How Does Martin Luther King Create Effect In His Speeches
‘Examine how Martin Luther King creates impact in two of his speeches and two contexts’
Martin Luther King's speeches can be recalled in all parts of the world today, largely through his charismatic, albeit remarkably energetic demeanour. The powerful message that manifests itself in many of his orations - the dream in which Negros would one day be on equal terms with white people - appealed to his admiring audiences infallibly speech after speech. His lectures display his optimistic aspirations for Afro-Americans, as well as encouraging persons of all races and backgrounds to share his ardour in building a society wherein racial discrimination and bigotry would be a thing of the past.
One of King's most iconic speeches comes in the form of 'I have a dream', a public demonstration made in front of thousands in Washington D.C. Here King strongly expresses his feelings regarding racial discrimination, using a variety of techniques in order to communicate these views effectively. In his perpetual references to freedom, King alludes to Abraham Lincoln’s signing of the Emancipation Programme; at this point, through the use of metaphorical language, King expresses his trepidations about racism. Although, he says, by theory, the Negro has been liberated by the signing of the Emancipation papers, he is still the victim of discrimination and prejudice. ‘The life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation’: here King skilfully describes the situation through figurative language - manacles referring to the times when black people were subject to slavery, suggesting that the Negro is still enchained, no longer by iron cuffs but by the principles of white supremacy. These ideas are also apparent in the ‘Why I am opposed to the war in Vietnam’ sermon, held in the Ebenezer Baptist Church in April 1967. In this speech King expresses his incongruity regarding the motives of the war, as well as giving carefully justified reasons for his difference of
Martin Luther King's speeches can be recalled in all parts of the world today, largely through his charismatic, albeit remarkably energetic demeanour. The powerful message that manifests itself in many of his orations - the dream in which Negros would one day be on equal terms with white people - appealed to his admiring audiences infallibly speech after speech. His lectures display his optimistic aspirations for Afro-Americans, as well as encouraging persons of all races and backgrounds to share his ardour in building a society wherein racial discrimination and bigotry would be a thing of the past.
One of King's most iconic speeches comes in the form of 'I have a dream', a public demonstration made in front of thousands in Washington D.C. Here King strongly expresses his feelings regarding racial discrimination, using a variety of techniques in order to communicate these views effectively. In his perpetual references to freedom, King alludes to Abraham Lincoln’s signing of the Emancipation Programme; at this point, through the use of metaphorical language, King expresses his trepidations about racism. Although, he says, by theory, the Negro has been liberated by the signing of the Emancipation papers, he is still the victim of discrimination and prejudice. ‘The life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation’: here King skilfully describes the situation through figurative language - manacles referring to the times when black people were subject to slavery, suggesting that the Negro is still enchained, no longer by iron cuffs but by the principles of white supremacy. These ideas are also apparent in the ‘Why I am opposed to the war in Vietnam’ sermon, held in the Ebenezer Baptist Church in April 1967. In this speech King expresses his incongruity regarding the motives of the war, as well as giving carefully justified reasons for his difference of