The Civil Rights Movement: Martin Luther King, Jr.

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The early 1960s was a time of anguish and discrimination for the African-American community, but it was also a time of momentous empowerment and determination: a time known as the Civil Rights Movement. Martin Luther King, Jr. was determined to create freedom for every citizen of the United States regardless of race. Through his “I Have A Dream” speech, delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington, Martin Luther King, Jr. called for an end to racism and created a defining moment for the Civil Rights Movement. The “I Have A Dream” speech will have an everlasting impact on readers and listeners for years to come, because of its empowering diction that Martin Luther King, Jr. portrays through his…show more content…
Throughout history, African-American people have been looked at as being inferior, uneducated, and a disgrace to society. When King used loaded words, such as “withering injustice” or “crippled by the manacles of segregation”, and when he discussed details from historical events, such as the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation and the writing of the Declaration of Independence, he was able to portray himself as a wise and intelligent man, regardless of his thought to be “inferior” race. His advanced vocabulary and wise word choice he used caused the meaning of his speech to have an eye- opening impact on society because he was able to make himself sound like a respected white man and more people listened to what he was saying based on this sole factor. Not only did Martin Luther King, Jr. have impeccable diction, but he was also able to structure is vocabulary into superb sentences by using syntax. King states “Now is the time..” at the beginning of many sentences in “I Have A Dream.” This is an example of anaphora.…show more content…
For example, Dr. King states “Five score years ago a great American in whose symbolic shadow we stand today signed the Emancipation of Proclamation”, in which he was referring to Abraham Lincoln. He used this allusion to strengthen his argument for freedom. He depicted the irony of how the Emancipation Proclamation was meant to free the slaves, but over 100 years later African-Americans were still being treated as such. Another significant feature of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have A Dream” speech is the imagery used throughout to depict both the hardships African Americans have faced, but also the future they hope to achieve. King focuses on two types of imagery throughout his speech: landscape and time. By using the phrase “Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice; now is the time to lift out nation from the quicksands of injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood,” King encourages African Americans to take a stand toward the inequalities they face and push for freedom. The contradiction of a valley versus the sun represents escaping a low point and the bright future in which all people are
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