Rhetorical Analysis: “I Have a Dream” On August 28, 1963, the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, a non-violent civil rights activist, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the “I Have a Dream” Speech. Dr. King wrote this speech with the goal of getting the American people to realize that even 100 years after the Proclamation came about, the African American race is still chained and crippled. His goal throughout his life, not only in this speech, was to end segregation, to change superior attitudes of the white race, to fight for equality and freedom. He uses several types of rhetorical devices such as repetition, allusions and metaphors to portray this message most clearly. The occurrence of repetition in this speech is …show more content…
These include the Emancipation Proclamation, the Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution, all in which create a sense of trust for his audience because he knows the true fact; by alluding to these documents, listeners of his message were able to then realize how previously, America had plans for equality. He reminds listeners that this issue of segregation is an issue of now, and by the Constitution itself, all men, black or white, should be “guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Furthermore, by referencing bible verses such as Isaiah 40:5, “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together,” he establishes credibility because of his ministry background. In this case no longer is he solely speaking about the unfulfilled promises made by the country, but how the audience, the nation, is failing to upkeep the word of God. These allusions, biblical or political, achieve his purpose because they deep sea dive into the message, his speech is not based off of personal thoughts but rather reliable and trusted documents. Perhaps this part of his message is aimed mostly toward the Republican listeners because they are not able to object the proof he provides, since it is what they so greatly believe