MLK- I Have a Dream

Analysis:

The purpose of Martin Luther King’s speech, “I Have a Dream,” was to encourage the audience to stand up for what they believe by empowering them with hopeful messages about the future they want to achieve. He first appeals to the majority of his audience, African Americans, by pointing out the injustice that they face on a daily basis, “the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.” Whenever he refers to the audience, he includes himself by repeating “we.” By putting himself into the same category as the audience and pointing out the injustices they face as a group, he gains the audience's attention because to them, it now seems like he truly understands their struggles and it gives him credibility. He even talks about specific people in the audience, “Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of you have come from areas where you quest -- quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality,” to make it seem like he is addressing each and every one of them. He appeals to pathos by bringing to the table the topic of children, he appeals to logos with the “bad check” analogy, and he appeals to ethos by quoting from the founding fathers. He uses all three rhetorical appeals to give reasons and to motivate the audience to speak up and fight for equality.
Furthermore, King makes sure to appeal to not only the African Americans in his audience; he even appeals to the whites who look towards the same future: “Many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. [...] We cannot walk alone.” By addressing them, he acknowledges and thanks them for their decisions and support. By appealing to the audience as a whole, King is able to convince them to fight against racism and fight towards the type of future he dreams of.