Dr. Martin Luther King's Speech I Have A Dream

Dr. King delivered his famous and powerful speech, “I have a Dream” on August 28, 1963. The speech was heard by millions and had a lasting impact on the future of equality in America. In King 's speech he talks about the past 100 years of the emancipation of slave. Even though African Americans were technically free, yet they are still discriminated and face social injustice. He uses a metaphor that

King’s speech through his use of logic and evidence. Dr. King says, “It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked ‘insufficient funds.’” This is an analogy. He reasons that everyone can relate to and understand this because money is such a predominant thing in life. Another thing he does is logically speak about discrimination and segregation. One example of this is when he said, “We cannot walk alone. And as we walk we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead. We cannot turn back. There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, 'When will you be satisfied? ' We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality.” He is saying that nothing is going to get better until discrimination and segregation are eliminated.

The quote, “The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust… to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny… They have to come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom” is filled with many diction like “destiny” and “freedom.” King uses a significant amount of strong diction to make his speech effective. Additionally, his word choice has a way of reaching out to the audience. He believes “freedom” is extremely important and it is an obligation to create a justice

Taking place on August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr wrote one of the most rhetorically inspirational speeches that ever came upon us. “I Have a Dream Speech,” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr wrote this speech to the “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom”. This speech was written and presented only by Martin Luther King Jr. As a civil rights modernizer, he dedicated his speech to not only black Americans but to all Americans therefore he could encourage the idea of equality. As for his audience, Dr. King made certain to make his speech pleasing to all Americans. Martin Luther King’s speech successfully conveyed civil rights issues, and included many rhetorical strategies. For example, he used pathos to inspire people (African American) to recover and overcome such difficulties that they were facing. He also smartly talked to a broad audience that could feel his pain and relate to his struggle. He established his credibility by being knowledgeable, but not only that but relaying to the crowd how he had endured this struggle. Through Martin Luther

Martin Luther King Jr.’s overall tone in his speech is determination; determination to gain equality for all races and colors and for the nation to unite in fighting the injustices of inequality in America in the 1950’s. I Have A Dream, is all about his dream that one day all the injustices in the world will one day disappear.

In 1963 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. protested the racial segregation in Birmingham and got arrested. While he was in jail he read a newspaper and 8 white clergymen stated their opinion of him. That inspired his Letter From Birmingham Jail. After he got out he continued to protest and  he wrote his I Have a Dream Speech. He spoke in front of about 10,000 people in Washington DC. in 1963. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke his I Have a Dream Speech to try and grab the attention to anyone willing to listen. He did that to try and get the rights that the African American people deserve but don’t get. He also wrote his Letter From Birmingham Jail on April 6, 1963 to 8 white clergymen to reply to what they said about him for protesting racial segregation. They said that what he was doing was “unwise and untimely.” Both of the pieces writing had logos which is a logical appeal and pathos which is emotional appeal.  In this essay I will compare the two pieces of writing that Martin Luther King Jr. wrote and how he used logos and pathos in both pieces.

On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr gave us one of one of the most rhetorically moving speeches ever given. Titled as the “I Have a Dream Speech,” he read this speech to the “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom”. As a civil right mover he gave this great speech to all Americans (black and white) so that he could give off the idea of equality on the same level. Because of his crowd of mix races King made sure to make his speech imploring to all no matter what the race that they may be. He uses metaphorical imagery, powerful diction,and symbolism to create an impact on the audience. 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.

“I Have A Dream”, a quote that many Americans hold dear to their hearts and a quote that is remembered and is associated with an unforgettable movement in history of the Untied States of America. From 1954-1968 one of the most memorable movements in history took place and will not be forgotten is the civil rights movement. Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the many greats remembered and recognized in the movement for being an influential leader of his time. Having given over 2000 speeches, MLK(Martin Luther King) has one particular speech that stands out from the many and it is his “I Have A Dream” speech. MLK’s message being about peace, unity, fairness and freedom for and to all people shines through in this speech. The effects of MLK’s dreams are still relevant today in America, as well as his hope and vision for the United States and its citizens.

Martin Luther King’s speech, “I Have a Dream” is vastly recognized as one of the best speeches ever given. His passionate demand for racial justice and an integrated society became popular throughout the Black community. His words proved to give the nation a new vocabulary to express what was happening to them. Martin was famously a pacifist, so in his speech, he advocated peaceful protesting and passively fighting against racial segregation.

In 1963, Martin Luther King delivered one of the most influential and impactful speeches in history. King's I Have a Dream speech was consistently powerful assertions of emotional appeals, repetition and paradox.

Inspiration and exuberance were the emotions that people felt as they listened to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s., “I Have a Dream” speech. The momentous speech was delivered on August 26th, 1968, shocking the world with its influential expression of emotion and implication of social injustice. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. proclaims courage to the civil rights activists as he speaks passionately about the need to end racism. In his words he suggests,“This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” (King) . Dr. King is insisting that there should be equality between one another.

In his "Letter form a Birmingham Jail" and his "I have a Dream speech, Dr. King uses metaphor, repetition and parallel structure to provide visual images which may evoke empathy in the readers and audience and emphasize the ideas he presents: the argument for civil rights and the goal to end segregation.

On August 28, 1963, at the March on Washington, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a speech entitled "I Have a Dream". The purpose of Martin Luther King 's speech was to make Americans of all racial backgrounds aware of the racial, civil, and economic inequality that was taking place in the United States. Martin Luther King 's speech was intended to bring awareness of the problem of inequality and to give Americans hope and faith that one day everyone, black and white, would be equal. King states in his speech that when Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, it gave hope to millions that had experienced injustice and inequality, and his expectation was to bring hope to Americans by delivering this speech just as Lincoln

King speaks of the attacks, “...unspeakable horrors of police brutality” the black community encountered for having a different skin tone. Since the white community did not see the Blacks as equals they did not think they were hurting a worthy human being. King addresses the “... negro’s basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one” as something the black community as a whole had to face on a regular basis. The black community was forced to receive social restraint on their lives. This is a real life illustration of the extreme segregation of the time. One specific injustice some had to face was, “...a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote” By using such a specific state and situation Dr. King was trying to hit close to home for anyone had to been put in that particular position. By using experiences his audience had most likely understood, he appealed to their pathos and caused them to grasp the reason about why they should

More than 50 years ago, Martin Luther King held the memorable speech “I have a dream”. His impressive rhetoric demanded racial justice, which became a basis for subsequent generations of black Americans. His words have later been used to achieve a better understanding of the social and political upheaval at the time. The main point of the speech is that all people are created equal and although not the case in America at the time, Martin Luther King felt that it should be the case in the future. The audience of the speech is considered very general, however, the speech was held in Washington meaning it is possible that the speech was an attempt to engage law and policy makers who work in the nation’s capital.