Essay on the speech ”I Have a Dream” by Martin L. King, Jr.
August 28, 1963 was a day that will never be forgotten, in particular not by the citizens of Washington, DC. The city where the great Lincoln memorial gazes across the reflecting pool. Where Lincoln himself, recreated in stone, is looking at the visitors of the city as a president who will never leave his position.
At exactly that day and exactly that spot Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his most famous speech “I Have a Dream”.
Martin Luther King is known for his fight for freedom and his work in Civil Rights.
The purpose of this speech is very clear; to change the American society to a place of equality. The listener of this speech is very much the American population in general however the speech is, as written above, delivered in Washington the capital and the home of the president of the United States. Therefore one could believe that the speech was held at this place to make the politicians react.
The speech contains a lot of Dr. King’s own thoughts and his personal experiences; this does not keep him from speaking very formal though. His language is very academic but colorful so everyone can understand.
The message of the speech is estimated already from the beginning of the speech. In the very first statement Dr. King tells us what he is there to do and what the crowd is there to see: “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.”(p. 1 ll. 1-2) He estimates the theme: The fight for freedom, so everyone is prepared for what is to come.
The speech opens with a very strong emotional and logical appeal on the listener, which is generally directed toward the Afri...
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...xt: “Free at last! Free at last! Thank God almighty we are free at last!” This quote allows him to tell the listener again that he is a part of the people and to bring up an old message. This can even be interpreted a bit ironic when he throughout the entire speech pointed out the lack of freedom among the Afro-Americans.
Overall I can conclude that the speech “I Have a Dream” by the famous Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King is very much loaded with rhetorical techniques. King was with no doubts a very skillful speaker and the language of the speech has contributed to a major change in American history. This speech was an admirable and memorable moment in not only American history but in the history of the world. It had the power to change millions of people and helped the nation to get back on the track.
Works Cited
"I Have a Dream" by Martin Luther King
He uses quotes from the constitution, and declaration of independence regarding to the equality for Americans and equal rights, and kept getting his audience attention by saying ‘we’. He uses the Declaration of Independence to invoke the authority in his
On August 28th, 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C, Martin Luther King Jr., spoke to roughly twenty-five thousands people attending the March on Washington for jobs and freedom. In Dr. King’s speech, “I Had a Dream”, he uses rhetorical devices to convey that all people are created equal and to educate the importance of the Civil Rights Movement.
He starts of his speech by showing how the Emancipation of Proclamation was supposed to free them but didn’t. King says, “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation of Proclamation.” He then shows how the African Americans feel after this whole time of when they supposedly had their freedom. Dr. King shares, “One hundred years later, the Negro still languishes in th...
Dr. King is an emotional, inspiring, and strong speaker. His " I Have A Dream" speech tugs a deep root war of emotions in every American’s heart; therefore, this speech is the perfect display of pathos. Even though pathos overwhelm logo and ethos, they are also very much present in his speech. On August 28, 1963 Dr. King made his way to Washington Mall from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial to deliver his speech to his fellow Americans. Dr. King commands his speech during an ironic time in American history.
The author of the “I Have A Dream” speech is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. King, known for his work in Civil Rights during the 1960s. In this informative speech, Dr. King inspires individuals to have a change in both white and black citizens during the Civil RIghts era in the United States. Moreover, the premise of the speech is that both sides of the discussion must accept change in a non-violent yet effective way. He spoke about the injustices of segregation and discrimination of black citizens that was occurring in our nation. As he opened, “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,” he explained what he was there to do for all citizens. He is
Martin Luther King did not know that his “I Have a Dream” speech would still be iconic 50 years later. In 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington. He was facing the problem of racial injustice for himself and everyone like him. He needed to create a speech that everyone could and would understand, could learn from, and could draw inspiration from. He had to address blacks and whites, he had to say things that everyone could relate to and he had speak in a way that he get the
On August 28th 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous “I Have a Dream…” speech in from
Dr. King’s speech “I Have a Dream” is one of the most famous and important speeches ever given. On August 28, 1963 on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C Dr. King gave his speech to bring freedom to African Americans across the United States. The audience who Dr. King is talking to is the American People. To get the message out Dr. King uses logos, pathos, and ethos, by doing this he captivates an entire nation using just words.
On August 28th, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his famous and powerful speech I Have a Dream, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. The purpose of his speech was to fight for the civil rights, equality, and to stop the discrimination against African-American people. His use of imagery, repetition, and metaphor in his speech had created an impact with his audience. King used the three rhetorical devices, ethos, pathos and logos to help the audience understand the message of his speech.
Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have A Dream Speech” very powerfully on August 28, 1963, which would therefore change the lives of African Americans for the better, forever. King delivered the most heart touching speech America has ever heard, and it would change everyone 's lives forever. King uses various ways including ethos and pathos to support this.
The famous speech of Martin Luther King The famous speech, “ I Have a Dream”, was held in 1963 by a powerful leader of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 60s. He was born January 15, 1929, the son of an Atlanta Pastor. Martin Luther King Jr. always insisted on nonviolent resistance and always tried to persuade others with his nonviolent beliefs. In 1963, King spoke from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and almost 200,000 people attended his speech. All his listeners were Civil Rights supporters who rallied behind him and the people who watched his appearance on television.
In Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech, King makes use of an innumerable amount of rhetorical devices that augment the overall understanding and flow of the speech. King makes the audience feel an immense amount of emotion due to the outstanding use of pathos in his speech. King also generates a vast use of rhetorical devices including allusion, anaphora, and antithesis. The way that King conducted his speech adds to the comprehension and gives the effect that he wants to rise above the injustices of racism and segregation that so many people are subjected to on a daily basis.
Overall, Martin Luther King’s purpose of this speech was to unite African Americans and Caucasians to fight together for the same cause, equal rights for all people no matter the color of their skin. To successfully convey this purpose, King employed several tools of persuasion in his speech. He did indeed present an example of what could qualify as the "greatest demonstration" of arguments for true freedom for all Americans. He employed the techniques of ethos, pathos and logos with such skill that his audience likely was only aware of a single steering man towards a national unity.
I Have a Dream was a speech given by Martin Luther King Jr. This speech was delivered on the afternoon of Wednesday, August 28, 1963, on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The speech was intended for the 250,000 civil rights supporters that attended. The speech addressed the topic of equality for the African Americans and the White people. The purpose of the speech was to address the issues of segregation and racism as a whole. King speaks about the issues of racism and segregation in America during the 1960’s. He encourages the use of non-violent protests and to fight for equality to help America solve the issue.
King, Martin Luther, Jr. "I Have a Dream...” Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC. 28 Aug. 1963.