God’s children.”

On August 28th, 1963, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr stood on the steps in front of the Lincoln Memorial and delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. He spoke passionately for 17 minutes on his views about human equality for African Americans at one of the largest civil rights demonstrations in history. King played a major role in ending the segregation for African Americans. His rhetorical language left an impact on America. Through his use of appeals like ethos, logos, pathos, and other rhetorical techniques. He influenced Americans to believe in the notion that all men are created equal.

    The speech opens up with a very strong use of diction that creates a logical and emotional appeal on the audience. At this point, the speech already created an appeal of pathos. He then goes onto create a very logical appeal when stating that the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 gave “hope to millions of Negro slave who had seared in the flames of withering injustice.” The Emancipation Proclamation was the first event where African Americans were increasing up the ladder of social hierarchy. Dr. King uses anaphora, the repetition of a word, to create and appeal of emotion and logic. He describes that it has been one hundred years after the Emancipation Proclamation but still “the life of the Negro is still badly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination”,” the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast

Martin Luther King Jr. wrote and delivered many speeches in his lifetime. However, perhaps one of the best known and the most easily recognized of his speeches is “I Have a Dream.” But many ask, what in particular about this speech made it have such a great impact on the population? He uses repetition to make important words stand out. Such instances occur with the words and phrases: “now is the time”, “I have a dream”, “let freedom ring”, and “free at last” (Narins, par.6,15,22,27). All of these words have to do with blacks becoming free, or acquiring civil rights and equality. King also used imagery in his speech when he compared a “sweltering summer” to the Negro’s unhappiness of the lack of freedom and justice. Martin Luther King Jr. also used

Martin Luther King discusses several points that all relate to the same topic, which was the freedom of Negroes. King uses the example of a bank to make his point come across clearer, without floundering in a literal blame session: “ America has given the Negro people a bad check; a check which has come back marked “insufficient funds.” But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt.” (King 2) Where Caucasians would typically believe themselves to be over African Americans, they can relate to both islands and banks, therefore putting them on an even field, and allowing them to obtain ideas openly. His speech is based on his Dream, which is a dream of freedom and equality. King mentions the point that still, after a hundred years of signing the Emancipation Proclamation, African Americans are still not free. He shows the similarities between the occasion at which he speaks and “cashing a check,” on which “America has defaulted… A check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.” (King 2) Those two topics are most mentioned and pointed out within King’s speech which are freedom and justice for African Americans. He demands on perseverance of the Negro

King mentions the Emancipation Proclamation at the beginning of his speech and paints a vivid picture in the listener’s mind of the hope and positive expectations in the negroes hearts after years of slavery, using the lines “ a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negroes”. By comparing “long night” to “captivity”, “daybreak” to “joy” and using the line “ seared in the flames of withering injustice”, he vividly shows the hope, suffering, and difficulties of the Negro people in a descriptive manner rather than simply stating that they felt hopeful. His use of metaphors and the detailed description forces his listeners to picture the situation in their minds and makes the first paragraph more insightful and impactful to the audience. He uses

Picture yourself living in a society where people are judged and hated upon because of the pigment of their skin, terrible right? Enslaved, criticized, and alienated because there were “different” from everyone else. Even when granted freedom, colored men and women were still treated as if they were peasants to America. Martin Luther King Jr’s speech had the power to motivate this broken society to end their racist ways. After being lied to for many of years about being “free”, King decided that during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, he would put an end to it all. After hundred of years of being hurt by the “manacles of segregation and the chains of determination”(“ American Rhetoric: Martin Luther King I