In his inaugural address, John F. Kennedy used parallelism to unify the nation, while Martin Luther King Jr. also used this device in his I Have a Dream speech; it did not have the same strength of impact. In his inaugural address, President John F. Kennedy used parallelism to highlight the importance of protecting freedom for American citizens. He said, “We shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and success of liberty.” Through the repetition of similar phrases, he emphasizes how determined Americans should be to defend their liberty. He also demonstrates the country’s willingness to face challenges and make sacrifices for its freedom. Parallelism helps to make his …show more content…
This is just one example of his strong use of parallelism. Another way parallelism was used in JFK’s speech was to support the point that mankind has immense control and power over its future. He states, “For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty and all forms of human life.” This quote displays that humans can achieve extremely positive, but also highly negative outcomes. The repetition of “all forms of human” creates a parallel structure, which adds memorability. He mentions ending all poverty, a thought that brings people hope and joy, while also mentioning ending all human life, which the idea of can make people feel terrified. By comparing these two opposite extremes, he effectively gets his point across that what happens next is controlled by the people. Once again, this helps support his main goal, connecting the country, by demonstrating that they really can make a difference. While JFK made excellent use of parallelism for his persuasive goal, some would argue Martin Luther King Jr. had better use of this device. MLK used parallelism in his I Have a Dream speech to support his goal that there should be freedom for