On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King delivered his famous speech "I Have a Dream" at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., during the March on the capital. In this speech, he aimed to draw attention to the injustice concerning negro people and his dream to end racial segregation and achieve equal rights for everyone. Throughout the speech, King makes use of many different rhetorical devices which I am going to examine in the following text.
Stylistic Devices and Language Use
Firstly, King addresses his audience directly by using personal pronouns, such as "we" or "our" at the beginning and continues to do so throughout the whole speech. He connects himself with the people and includes himself in the fight against segregation. Additionally, he makes reference to Abraham Lincoln, which emphasizes his credibility and ties into his own dream, shaped by the sense of freedom of blacks.
Rhetorical Devices and Figurative Language
King utilizes anaphoras to stress the importance and create a rhythm to his words. An example of this is "One hundred years later" which highlights the inequalities black Americans are still facing 100 years after the abolition of slavery. Most famously, the anaphora "I have a dream" is used to point out his understanding of freedom and equality. King's dream and his values are love, faith, hope, racial justice, and brotherhood so that black and white children are united and treated equally regardless of their skin color. He also makes use of images and metaphors to illustrate and visualize his ideas.
Parallel Sentence Structure and Repetition
The speech is also characterized by numerous repetitions, enumerations, and a parallel sentence structure that underline his opinion and dream. Repeating "brotherhood" means that they are united in their fight against racism. Examples and enumerations point out the equality of whites and blacks and stress the unity of people, even when they have different beliefs.
Conclusion
Looking at all the mentioned aspects above, it is clear that by using especially anaphoras and metaphors, Martin Luther King wants to convince his audience of the importance of taking action against racial segregation and injustice as soon as possible. He appeals to the audience to take action and realize equality.
In summary, King's speech is a powerful call to action, using a variety of rhetorical devices and figurative language to emphasize the importance of racial justice and equality. His eloquent words continue to inspire and resonate with audiences to this day.
For more in-depth analysis of this speech, you can download the "I Have a Dream" speech analysis PDF, which provides a comprehensive breakdown of the rhetorical devices and language use employed by Martin Luther King.
