Rhetorical Analysis Of Rev. Martin Luther King's I Have A Dream Speech

When listening to or reading Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, it is rare for one to not be immediately moved by King’s powerful poetic play on words. This is why King’s speech to this day remains one of the greatest, most inspirational speeches that changed the world. Through his story telling of the real-life struggles and hardships the African-American were facing throughout the 1950s and 1960s, he connects with his audience on a level that one had never done before. King uses many rhetorical appeals that successfully persuade his audience, however the conjoining of ethos and biblical references ultimately establish his credibility to his audience. There is no question as to the credibility of King, which is immediately established in his famous speech. “Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation.” By invoking the memory of Abraham Lincoln into his speech to the people, he establishes cultural familiarity, credibility and authority to his audience. King also reverts back to the Declaration of Independence by stating, …show more content…
He draws upon real-life examples of the discrimination that was and had been occurring at the time which contributed to the logical aspect of the content of his speech. “We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro’s basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as out children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by signs stating: “For Whites Only”.” He also speaks of the police brutality that was occurring. These references add to King’s credibility as well as appeal to the audience’s common sense of what was going on. Essentially, he points out the horrid acts of discrimination through the use of logos which ultimately contributes to his overall