In his book On the Sublime, Longinus rhetorically identifies five principal elements to the art of mastering sublimity, through the use of written texts. Longinus defines sublimity as, “a kind of eminence or excellence of discourse […] sublimity on the other hand, produced at the right moment, tears everything up like a whirlwind and exhibits the orator’s power at a single blow” (Longinus 347). However, there is great jeopardy when writers seek to produce subliminal messages. Longinus describes the difference between messages being falsely and truly sublime. He characterizes false sublimity as “puerile” and bombastic. True sublimity will touch the audience’s heart; it goes beyond words, allowing emotion to run through. Furthermore, Longinus outlines the five rhetorical principles in order to achieve sublimity. (1) Ethos: Greatness of Thoughts, (2) Pathos: Emotion, (3) Pathos: Figures of Speech Logos, (4) Logos: Nobile Diction, and (5) Logos: Arrangement. Blacks for year’s fought hard to receive equal rights to those whites had. The late 1950s, early 1960s was a turning point for African-Americans with the establishment of the Civil Rights Era. The Civil Rights Era represented a social movement for blacks in hopes of ending racial segregation and discrimination, especially in the Jim Crow Deep South. At the forefront of this movement was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who sought equality for the poor, victims of injustice, and African-Americans, by advocating peaceful protests. On August 28, 1963, King delivered one of the most memorable speeches of all time during the March on Washington. The mastering of Longinus’s five principals of the sublime is exemplified in King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. Moreover, the last couple of minutes o... ... middle of paper ... ...e, labour to enumerate them all” (357). Longinus argues that figures of speech strengthen the sublime, while the sublime supports it. Additionally, many times within his speech Martin Luther King uses figures of speech to help support his passion in his speech. According to Longinus, using figures of speech is highly important when supporting the sublime. King states in his speech, “With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day” (AmericanRhetoric.com). King’s use of figure of speech gives a deeper meaning to his words.
The letter from Birmingham jail by Dr. Marin Luther King was written as a response of King to nine criticisms made against the Southern Christian leaders and King’s participation in demonstration in Birmingham. King handled many rhetorical devices to convince his opponents such as the white clergymen with his rights to protest, create tension for direct action and to achieve the racial justice. The devices fluctuate between Logos, Pathos and Ethos in a clever way to appeal to his audience and criticize them at the same time. King provided logical supports such as biblical figures, historical and philosophical references. In addition, he used verities of metaphors, allergy and poetic language. In my essay, I will point out some of the rhetorical devices and
On April 12th, 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. was leading a peaceful protest in the city of Birmingham, Alabama that resulted in him being arrested and jailed. Later that day eight clergymen responded with the statement “A Call For Unity” in The Birmingham News requesting he ends all of his protests. A few days later, King created a response to the statement in the form of an open letter. In this letter Martin Luther King Jr. develops a well proposed argument in response to the eight clergymen who published the statement. Throughout the letter, King uses rhetorical appeal in order to give the viewer a sense of King’s credibility,his emotions, and also his logic on why he does what he does. King uses ethos by showing common interests, pathos by creating an emotional response to his viewers by justifying his unjust experiences, and logos by using logic from past events that happened in history.
During the 1960s inequality was a major problem in the United States. One advocate for making things right was Dr. Martin Luther King. Dr. King organized many marches, sit-ins, and boycotting events. But one of Dr. King’s greatest and memorable works has to be the “I Have a Dream” speech. During this speech Dr. King was conveying a message of freedom for all, to 250,000 civil right followers and many more people listening to the radio broadcast. To spread his message Dr. King uses rhetorical appeals like logos to appeal to the reason of his audience, ethos by his examples of practicing what he preached, and his metaphorical language and repetition.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s, “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” while most appropriately described as a response to criticism, is not written from a defensive position. While his letter more than aptly provides a functional defense of his actions at Birmingham, it serves more so as a counter-critical rebuttal that both repudiates criticisms of his deeds, and criticizes the reasoning behind said criticisms. Dr. King uses the very denunciative tools used against him, such as assertions of premature action and aggressiveness, as both defense and offense, effectively dismissing any wrong on his part, and elucidating the myopic nature of the white moderates’ reticence. What makes his criticism particularly powerful, besides its solid reasoning, and open publication, is the medium between his logic and the receptivity of his audience: his rhetoric. In his letter, King addresses the accusations of civil disobedience and extremism, and his being encouraged to submit to quietism, but the manner in which these facets are presented by the opposition, distort King’s actual position, proving to be the greatest threat to King’s efforts. King’s ability to overcome these obstacles was not through the use of logic alone, but through the use of rhetorical delivery.
