Rhetorical Analysis of the Famous "I Have a Dream Speech"

Martin Luther King Jr. uses metaphors, experience, and repetition in his "I Have a Dream" speech to display the injustices of segregation and to let the audience know that immediate action should be taken to solve this dilemma of inequality. First, King relates segregation to other things through the use of metaphors to help the audience better recognize what racism has done to society. He states that freedom for African Americans is something that was promised then never given through a comparison: "America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked 'insufficient funds.'" All listeners can understand the concept of not getting money they were promised. By cleverly relating lost money to the lost equality of the African Americans, King rouses the audience into associating segregation with something unfair.

King later incorporates his own experience in the famous speech to build his ethos and pathos appeals. He tells of his "dream that [his] four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." King divulges this tidbit about his own life so that the audience can connect. Not only might the audience empathize with his position but they will also gain respect for King because he possesses the title of father. Lastly, King repeats certain phrases to reinforce the idea behind them. At one point, King recycles the words "now is the time." Because he places great importance on an immediate plan to end segregation, he drills these words into the audience with hopes that hearing the word 'now' will inspire them to take action as soon as possible. In total, King's speech includes examples of rhetoric devices to convince the audience how harsh segregation is and that it should end now. Many people, after hearing about King's dream, became more active in protesting against segregation. Overall, his speech was a great success; in about a year from when he gave it, segregation was outlawed by the Civil Rights Act.