Biography Of The Speaker Martin Luther King
Martin Luther King was born on the 15th of January, 1929 in Atlanta. He studied at a public school in the American state of Georgia and later he acquired his Bachelor of Arts degree from Morehouse College, an institution for the black community of Atlanta in 1948. In 1955, Martin Luther King, Jr then obtained a PhD in systematic theology from Boston University. He himself was black and worked hard for the rights of the people belonging to the Negro community. He got occupied in many domestic rights’ boycotts and protests and strived hard to achieve success and finally emerged as an admired Negro leader. Whilst on his mission of protesting in various towns and cities, he led a peaceful march in Washington D.C. of 250,000 people to whom he delivered the remarkable speech,” I Have a Dream” which is one of the most memorable speeches of all time. This speech was delivered on 28th of August 1963 as millions of citizens, children, law and policy makers watched on TV as Baptist preacher and Boston University Graduate Dr Martin Luther King stood on a platform. He established an instant understanding with the audience and communicated on a level that was meaningful to them. He stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and appealed to the moral beliefs of Americans. He demanded that there should be racial justice and people should no longer be divided by religion or colour. It was his vision that “all people are created equal”. The thesis of his speech was and still is to motivate, educate, and persuade everyone to set aside the differences between the blacks and whites and that the black community should stand up against its oppression and all men, women, and children should enjoy freedom.
King’s prime audience are the Negroes but he also addresses the Whites which include those who are extreme racists and also those who don’t dislike the Negroes. He is speaking to both genders regardless of age. He delivers his speech in such a manner that the uneducated Negroes can comprehend his message. When he says, 'for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today', it gives proof that he is also addressing the whites. The Negroes faced “racial injustice' which motivated King to write this speech. King was tired of watching his people get dominated by the whites and saw the 'urgency of now'. Hence, King decided to motivate the Negroes and lead them on the path of freedom.
King's morals tell him that all people, regardless of colour and race, should be treated equally. In his speech King says, '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''. King states a fact that if everyone is created equal in America then they should be treated as equals too. King tries hard to motivate his people when he says 'And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall march ahead. We cannot turn back'. King is trying to increase the morale of the Negroes here and trying to create hype. King also firmly believes that the blacks should not demonstrate any type of physical violence in their march to freedom. He supports this by telling his audience that some whites do realize the benefits of Negroes getting their freedom. King also highly rates the fulfilment of promise as he will not accept the 'bad check' from America but will resist until the blacks 'cash it'.
Methodology of writing and language are crucial to the cause of his speech. The first sentence in the speech makes use of concrete language in the phrase 'Five score years ago' to remind the crowd of Abraham Lincoln's great Emancipation Proclamation which eventually resulted in freedom for the slaves. King also says 'We hold these truths self-evident; that all men are created equal' to emphasise the purpose of the Declaration of Independence.
King’s intriguing personality and credibility as a popular spokesperson and a civil rights activist is associated with his distinctive way of motivating individuals by communication. After an analysis of the speech, it can be noticed that King uses an approach which revolves around his audience and very heavily relies on the use of different rhetorical devices like anaphora, metaphors, parallelism, personification, and communication strategies to make his ideas understandable and triggers emotions of the audience more strongly. In addition, he makes use of three modes of persuasive appeals which are pathos, ethos and logos, and composes his speech eloquently to suit various audiences. He uses a poetic and impassioned tone which inculcates strong emotions among the audience. Furthermore, to argue professionally he makes use of different examples. The speech “I Have a Dream” has an enormous impact because it reflects upon the time when blacks were treated as slaves and they were deprived of their basic rights by the dominant whites.
To make his speech more dynamic and influential, King has utilized an artistic and passionate tone. Powerful words like “we cannot be satisfied” (3) and “let freedom ring” (6) are used repeatedly which shows that how passionate he is about his objective and how eagerly he wants the black community to fight for its freedom. Moreover, he recites the poem “My country, ‘tis of thee, sweet land of…every mountain side, let freedom ring.” (5) to inculcate a strong desire for freedom in the hearts of the Negroes.
