Truong Pham 35476118 Comparison Essay Martin Luther King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail vs. Barack Obama’s “ A more Perfect Union” In their letter and speech, both Martin Luther King and Barack Obama tried to primarily use ethical and emotional appeals to raise awareness about racism in America and to persuade their respective audience to join their quest to put an end to racism. However, while Barack Obama talked about racism in general, Martin Luther King focussed on segregation, or racism specifically on African-American. King was straightforward in his arguments, often time hitting the nail right on the head, while Obama was much too diplomatic in his speech due to the fact that he had to appeal to a large audience of all
Distinctive voices first makes us think about what the word ‘voice’ means. It is easy to understand that speeches and plays are spoken texts but for this elective students have to understand that written texts such as poems and novels also create a sense of voice. In Martin Luther King's speech, we see that he is making a plea for change. Kings speech was delivered in Washington in 1963, as the finale to a protest march of more than 200,000 people demanding jobs and political rights for African-Americans. ‘I have a Dream’ is one of the best known speeches of the twentieth century, a thoughtful and rousing call to social justice that clearly conveys King’s impatience with continuing racial discrimination.
Some of the techniques I noticed were syntax, repetition, logos, and finally, pathos. Eisenhower’s Inaugural Speech of 1953 was very successful in connecting to his listeners. He was able to get his penultimate purpose across, which was that the country needed to band together once more to stay strong against the flare up of communism, but I believe his ultimate purpose was to keep the country moral high, and keep the people together, so they could overcome anything, whether it be communism or aliens. The United States of America will forever be banded together after this
His use of ethos, pathos and logos in this speech and others, made it effective enough to land him a spot as Commander in Chief. He used ethos in a way that gained the respect of his audience in that he took on the role of being one of them. By using logos he made them realize what they as the Republican Party stand for. With his use of pathos he appeals to their emotional side but making them believe that change is for the sake of their children’s livelihood. Ronald Reagan’s speech “A Time For Choosing” was intended to persuade his audience to believe the wrong-doings of the government, and persuade he did.
King is successful in connecting with the American people and persuading them to join in the fight against inequality and racial discrimination. “I Have a Dream” was such a persuasive speech because it was extremely effective in using rhetorical methods. Almost every rhetorical method is utilized in King’s famous speech, including pathos, ethos, and logos. King also implemented other rhetorical methods of persuasion such as stylistic appeal, because of the specific placing and selection of language in his speech. “I Have a Dream” also used the elements of argument such as claims, support, and warrants, in order to be persuasive.
Martin Luther King was a brave man who played a huge role in the advancement of civil rights using non-violent civil disobedience. He is mostly known for the speech he performed from the steps of the Lincoln memorial, delivering to over 250,000 civil rights supporters. The pragmatics of MLK speech was that it took place in the 1960’s in front of an audience of both black and white American citizens. These would have been religious people who believe that everyone is, and should be equal in society. MLK included biblical passages and references so these people could see where their morals and values lay – ‘glory of the Lord’.
A More Perfect Union Critique “We the people, in order to form a more perfect union.” These are the same words that were presented in the Constitution as well as used in Barack Obama’s speech, “A More Perfect Union” during his presidential primary campaign in 2008. His speech addresses the racism and inequality that still exist in America that is dividing American society instead of uniting it. Obama uses his own experiences to reach out to readers as well as using allusions from history and the patriotic meaning behind the history to incorporate pathos and ethos in his speech. Obama is successful in his writing because he is able to persuade the audience by appealing to their emotions, while using specific details to create more credibility
Presidents in Comparison: Barack Obama We are under the leadership of a wonderful President. President Barack H. Obama he is a man of great character and a want to help the American people in any way he can. To help his people he has strategically set up policies that are in there best interest. Being that he is not the first President I am certain that in his effort to give the American people the best that he could offer he look at policies and ideologies of previous presidents such as Presidents Andrew Jackson, Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon, Johnson, and Ronald Regan. In this powerful essay you will see the comparison of President Obama to each of those men.
Both Kennedy and Obama in their first years as president brought an energy to the White House similar to that of lots of young people embarking on a new journey. Their outings as husbands and fathers are well-documented. Also both of their wives became fashion icons, even though their styles differ. Both men are known for their intellectualism. Three books are attributed to Kennedy—A Nation of Immigrants, Why England Slept and Profiles in Courage.
President Obama’s speech, “A More Perfect Union,” pulls in the reader or listener because it is full of emotion and history of independence and culture. The themes that Obama addresses in his speech are centered on history: the history of American independence, personal growth, black culture, and his political campaign. Obama begins and ends his speech by quoting the Declaration of Independence. He suggests that the document was “signed but ultimately not finished (699) to lead into his goals for his presidency. He addresses the current issues that the United States is facing, such as poor health care, awful education, and a growing war and terrorist threat (700).