Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King Speech

In paragraphs 12-14 King uses a combination of rhetorical strategies to argue the urgency for changing current segregation laws. Kings selective use of imagery, parallel structure, and metaphors helps bring out the emotions of the eight clergymen, making them feel sympathy and understand Martin Luther King Jr.s point of view.

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

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

Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech is one of the most successful and most legendary speeches in United States history. Martin Luther King Jr. was a masterful speaker, who established a strong command of rhetorical strategies. By his eloquent use of ethos, logos, and pathos, as well as his command of presentation skills and rhetorical devices, King was able to persuade his generation that "the Negro is not free" (King 1). His speech became the rallying cry for civil rights and lives on as an everlasting masterpiece.

As his speech continues the speaker talks about specific dates that happened up until his speech. In the speech, Martin Luther King Jr. talks of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. The Constitution and Declaration declared 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. (MLK speech pg1)” However, instead of letting blacks and whites live as equals blacks are treated as if they are inferior to whites. Dr. King says “Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked “insufficient funds. (MLK speech pg1)”

He tells the nation that it is fatal to overlook the extreme urgency they are facing. The discontent and anger of the Negros will not end until they receive freedom and equality. In his speech he shows alternatives to get freedom and equality instead of by violence. Martin says “We must conduct our struggle with dignity and discipline”. Fighting is no way to solve an issue, in fact it only causes more problems. He convinces the people to march ahead and continue the walk and struggle for freedom and equality.

“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

It's the 1960's; American society is being torn asunder by civil unrest involving the struggle for equality at home and an inhumane war in Vietnam. In the midst of such turbulence, Martin Luther King Junior argues that American involvement in the war in Vietnam is unjust. He poignantly examines the thesis using appeals to ethos logos and pathos.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. , president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and most recognized human rights activist in the sixties, tries to convince the clergymen that his non violence sit ins are the only way to get freedom for the Negros in Birmingham Alabama in his ”Letter from Birmingham Jail”. He is responding to the clergymen argument that his non violent sit ins are untimely and unwise. He uses a mixture of rhetorical analysis factors to get his point across. King formulates his cause through logos, ethos, and pathos, by giving several key points to make his argument in his letter. He argues that his direct action program is the only

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is considered one of the most utterly effective pieces of rhetoric in all written literature. Doctor King was an adept scholar fighting for civil rights. Martin Luther King, Jr. used the different rhetorical appeals to respond to eight white clergymen that had publicly criticized him for his actions. Reverend King was so persuasive with his letter that he influenced not only other African Americans to join his fight for equality, but also the White community. As Osborn tells us in his piece “Rhetorical Distance In ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail,’” that Mr. King’s “Letter” went on to cause problems for these eight men (32). He was very effective in portraying his undesirable situation from the point of view of someone that held authority. Along with portraying his circumstances, he provides logical arguments to contradict the white clergymen's statements. In addition to a logical approach, he uses his emotions and passion to make his readers feel sympathy for forsaken situation place upon the segregated community. Reverend King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” provides a vivid insight into the civil rights movement along with rhetorical appeals that persuade his audience to join his fight for justice by establishing authority, reasoning with logic, and engaging our emotions.

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.

The 1960s was a time when skin color was crucial, hate was inevitable, and where actions and words were uniform. Although accused of being an outsider, Martin Luther King Jr. was able to demonstrate his strengths and powerful influence even while confined in the walls of the Birmingham jail. The racial issues were addressed through his compelling and impassioned letter in reply to the eight prominent Alabama clergymen. Even during a time of racial injustice, King was able to establish many rhetorical strategies throughout his piece, specifically throughout paragraphs 45-50. Establishing logos and utilizing diction and syntax, are the three essential aspects that Martin Luther King Jr. used in order to portray the true message to the reader.

The primary purpose of Dr. King’s eloquent and dramatically delivered speech is that of persuasion. King’s claim is the Negro people are still not free one hundred years after President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. This warrant is supported by King’s effective emotional appeal to his African American audience. He supports this with the following: "but one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free.” This is emotional because after one hundred years of oppression, the African American community has still not achieved their cultural and economic potential according to King. He is endeavoring to persuade his audience, fellow minorities and

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.

Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech that he had written while in a jail cell in Birmingham was very powerful and intense; the whole speech was a summary of the goal of the civil rights movement, such as the reasons why he is not waiting anymore and decided to take action or examples of other instances like this in history. The most prominent feature in the speech is the use of ethos, logos, and pathos. Logos and pathos were the most used of the three throughout the speech and were the main reasons why this letter is powerful and intense. There were many other rhetorical devices within the speech such as the metaphors that form similarities between the ways the blacks are currently being treated and how the Jews were treated in the holocaust.