During the era of the civil rights movements in the 60s, among the segregation, racism, and injustice against the blacks, Martin Luther King Jr. stood at the Lincoln Memorial to deliver one of the greatest public speeches for freedom in that decade. In Martin Luther King Jr’s “I Have a Dream” speech he effectively uses ethos, diction and powerful metaphors to express the brutality endured by African American people. Yet his most important method of reaching his audience, and conveying his enduring message of equality and freedom for the whole nation was his appeal to pathos. With these devices, King was able to move thousands of hearts and inspire the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Opening his speech Martin Luther King Jr. sets up his credibility with his use of ethos, referring to the Declaration of Independence saying, “This note was a promise that all men… would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life.” He places the strong authority of the declaration on his side to show how the American people are in contradiction to their own “sacred obligation” and the Negros have gotten a “bad check.” A metaphor representing the unfulfilled promise of human rights for the African Americans. King skillfully evokes an emotional response from all races with the use of religion: “Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.” By doing this he finds a common ground that brings black and whites closer with a common belief in God they share, as well as the mention of
Why must the Negro community keep waiting for the promise they have begged to receive for the past 340 years? Why must they continue to be criticized, hated, judged, and discriminated by the white man? Why must they continue living each day as a lower member of society when in reality, they truly are the same as everyone else? King asks these questions in his writing, yet he already has a blaring answer. Simple response: There is no sense in waiting when it can occur now.
By depicting a future in which everyone is treated equally regardless of race. He appeals to the emotions of his audience. In order to foster a sense of solidarity and shared suffering. He also discusses his own experiences as well as those of other African Americans. King made a strong speech and his rhyming passionate delivery helped make the gravity of his message clear.
1963, time of the Civil Rights Movement, and the world was one of chaos and the fight for equality was at its end. 250,000 people congregated at Washington D.C. to listen to Martin Luther King Jr. express his and his followers views on the issue of racial injustice. His words persuaded and inspired many to not only end inequality, but to expose of it. However, none of this would of been possible if good ole rhetorical devices didn’t come into play. His superb usage of ethos, logos, and pathos quite possibly changed the outcome of the Civil Rights Movement.
Speech Essay In “I have a Dream” by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. he wants to persuade us. This nation is corrupt and powerless because of segregation. We will not solve this problem with violence, but with peace; therefore, not causing problems.
One Friday in 1953, 53 African Americans marched down the streets of Birmingham to peacefully protest against discrimination; however, only for all of them to be arrested. Nonetheless, Reverend Martin Luther King Jr. reciprocated a response that was a turning point for the Civil Rights Movement. In Dr. King's “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” he justifies the nonviolent actions of the black community using the rhetorical methods of pathos, ethos, and logos to demonstrate their diplomatic push towards desegregation. Veering towards not only the eight clergymen who wrote a proposal for blacks to stop their futile actions but as well as the people of America, Dr. King uses ethos to establish his credibility to fight injustice. Even before he states
On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King jr. stood on the steps of the Lincon memorial and passionately gave his famous speech. This speech is credited with being a catalyst for the Civil Rights movement and calls for a change in the way African Americans were treated in the United States. In his ardent speech about racial injustice toward African Americans, Dr. Martin Luther King jr. captivates his audience through his use of rhetorical comparison, allusions, and ethos to call people to action against Racial discrimination against African Americans. As it was used throughout his speech king utilizes repetition to voice his thoughts for example, when King states that he still has hope for the American dream, he uses the phrase “i have a dream” multiple times emphenziseing that he still has hope.” I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed ‘ we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal’”(73-74).
Martin Luther King jr. is one of the most prominent civil rights leaders in history, and his legacy continues to impact the world today. Two of his most influential works are the “I have a dream” speech and “ letter birmingham jail.” these pieces were written during the same time period, but they differ in purpose and approach. This essay will compare and contrast these two works by analyzing their meaning, use of logos and pathos, similarities, and differences. The purpose of the king’s “ i have a dream” speech was to advocate for equal rights for african americans and to inspire people to take action to bring about change.
As a voice of reason, Dr. King must convince people to join his side. MLK did this using ethos, pathos, and logos. In his “I Have Dream” speech, King uses pathos. For example, Dr. King states that the Emancipation Proclamation was “a great beacon of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared by the flames of withering injustice” (2).
Everyone has had a dream, yet among all one stands tall. Martin Luther King, Jr. is known for said speech to countless people. However, a myriad of people have yet to read or know of his famous “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.” This letter required a multitude of key objectives to entice the people of the time into reading it. King, alongside many other authors, require the usage of these main three key factors:
In Martin Luther King’s famed “I Have A Dream” address, and his “Letter From Birmingham Jail” King makes use of bothe logos and pathos in his writing. It is because of these that his writings have risen to such prominence and stirred so many to action. But while he used both logos, the use of reasoning, and pathos, the use of emotions and charged language, a careful analysis shows that they are not equal. For King has a talent for dramatic, poignant resounding language, one which he uses to full effect and is much more powerful than logos. To demonstrate, take this passage “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of it’s creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.
Martin Luther King Jr. was an important figure in gaining civil rights throughout the 1960’s and he’s very deserving of that title as seen in both his “I Have a Dream” speech and his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” letter. In both of these writings Dr. King uses logos - logical persuasion - and pathos - emotional appeal - to change the opinions of people who were for segregation and against civil rights. Although King was arrested for a nonviolent protest, he still found a way to justify his actions with the use of logos and pathos. MLK uses both ways to gain the attention and agreement of the audience but, he uses pathos not just more, but in a more relatable way in order to appeal to his audience.
King also discusses his personal life, along with his family and children, to show the crowd that he is fighting for the same things as them. In his I Have a Dream speech, Martin Luther King, Jr. used ethos to increase his credibility with his audience, pathos to appeal to his audience’s emotional side, and logos to appeal to his audience’s logical side. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s use of ethos begins in the first few lines of his I Have a Dream speech. He begins the speech with a direct reference to Abraham Lincoln and his Gettysburg Address. King speaks of Lincoln as an admired figure in the Civil Rights Movement when he states “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand, signed the Emancipation Proclamation” (King 84).
King’s dialect showed the audience civil right issues, involving many rhetorical strategies using ethos, logos, and pathos, to a racially tempered crowd whom he viewed as different, but not equal. From the very beginning of it , King brings his crowd back to the origin of America when the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, that freed all slaves and gave hope to the former slaves. But immediately after Dr. King speaks out on how after 100 years Blacks still do not have the free will that is deserved. He points out the irony of America because Black Americans were still not truly free.
In 1963, Martin Luther King J.R. wrote a letter in the margins of a newspaper from within the bars of his jail cell in Birmingham. This letter, known as “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, was written as a response to criticism received from eight clergymen regarding the protest that King was arrested for. In that same year, King gave a powerful speech to a large crowd gathered in Washington D.C., at the Lincoln Memorial. This speech, easily recognized as the “I Have a Dream” speech, addressed the cruelty of segregation and unfair ways of which most people were treated, and influenced hope within his audience. In these two writings, examples of both logos and pathos can be found, and although the writings are comparable, they are not completely the same.
There is a disagreement in society. It is a disagreement and an argument that has been continuing for many generations, and will continue for many generations after this one. It is a disagreement of oppression, a disagreement of injustice, a disagreement of racial discrimination. This disagreement had been discussed, and argued as well as against it has even been written about. In Martin Luther King Junior’s ‘I have a dream speech’ this racial disagreement is discussed and spoken about in front of thousands of people and became one of the most referenced and influential speeches in history.