Martin Luther King Speech Rhetorical Analysis Essay

On August 28, 1963, thousands of people gathered near the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. to hear the leader of one of the greatest freedom protests in history. Martin Luther King Jr. was a pastor from the south, the elected leader of the bus boycotts. His speech that day in Washington is one of the most eminent pieces of oral literature. His dissent to the shameful conditions was painfully obvious. There was a reason his speech touched the hearts of so many and caused congress to take action. He used logos, the Greek word for logic. Dr. King used logos the most in his speech through mentioning Abraham Lincoln and the conditions of the South. Abraham Lincoln, or “Honest Abe” was the 16th president and the subject of the opening lines of King’s speech. He references Lincoln’s most momentous achievement, hoping to remind Americans of the gap that Lincoln was

This is understandable, since he talks about the “ . . . millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice.” (King 2). However, he could not make such an emotional plea without firm evidence, or logos, as his base. If he had no evidence, he would have had no adherents. Using evidence such as the fact that most African-Americans were paupers before they gained rights is just the kind of evidence to base his speech off of. If the pathos is the sweet icing everybody loves, than logos is the solid cake underneath, balancing it all out. Dr. King’s use of logos is displayed through the examples of Abraham Lincoln and the horrifying conditions faced in the South. It was this use of logic that would help all Blacks eventually surmount the prejudice they face. While not trying to usurp the government, his march and speech was enough to make them sit up and take notice. The real life examples used through logos are surely what helped him win more rights for his