Martin Luther King Jr. ''I have a dream'' kõne analüüs (0)

Written task 2 - Outline
Prescribed question: How does the text conform to, or deviate from, the conventions of a particular genre and for what purpose?
Title of the text for analysis : I have a dream by Martin Luther King Jr, 1963.
The part of the course to which the task refers: Part 2: Language and presentation of speeches and campaigns .
My critical response will:

• Analyse the rhetorical and literary devices used in Martin Luther King’s speech ‘’I have a dream’’ and state the reasons for why he had made use of them .
  
• Examine the impact these devices have on the reader/listener.
  
• State whether the speech conforms to, or deviates from, the conventions of a one.
  

Martin Luther King’s speech ‘’I have a dream’’ has by far been one of the most powerful and memorable speeches ever given. He was the leader of the Civil Rights Movement and fought for the rights and social equality for people of all races using non- violent methods. These methods included giving his famous speech in which he spoke about racial discrimination and asked for equality and acceptance among all races. This speech accomplished many things, but most importantly it made people become conscious of the fact that racism was an issue that needed to be solved and it changed how people treated each other . Martin Luther King’s speech ‘’I have a dream’’ was very successful, but it wasn’t only because it had a powerful message. The way it was written and how he presented it played a huge role in its effectiveness.
Martin Luther King used a wide variety of rhetorical and literary devices in his speech. Rhetorical devices are used to persuade and evoke emotions in the audience . The use of metaphors can already be seen in the following sentence: ‘’One hundred years later , the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination’’. The metaphorical use of the words ‘’chains’’ and ‘’manacles’’ in that statement help the audience to visualize the impact of discrimination and segregation. The black community being bound my the chains of discrimination prevented them from being able to rise up. Chains and manacles can also be seen as objects that bring back memories among African Americans that once experienced criminal injustice by the police due to institutional discrimination.
Perhaps the most frequently used literary device in this speech would be repetition. The phrase ‘’I have a dream’’ is used a number of times throughout the speech and is also the name of the speech. The repetition of this phrase helps to emphasize the importance of Martin Luther King’s vision while highlighting the number of transgressions against the African American community. The phrase becomes almost inspirational and continually reminds people that equality is obtainable, making the phrase the rally cry for the movement. The phrase "let freedom ring" is repeated throughout the speech as well, this phrase comes from the well known song "My Country 'tis of Thee" which was considered America's national anthem before the ‘’ Star -Spangled Banner ’’. By including this phrase throughout the speech, along with the entire first verse , Martin Luther King attempts to unite the people with a common dream of freedom by using an inspirational lyric that is well known across America. Repeating such phrases makes the speech more memorable and compelling.
The use of symbolism is also prevalent throughout this speech. This can easily be seen in the following sentence: ‘’I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain , and the crooked places will be made straight ’’. Martin Luther King uses the valleys, hills, mountains and rough places to symbolically represent racial inequalities and hardships across the land that must be corrected. The distance between the low and high points represents the equality gap that he wishes to reduce . He conveys this by stating they "shall be exalted", "made low" and "made straight”. By using these words to create imagery he adds further depth and meaning to this passage .
Another literary device present in this speech would be parallelism as seen in the following sentence: ‘’With this faith , we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day’’. The repetition of the word ‘’together’’ promotes a sense of alliance and makes the statement more memorable. The use of parallelism here instills confidence in the black community that change is inevitable.
Finally, the most prevalent form of rhetorical device is emotive language. Emotive language is found throughout the entire speech and develops the passion , anger and love that is found in this speech. A good example of this language is found in the sentence: ’’The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges’’. The descriptive words used bring emotions of determination, anger and desire to the audience. He’s conveying his feelings to the listener by painting a picture with words. Words like ‘’whirlwinds’’, ‘’revolt’’, ‘’shake’’, ‘’foundations’’ show the power and the rage behind the movement.
To conclude, Martin Luther King made use of a variety of rhetorical and literary devices in his ‘’I have a dream’’ speech. He used metaphors, repetitions and emotive language to make the speech more persuasive. In addition to that he also made use of symbolism and parallelism to give it a deeper meaning and to make it more memorable. The speech turned out to be very inspirational and acted as a wake-up call for not only African Americans, but for the rest of Americans as well. The speech conforms to the regular conventions of a successful motivational speech. By utilizing well known literary tactics Martin Luther King was able to lead the progression of the Civil Rights Movement.
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