Martin Luther King continues by referencing the Declaration of Independence and Abraham Lincoln, stating that great historical figures had realised the need for human rights of all people to be respected, but that the “Negro still lives on the lonely island of poverty”. Martin Luther King states that he felt this historical act was, in a way, a promise to all of mankind that equality would be met but “America had defaulted on this promissory note”. Mr King continues through this part of the speech with the belief that “justice” needs to be met and that this will enable the black community the “riches of freedom”. Martin Luther King continues, asking for these promises to finally be upheld or expect consequences from the black community, stating that it would be “fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment...And there will be neither rest nor tranquillity in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights”. Mr King then makes a plea towards the black population, asking them “not to be guilty of wrongful deeds”, to be disciplined and have dignity while this process played out.
King delivered one of the greatest speeches in American history. His speech has made a strong impact on the hearts of Americans about how badly African-Americans were being treated. King’s purpose of the speech is to provoke America to give African-Americans their promised freedom. Within the speech, King uses word choice, repetition, and metaphor to promote his main ideas. King uses word choice to contrast the negative past and present that the African-Americans have faced with the positive anticipated future.
Malcolm X was a controversial speaker who often used the Constitution as a body of law and appeals to ‘the human condition and universal human rights’ to logically assess the status of African Americans progress in the nation. He also used many emotional appeals to get his point across to diverse audiences who might only understand his desire for African American progress and freedom in terms of their own self-interest, political ideals, morals, and self awareness. In his speech, “The Ballot or the Bullet,” given on April 3, 1964 in Cleveland, Ohio he uses repetition, parallelism, scesis onomaton, antithesis, and metaphor to explain that the Democratic President Johnson, while stating his ideals are pro-African American and “Pro Civil Rights” for African Americans and others, are hypocritical and indeed just as toxic for black progress as the more obvious anti-black sentiments of that period’s Republican constituents who openly thwarted black progress through segregation and voting laws that prevented blacks from casting ballots on their own behalf, miscounting votes, or by discouraging voting altogether. Malcolm X states, “It was the black man’s vote that put the present administration in Washington D.C. Your vote, your dumb vote, your ignorant vote, your wasted vote put in an administration...that has seen
These strategies allowed Douglass to tell his story in his own words, words which encompass deeper meanings and messages than the dominant white people comprehend. One strategy that Douglass carries out the narrative is through the progression of the narrative voice and how its advancement into activeness is reflective of Douglass’ own growth in control and influence. Douglass in the first half of the narrative is a ‘[…] silent narrator, Douglass re-enacts the silencing of himself as a slave […] [he] narrates as a voiceless observer […] a passive onlooker, who is excluded from the power system.’ This stance of the silent observer is something that is symbolic of all minorities that are excluded from the prevalent power system. He is powerless to the incidents to which he witness’ and is forced to suffer in silence, much like most inferior groups who find themselves outside the dominant societal control system. ‘The rhetorical strategy of voyeur is even more apt given the historical
Centuries later the Negro community was still riddled by racial injustice and oppression. These contradictions to the original visions of the founding fathers were still very much in existence when Dr. King made his speech. A scholar who graduated and received a bachelor degree in sociology from Morehouse College, Martin Luther King’s speech, “I Have a Dream” was carefully crafted to encourage and motivate the predominantly Negro audience to take a stand for an equal democracy. “This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off… Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy.” King’s tone when he delivered his speech was derived from the cadence and rhythms of a preacher. His speech consisted of various literary elements such as figurative language and repetitive phrases that painted a vivid mural in the mind of the listener: “My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.
It was also a period of radical change in segregation, discrimination and equal rights. Martin Luther King challenges American society to change and accept his race. This can be seen through Kings Use of anaphora throughout the entire speech. He continuously repeats “I have a dream” in his speech to amplify how he believes America is due for change to placate the growing population of African American people. Kings distinctive voice conveys his determination in uniting a nation to bring the changes needed.
In his essay, Baldwin claims that identity is directly based on one’s language. “Language……revels the speaker” (44) “What he wants to say language is used to cont” (44). Baldwin tells a lot of things that he had been through and all the experienced he gained from living on an injustice society and the inequality that face black people. He added more on the conditions that created the Black English language and the reforming of a new way to communicate
How is Martin Luther King’s ‘voice’ created by the language techniques of his speech? Martin Luther King delivers the message of his speech and expresses his feelings about topics affecting the people of America through many language techniques such as metaphors and similes. This essay will describe the few language techniques King uses and will explain how he uses these various language techniques in order to reach the hearts of the American people. To begin, we see that King quite frequently uses metaphors to emphasise what has been affecting the Negro’s and what the Negro’s are striving to achieve. “…chains of discrimination…” “…great vaults of opportunity…” “…quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.” The use of metaphors help to emphasise the message that King is trying to push for and helps keep listeners interested and holds their attention.
One of the most important things to analyze is the speech objective. As a notable civil rights leader, King’s main objective was to motivate his followers, mainly civil rights activists. His objective was to motivate them to continue their strenuous civil rights work and motivate them to overcome the seemingly unchangeable conditions that they were dealing with. The primary message being delivered was that Blacks in America were not being treated fairly and that they were going to continue to push for justice until it was achieved. He gives examples, such as the fact that most Blacks in the Deep South were still not able to vote and that racial violence was still occurring throughout the Nation.
he portrayed ethos in his speech effectively because he himself is an African American, and he knows exactly what kind of segregation and discrimination his black brothers are experiencing. King gives an example by saying, “We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels