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Use Of Antithesis In Martin Luther King Jr.'s I Have A Dream Speech

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Despite the fact that some proclaim Abraham Lincoln’s “The Gettysburg Address” uses antithesis in an efficient way, Martin Luther King Jr’s remarkable “I Have a Dream” speech exceptionally uses the rhetorical device of antithesis in two definite ways to achieve the overall goal of putting an end to racism.
Martin Luther King Jr.’s powerful and effective use of antithesis in his “I Have a Dream” speech is what fulfilled the overall goal of the speech; to appeal to the racial inequalities happening within the United States. The sentence “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” is a powerful use of antithesis that supports the overall claim. He contrasts two opposite ideas, character and skin color, which are parallel to each other. He also draws attention to the future by referencing his four children, and how he dreams of them to be treated. This example of antithesis that Martin Luther King Jr. incorporated also creates great significance on the idea of ending racism and what that will look like in the future. While this is a distinguished …show more content…

The rhetorical phrase “...and every hill and mountain should be low…” is a perfect example of how he uses antithesis in such a compelling way. Clearly, mountains and valleys are very tall things, but he is saying how they should be low. This is due to the fact that he is symbolizing mountains and valleys as real-life obstacles in the way of achieving racial justice for African Americans. By using antithesis here, he illuminates his appeal and overall goal to persuade American citizens to end racism. Although “I Have a Dream” superlatively uses antithesis, it is argued that “The Gettysburg Address” by Abraham Lincoln uses the rhetorical device more

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In Martin Luther King’s famed “I Have A Dream” address, and his “Letter From Birmingham Jail” King makes use of bothe logos and pathos in his writing. It is because of these that his writings have risen to such prominence and stirred so many to action. But while he used both logos, the use of reasoning, and pathos, the use of emotions and charged language, a careful analysis shows that they are not equal. For King has a talent for dramatic, poignant resounding language, one which he uses to full effect and is much more powerful than logos. To demonstrate, take this passage “I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of it’s creed: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.

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“Letter from Birmingham Jail”, by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (King) is a powerful piece of writing that graces the injustices occurring in Birmingham, Alabama at that time. Part of the power lies in the use of rhetorical devices such as anaphora, ethos, pathos, as well as antithesis and how King used these devices and literary approaches to express his message, intention, and educate the clergymen to the realities of injustice occurring in Birmingham. XIn paragraph 24, King uses anaphora to counter a claim from the clergymen who referred to Xhim as an extremist. He asks the clergymen “Was not Abraham Lincoln an extremist?” In this Xparagraph King repeated the words “was not” six times to explain the concept that being an extremist is not always negative.

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In “Letters From Birmingham Jail”, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. appeals to his audience by the use of antithesis throughout the text. In response to King’s protest in Birmingham, Alabama, several clergymen wrote a letter condemning the King’s actions during the protest as “unwise and untimely”. Because King held on to an inexorable message, the walls of confinement did not blockade his writing of “Letters From Birmingham Jail” as a retort to the clergymen’s letter. As a civil rights leader, it was crucial for King to appeal to his audience in order to help rid the country of racial injustice. Antitheses are employed as a rhetorical maneuver in this text to induce critical thinking and reduce the consequences of unexamined acceptance among his audience.

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692 Words | 3 Pages

King inspired millions to change the situation they were in and end discrimination with his emphatic diction. Unbeknownst to many, allusion was one of King’s most powerful and persuading forms of rhetorical devices in his, I Have a Dream,” speech. “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” is guaranteed to both black men as well as white men, was a phrase spoken by King

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532 Words | 3 Pages

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., one of the most powerful speaker of his time, spoke out against segregation to millions, making history for many years to come. The speech “ I Have a Dream” by Dr. King was spoken to millions of nonviolent protesters on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. That same year, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote the “Letter From Birmingham Jail” to eight white clergymen that criticized his actions. The letter was written in the margins of a newspaper at the Birmingham, Alabama jail. In the two selections Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote, he used logos and pathos to explain his views on segregation.

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I Have a Dream’s Rhetoric A momentous day in history is exalted by the enthralling speech and resonating imagery of a man whom wanted to make a difference. Just over 100 years after the Emancipation Proclamation was implemented, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered a very riveting speech to over 250,000 Americans during the March on Washington, the nation’s largest demonstration of peaceful protest. With peace typically comes logic of which King very much emanated from his speech. With powerful rhetoric, King captivated an entire crowd and subsequently the entire nation with emphasizing while being freed from the travesty that was slavery people of color are still placed in chains by society’s gruesome yet commonplace demarcations.

