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Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King's I Have A Dream Speech

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In August 1963 Martin Luther King electrified the American population with his extremely powerful 'I Have A Dream ' speech. This speech is extremely effective as King 's use of rhetoric demands racial justice in an unjust society. Martin Luther King use of carefully planned use of language through a wide range of techniques make 's this speech an effective one through both the oral delivery and written text. The techniques of repetition, quotations, specific examples to moments in American History and metaphors emphasize King 's main argument in this speech, where he believes ' 'America has defaulted on this promissory note insofar as its citizens of colour are concerned ' ' and he calls for the Negro community to use their voice in society …show more content…

At the beginning of this text King refers to the Emancipation Proclamation signed by Abraham Lincoln, however then compares that to the society in which they find themselves in one hundred years later. King 's repetition of the phrase one hundred years really shows us that society at that time had not really progressed from the time of Abraham Lincoln in terms of racial justice. King describes this with very raw imagery of captivity when he says ' 'one hundred years later the life of the Negro is still badly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination ' '. The repetition of the phrase one hundred years also sets up the overall poignant feeling in this speech when he states ' 'one hundred years later the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. Another example of where King uses clever repetition of phrases is in the second half of this speech where King presents his view for a better future in America, where all people are equal. King 's repetition of the word of ' 'I have a dream ' ' is extremely effective in this speech. One of the most effective examples for me where King uses this phrase accompanied with the powerful imagery of slavery in America is ' ' I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave-owners will be able to sit together at the table of brotherhood '

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