Review Of Martin Luther King's Speech Beyond Vietnam: A Time To Break Silence
Katie Neuner
English 102
October 21, 2014
Dringenberg
King’s Bold Message On April 4th 1967, Martin Luther King Jr. stepped foot into Riverside Church in New York City, New York to deliver a speech concerning the current situation and the Vietnam War.
From the first sentence of the speech it is evident why Martin Luther King Jr. is there, and what side he is on. In Kings’ speech Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence, while King used terms and phrases that were appropriate and understood by the audience present that day, but for the ears of the general public the speech may have been too bold to be accepted. After reading through and listening to this speech it is very clear that Martin Luther King Jr. was very passionate about peace …show more content…
But then the question arises: was that the only audience that was going to hear Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech? The answer to that question is obviously a no; the speech at the church that day was highly publicized. People everywhere, all over the world were going to hear his voice through TV, radio, Newspaper, etc. The words of his speech could have been much more powerful if some of the statements were a little less harsh. For example, he says “we have corrupted their women and children and killed their men. What liberators” (King 23)? This could be taken the wrong way. The United States is widely known for its liberty and its equality and this could be analyzed as an attack on the soul of America. Another example would be when he says “the world now demands a maturity of America that we may not be able to achieve” (King 26). Someone could take this as an attack on every citizen and every leader of America as immature. Another example is when he says “I am convinced that if we are to get on the right side of the world revolution, we as a nation must undergo a revolution of values” (King 27). This could be seen as an attack on the core values of America. Not some of the values, he is saying all of the values need a revolutions, many people who care deeply about America could evaluate this statement and deem it offensive. It is statements like the
English 102
October 21, 2014
Dringenberg
King’s Bold Message On April 4th 1967, Martin Luther King Jr. stepped foot into Riverside Church in New York City, New York to deliver a speech concerning the current situation and the Vietnam War.
From the first sentence of the speech it is evident why Martin Luther King Jr. is there, and what side he is on. In Kings’ speech Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence, while King used terms and phrases that were appropriate and understood by the audience present that day, but for the ears of the general public the speech may have been too bold to be accepted. After reading through and listening to this speech it is very clear that Martin Luther King Jr. was very passionate about peace …show more content…
But then the question arises: was that the only audience that was going to hear Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech? The answer to that question is obviously a no; the speech at the church that day was highly publicized. People everywhere, all over the world were going to hear his voice through TV, radio, Newspaper, etc. The words of his speech could have been much more powerful if some of the statements were a little less harsh. For example, he says “we have corrupted their women and children and killed their men. What liberators” (King 23)? This could be taken the wrong way. The United States is widely known for its liberty and its equality and this could be analyzed as an attack on the soul of America. Another example would be when he says “the world now demands a maturity of America that we may not be able to achieve” (King 26). Someone could take this as an attack on every citizen and every leader of America as immature. Another example is when he says “I am convinced that if we are to get on the right side of the world revolution, we as a nation must undergo a revolution of values” (King 27). This could be seen as an attack on the core values of America. Not some of the values, he is saying all of the values need a revolutions, many people who care deeply about America could evaluate this statement and deem it offensive. It is statements like the