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Another example is “ Will we be extremists for hate or for love?” These examples are also showing a way of King wanting to get his readers attention by using two things to compare. He wants the reader to feel some kind of way about his letter and what he feels is right. In the second example of antithesis, he wants readers to think about options, for hate or for love, and he does that by asking a rhetorical question and putting two sides to it. There are also examples of analogies, just like in his speech.

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877 Words | 4 Pages

The activist, Martin Luther King, revolutionized the civil rights movement as he addressed the issues that racism had induced from the beginning of its existence; to counter this damage, King encouraged peaceful, relentless protests for freedom and equality. Angry hate crimes tarnished the lives of African Americans in the United States, putting a stop to these monstrosities would be a momentous task but Martin Luther King was fearlessly ready to take on the challenge. The undoubtedly great speech was crucial for the development of the civil rights movement and success because the speaker compelled his audience to stand up for what they believed in and created a sense of purpose and drive that would lead to prosperity. In the speech “I Have

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398 Words | 2 Pages

Justice is not treating someone unfairly because of their differences. Quite often many injustices go unnoticed; but one man noticed a big injustice that many people during his time ignored. This man was Martin Luther King Jr, famously known for addressing these injustices via his speech, “I Have A Dream”. This speech inspired over 200,000 Americans to march for a better future. The passionate tone of Martin Luther King Jr.’s, “I Have A Dream” is magnified and supported through the use of rhetorical elements.

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772 Words | 4 Pages

On August 28, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King jr. stood on the steps of the Lincon memorial and passionately gave his famous speech. This speech is credited with being a catalyst for the Civil Rights movement and calls for a change in the way African Americans were treated in the United States. In his ardent speech about racial injustice toward African Americans, Dr. Martin Luther King jr. captivates his audience through his use of rhetorical comparison, allusions, and ethos to call people to action against Racial discrimination against African Americans. As it was used throughout his speech king utilizes repetition to voice his thoughts for example, when King states that he still has hope for the American dream, he uses the phrase “i have a dream” multiple times emphenziseing that he still has hope.” I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed ‘ we hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal’”(73-74).

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Annotated bibliography In his "I Have a Dream" speech, Martin Luther King Jr. uses rhetorical devices and imagery to convey his vision of racial equality and justice, urging America to fulfill its promise of freedom and democracy for all its citizens. “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon of light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.” [Source: Martin Luther King, Jr., I Have A Dream: Writings and Speeches that Changed the World (San Francisco: Harper, 1986) via Teaching American History.]

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804 Words | 4 Pages

On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr gave us one of one of the most rhetorically moving speeches ever given. Titled as the “I Have a Dream Speech,” he read this speech to the “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom”. As a civil right mover he gave this great speech to all Americans (black and white) so that he could give off the idea of equality on the same level. Because of his crowd of mix races King made sure to make his speech imploring to all no matter what the race that they may be. He uses metaphorical imagery, powerful diction,and symbolism to create an impact on the audience.

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1013 Words | 5 Pages

During the era of the civil rights movements in the 60s, among the segregation, racism, and injustice against the blacks, Martin Luther King Jr. stood at the Lincoln Memorial to deliver one of the greatest public speeches for freedom in that decade. In Martin Luther King Jr’s “I Have a Dream” speech he effectively uses ethos, diction and powerful metaphors to express the brutality endured by African American people. Yet his most important method of reaching his audience, and conveying his enduring message of equality and freedom for the whole nation was his appeal to pathos. With these devices, King was able to move thousands of hearts and inspire the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Opening his speech Martin Luther King Jr. sets up his credibility with his use of ethos, referring to the Declaration of Independence saying, “This note was a promise that all men… would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life.”

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Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech suggested the theme of adversity through his word choice, especially the use of literary devices. King used allusions, similes, metaphors, and imagery to convey the theme of adversity to the audience. In the speech King implied discrimination through declaring, "Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood." (2) This displays how comparing discrimination and quicksand exhibits the power that adversity has on our world. He is not directly speaking from personal experience in this speech, as in he is not using personal pronouns.

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Both lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and Martin Luther King's “I have a dream” speech are similar in that they both express the concept of freedom to achieve their purpose. However, they each have different ideas about freedom, and about what they want their audience to do. Both influential speeches rely heavily on rhetorical devices to convey their purpose. In King’s speech, the use of sensory and visceral language is abundant, creating an emotional and powerful atmosphere. “Manacles of discrimination,” “Lonely island of poverty” and “Chains of discrimination” paint a bleak picture of life as a minority in America, and contrasts phrases such as “Bright day of justice” and “Sacred obligation” which symbolize freedom.

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