Martin Luther King's MLK Speech

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MLK Speech I have a dream by Martin Luther King Jr. is a moving speech that became a hallmark of the American Civil Rights movement, that even today is a symbol for the fight of prejudice by people of ethnic backgrounds. It was delivered in 1963, nearly a hundred years after the American Civil war and Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg address, a speech that recalled equality that the country was founded upon. However, even though the African-Americans had the rights of Caucasians in the 60’s, to own property and vote, their equality was execrable and were often segregated away from whites, into groups of coloured people. Martin Luther king believes that racial prejudice can be overcome when people experiencing racism can realise that in the eyes of the lord we are all the same and if they realise they’re own self-worth, identity. Through perseverance…show more content…
He does this several times referencing the Emancipation Proclamation, the Declaration of independence and United States Constitution. “I have a dream” is repeated at the beginning of paragraphs and used eight times as anaphora and has become one of the most recognised quotes of contemporary history. The personal pronoun and repetition of it emotionally invest the audience in the speech. It also shows humility which breaches the audience to connect to them. He also shows Ethos, allowing the audience to trust his character. “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” Martin Luther King employs contrast in this textual citation to reach the audience and express that our lives our meaningless unless we stand up against prejudice and what we believe in. The metaphor that people’s lives will end when we don't speak out is telling us that when we neglect what really matters we become no more than an empty filling of lifeless
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