Martin Luther King Analysis

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MARTIN LUTHER KING ANALYSIS In Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, he uses many different rhetorical strategies. One of the most powerful techniques used is allusion. King points to shared references that are already loaded with built-in emotion, reaching well beyond his words. These allusions all further his purpose of inspiring people to fight against segregation with integrity of character and without violence. For example, King first uses allusion by referring to Abraham Lincoln and how, “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation.” Mentioning how Lincoln, one of the greatest American Presidents of all time, fought for Negros gives King authoritative appeal in his argument. This inspired people to fight against segregation, because it made people realize that respected historical figures fought for their rights in past years, and encouraged them to fight for themselves. Secondly, King uses allusion when he says, “When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir.” By stating that the Founding Fathers created this country for the purpose guaranteeing all men, “the undeniable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” and by pointing out that the foundation of our country is freedom for all men, King inspires people to stand up for their rights, just as the colonists did many years ago. Lastly, at the end of his speech, King uses allusion when he declares that when white men and black men are equals, “This will be the day when all God’s children will be able to sing with a new meaning, ‘My country, ‘tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim’s pride, from every
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