Whenever Martin Luther King Junior, began to speak, he held everybody’s attention. This was the case in 1963 during the pinnacle of the Civil Rights Movement when Martin gave his career defining speech “I Have a Dream”. Over a quarter million people attended the protest, and the crowd varied in color as well as cause. A crowd of this size would certainly frighten most people; but Martin was not the type of man to be phased easily. Martin grew up on the racist streets of Atlanta, Georgia and faced much adversity in his life. Not even thirty-five Martin would give a speech that would shake an embroiled nation to its core. Martin Luther King Junior gave a speech to beautifully wove together the three appeals of ethos, logos, and pathos into one
In a time of time where few were willing to tune in, Martin Luther King, Jr. stood gladly, assembled and held the consideration of more than 200,000 individuals. Martin Luther King, Jr 's. "I Have a Dream" discourse was extremely compelling and motivational for African Americans in 1963. Numerous variables influenced Kings ' discourse in an extremely positive way; the immense feeling behind the words, conveying the discourse on the progressions of the commemoration of the President who vanquished subjection. What 's more, not just was this message perfectly written in the trust of African Americans, yet the hidden message for white individuals, unrest and peace. To empower feeling from both sides of his audience members, King utilized a determination
In accordance to the TRACE elements needed in a rhetorical situation, all five are present. The text includes a letter type written by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. explaining why he is in a Birmingham city jail and the injustices he sees in the state of Alabama. The targeted audience is the eight fellow clergymen whom he is replying to after being presented a letter by those clergymen. The audience also includes the general public like the whites and the blacks in the community. The author of the letter is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. himself, a Baptist minister who preached nonviolence and was a pivotal leader in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Dr. King was the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, a vital group that led many affiliations to peaceful marches and sit-ins throughout the civil rights movement. The main motivation for this letter is Dr. King’s own view of the injustices apparent in the Negro community and the intended actions the community is taking. Some constraints Dr. King faces...
Martin Luther King Jr. uses many rhetorical devices to make his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” a masterpiece. He uses ethos, logos, and pathos to appeal to the Clergymen in a credible and trustworthy manner, appealing to the logic and reasoning behind his arguments, and to appeal the Clergymen's emotions. King uses other rhetorical devices that support his appeal to ethos, logos, and pathos that add effects to the letter. Other devices he uses include: allusions, parallelism, illness and health contrast, irony, imagery, anaphora, and personification. He creates a complex writing that respectfully, but critically corrects the Clergymen's statements from their letter to King entitled “Public Statement by Eight Alabama Clergymen”.
Recently you have received a letter from Martin Luther King Jr. entitled “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” In Dr. King’s letter he illustrates the motives and reasoning for the extremist action of the Civil Rights movement throughout the 1960’s. In the course of Dr. King’s letter to you, he uses rhetorical questioning and logistical reasoning, imagery and metaphors, and many other rhetorical devices to broaden your perspectives. I am writing this analysis in hopes you might reconsider the current stance you have taken up regarding the issues at hand.
Martin Luther King uses a lot of repetition in his speech. They are scattered throughout but very close. One of the repetitions in his speech is “I have a dream.” He uses this phrase to show what he sees in the future of America. One of the phrases he uses with it is: “I have a dream that one day this nation will and live out the true meaning of its creed: we hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.” Another is “I have a dream that my four 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 nature. I have a dream today.” (King, M. L. Jr. (1963, Aug.28) Para 12) Two other repetitions he uses is “Let freedom ring” and “Free at last.” (King, M. L. Jr. (1963, Aug.28) Para 16&17)
On the third Monday in January, we celebrate a man who helped change the course of history in the way people treat others who are different than them. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an African American clergyman and civil rights leader for who was made famous by the glorious speech “I Have a Dream”. (Norton 1152) In this speech, he spoke of a future where Caucasians and African Americans would no longer be segregated and to not be judged by the color of our skin but to be known together as equal. During his speech, whether he did it purposely or accidently, he used rhetorical devices to help deliver his message to his audience. In the speech, Dr. King used ethos, logos, and pathos to appeal to his audience in an ethical, logical and emotional
Martin Luther King Jr., sparks emotion amongst the readers, through the use of pathos in attempt to create an emotional feel. His diction and vivid language makes this appeal successful. He writes on his scratch paper given to him in jail “I guess it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say "wait" (Longager & Walker, 2011, p. 270). The phrase “I guess” conveys the irony and absurdity of his claim. “Stinging darts” is also powerful, and truly makes the audience feel sorrow for those facing racial segregation. His strong diction is also depicted through anaphora. The repetition of phrases and words such as “when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mother,” “when you have seen hate filled policemen curse” and “see tears welling up in her eyes” provide the reader with a sense of sadness. By emphasizing “you,” he forces the reader to put themselves in the position that he is in, and experience it with him. Using anaphora creates a sense of memorability and urgency, all while remaining in the pathos category (Longager & Walker, 2011, p.256). Strategically used repetition not only forces the reader to focus on an idea, but also assists in conveying his intended message. The logos appeal is also in effect here. He utilizes the logos appeal to argue a non-violent protest is a wise decision. He details the daily life of an African American man, using words such as
King uses in his speech is Pathos, which is the appeal to someone 's emotions or beliefs. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. presented a strong feeling towards African-American people about how they were treated as equal individuals “But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination” (King par. 3). Another example of pathos that Dr. King used was when he uses vocabulary and phrases, such as “I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream” (King par. 12). He uses the appeal of emotion, especially the word of choice and diction to let his audience’s know what he would like to see in the
On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. gave one of the most notable speeches in American history, at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. King started off his famous “I Have a Dream” speech by stating the impact it would have on America’s civil rights movement: “I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation” (King 1). With knowledge of rhetoric and persuasion, King had a substantial impact on the civil rights movement. Martin Luther King Jr.’s use of ethos, pathos, and logos appeals enable King to persuade the audience to achieve equality.
The year 1964 is known for civil rights activists, racist groups, and political strife. In order to achieve this goal and increase the speeches effectiveness, X utilizes a variety of rhetorical strategies within his speech. When analyzing the powerful and informative speech of Malcolm X, its evident that it’s a memorable one. The tonality of the speech employs anger and seriousness. This causes the audience to also to be filled with immense anger as he opens their understanding about the disputes going on in the society.