Pathos In I Have A Dream Speech

In Martin Luther King Jr’s, “I Have a Dream” speech, he mainly relies on pathos by using loaded language to invoke anger among the audience. He evidently uses relatable content that resonates with the audience and delivers his speech in such a manner that the victims of oppression are reminded of the struggles they faced. For instance, in the quote, “One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land.” MLK Jr speaks in reference to the Emancipation Proclamation — which states the freedom of all slaves — and emphasizes that even after a hundred years, African Americans still feels oppressed in their own land. This emotionally appeals to the audience because it