The Use Of Rhetorical Devices In Dr. Martin Luther King's Speech

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50 years ago a very prestigious civil rights activist stood before a segregated separate but equal group of thousands of American citizens. On August 28, 1963 the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. a motivational speaker, and experienced preacher delivered what he stated would “go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.” During this century segregation, discrimination and separation of color had become one of the main factors of this time period. Dr. King had become one of the most influential leaders of the civil rights movement. His prominent speech “I Have A Dream” was given to motivate the citizens of this nation to take action and rise above the turmoil, and the unequal treatment of African Americans. Dr. King believed n nonviolence. He suggested that standing up for what is right does not mean being violent. Dr. King used literary and rhetorical devices to get to the root of the audience. King’s enthusiasm, as well as his firm and bold tone to get his point reached. Dr. King’s usage of metaphors, repetition, and other rhetorical and literary devices allowed him to reach his common goal, and suggest what the main issue was. Using allusions…show more content…
The opening of the speech which describes President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation which suggests that the slave was not completely freed because of the setbacks placed upon the African American community. The allusion allows the audience to realize what hasn’t happened that was promised to the African American citizens “freedom and equality”. The repetition of “but one hundred years later” explains how the Negro is still not free, but is crippled living exile on its own land. King uses anaphora to remind his listeners that "one hundred years later" the descendants of freed slaves are still struggling to achieve basic
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