“A More Perfect Union” is the tittle that was chosen for the speech that President Obama delivered on March 18, 2008. The speech was mainly to point out the harsh statements delivered by Obama’s pastor, which caused huge controversy problems. It was a speech to show the American people that he was one of them and that even though we all come from different places, we are all equal. President Obama begins his speech by taking us back to the signing of the declaration of independence. By doing this he helps us relate a little better to what he is about to address.
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.
“…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. King also uses anaphora quite frequently during the course of his speech. He uses anaphora to keep the momentum of a specific topic he may be discussing such as life of the Negro’s. “One hundred years later…” “I have a dream…” “Let freedom ring…” are all repeated to help remind the audience of the themes he is speaking about. Antithesis has also been used in his speech to reveal the goals he wishes to achieve.
Distribution of ethos has an improbable effect on the audience. Therefore, ethos was his dominant rhetoric. Martin Luther King Jr. establishes his good-will and creates his credibility by appealing to ethos. King calls to his audience as “my friends” which sets the mood, expresses his good-will, and establishes a positive connection with the audience. When he quoted words from the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, “that all men are created equal,” it supported his equality argument for all citizens.
In my assessment of this writing, I show you that he was a master at generating his own feelings of despair and anguish through his words and right into your soul. He then gives us the hope and promise of God’s mercy in the same way. There is a reason this piece has been around for two hundred plus years and that is you can feel every single verse. The narrator of this poem is in first person and that is definitely the author, John Newton. One of the ways he evokes such strong feelings in his readers is by is personification of “Grace”.
Most of the plethora of allusions he used were of divine providence and the Bible. This means that he used the Bible to show the audience what the scriptures had said about the issue on slavery and the war. For example, when Lincoln was talking about the separation of the northerners and southerners, he said,” Both read the same bible and pray to the same God, and each invokes His aid against each other.” He wanted to show the people how the bible shows no barrier between different states of a country because God looks at them all the same way; hence why he says that both Northerners and Southerners pray to the same god. Biblical illusions made his view on the whole problem not prosaic. Not only that, but he wanted to remind the people that “The Almighty has his own purposes” (line 36) and if it were not for Him, then He
Martin Luther King Jr. Analysis Discrimination between blacks and whites was a huge problem in America in the mid 1900s. The public speech, “I Have a Dream,” expressed by Martin Luther King Jr. on August 28, 1963, is recognized as one of the best speeches ever given because of its strong persuasive techniques. Its main points called for racial equality, freedom, and an end to discrimination. Martin Luther King Jr. is best known for his persuasion skills through nonviolent methods and teachings that greatly influence his audience into thinking certain ways.
Rhetoric and Style in “I Have a Dream” I love using repetition and emotional imagery when I write. From my experience, they're some of the most powerful/effective stylistic devices I know of. In fact, they are so effective, that even Dr. Martin Luther King, one of the greatest rhetoricians of all time uses them. During his famous "I Have a Dream" speech, he frequently and effectively applies these devices, especially when he discusses his themes of unity / collaboration and immediate action. Without a doubt, repetition and emotional imagery (such as personification) are definitely quite powerful devices.. especially because they help Dr. King illustrate his themes of unity / collaboration and immediate action against desegregation, in his famous “I Have a Dream” speech.
Analyse the Effectiveness of methods used in Martin Luther Kings “I had a dream” speech. In the 1960’s black people where treated badly because of the colour of their skin. Martin Luther King realised this and believe discrimination against black people wasn’t right. He wrote a speech which was heard all over the world. He uses many techniques, of which, I think allusion and repetition is most effective.
Dr. Martin Luther King’s speeches and demonstrations would provoke a change in the minds and hearts of the American people. He stood up and inspired a nation into action with his words. With his speech he masterfully uses Ethos, Pathos, and Logos in his rhetoric to provide proof to all Americans that racism and segregation is not the intended foundation of America. With this I will describe the Ethos, Pathos, and Logos appeals that are hidden within Dr. King’s speech. First of all, as he delivered his speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial he analogizes Lincoln in his speech, “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the emancipation proclamation.” (King) Where the Ethos are found, his use of Lincoln brought authority to his speech.