Preview

Martin Luther King Metaphors

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
121 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Martin Luther King Metaphors
King uses the metaphor of a bad check to describe how America has mistreated African Americans. Even after the words in the U.S Constitution and Declaration of Independence that grant all people the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. He tells the audience that now is the time to fight for democracy and for brotherhood. There cannot be any quitting because it is just the beginning of the struggle. He reminds his listeners that the fight must be accomplished with dignity and non-violence. People should not resort to violent actions. But remain disciplined and continue to move forward with the ultimate goal in mind. King urges people to continue to have faith and not give up at all.
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Metaphors In Letter From Birmingham Jail
    • 229 Words
    • 1 Page

    Metaphors In Letter From Birmingham Jail

    Throughout Letter From Birmingham Jail, King uses several metaphors to describe the harmful effects of inequity and motivate his followers to work towards “transforming the] pending national elegy into a creative psalm of brotherhood.” For example, to promote immediate action, King proclaims that “now is the time to lift national policy from the quicksand of racial injustice.” By placing the abstract consequences of discrimination next to the perceivable discomfort of being stuck in quicksand, King helps his readers understand the severe ramifications of injustice. More importantly, the harmful outcomes that King described motivate his readers to take action in order to soothe the wounds of their neighbors and fellow citizens.…

    • 229 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King's Rose To Prominence
    • 617 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King's Rose To Prominence

    King’s Rose to Prominence In the Article by History Net says, August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his phenomenal “I Have a Dream” speech around the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. This speech discusses the different forms of rhetorics that are mentioned. Theme, pathos, tone and audience capture the same perspective in which it makes this speech pleasant and positive. With these rhetorics, King accomplished his purpose for this speech.…

    • 617 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Devices Used In Letter From Birmingham Jail
    • 279 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Rhetorical Devices Used In Letter From Birmingham Jail

    King’s use of rhetorical tools helps him convince the clergymen to take a second look at how African Americans are being treated. King utilizes emotive language to target his audience’s emotions. For example, he states, “if you would watch them push and curse old Negro women and young Negro” (3). He then goes on to give more examples, including, “I don’t believe you would have so warmly commended the police force if you had seen its angry and violent dogs literally biting six unarmed, nonviolent Negroes” (3). These help achieve his purpose because they are specific examples that make the clergymen feel guilty. Next, King utilizes questioning to make the clergymen reevaluate what they are doing. He says, “In this sense they have been rather publicly ‘nonviolent.’ But for what purpose? To preserve the evil system of segregation” (4).…

    • 279 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Rhetorical Devices Used In 12 Angry Men By Martin Luther King
    • 274 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Rhetorical Devices Used In 12 Angry Men By Martin Luther King

    One of the main rhetorical devices that King uses is pathos for whites to understand what happens to the oppressed. For instance, to show the clergymen are wrong for saying his actions are “unwise and untimely,”he uses sombre diction such as “victims, broken, shadow, and deep disappointment” to indicate that his community has already waited and were brought to a dead end. The sentences are used to make the reader feel guilty with pity for their hopes that were shattered. Another example that represents that his protest is wise and show the readers that what has been going on is personal and needs to be stopped is when he states, “when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your brothers and sisters at whim;…

    • 274 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Use Of Metaphors In King's Speech
    • 186 Words
    • 1 Page

    The Use Of Metaphors In King's Speech

    Metaphors are another useful rhetorical method that King uses, metaphors are important to help audiences fully understand an idea as it compares an idea with something the audience is familiar with, which is important to bring out ethos. King uses a series of more difficult metaphors in the middle of his speech. He claims that by “the Constitution and Declaration of Independence,” the men that signed the Constitution were signing a promissory note that all men, whatever skin color, would be guaranteed the same rights and treated equally. Later on, King uses the metaphors “battered by the storms of persecution” and the “winds of police brutality.” (American rhetoric 2) These two metaphors both relate to ethos as the first metaphor begs the ethic…

    • 186 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Letter From Birmingham Jail
    • 1236 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Letter From Birmingham Jail

    In his letter, King attempts to persuade the men to look past their current prejudices and perform their expected duties as Christians. He also aims to defend his nonviolent methods of protest through a collage of brilliant rhetorical tactics that he fabricates in his own mind. King’s “Letter From Birmingham Jail” is exceptionally effective at convincing the audience of the immorality of segregating blacks from whites because his tone is incredibly befitting to his audience, his strategical implementation of common ethical values is thought-provoking, and his grandiose deliverance of emotion is heart-wrenching and successful at grabbing the audience’s…

    • 1236 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Speech
    • 244 Words
    • 1 Page

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Speech

    Martin Luther King Jr. uses a metaphor in his speech when he explains that, “The bank of justice is bankrupt.” He compares a “bank of justice,” to the American government and “bankruptcy” to an insufficient amount of justice in America. Bankruptcy is filed when there is inadequate resources to support an organization. This insufficiency is being compared to injustice for the Black people of America. Furthermore, King Jr. wants to acknowledge that equality and justice can and should be given to the Blacks.…

    • 244 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Dr King Letter From Birmingham Jail Analysis
    • 668 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Dr King Letter From Birmingham Jail Analysis

    King said that before anyone takes direct action, the protester first needs to “purify” (567) their soul so that he or she will have no regrets going forward. Taking direct action is the right path but, it needs to be understood that there will be consequences for those actions. Taking a stand has never been easy and can be extremely difficult, but for the future progress of the African American, it was necessary. The protester needed to possess a firm moral conviction that their cause was a righteous and just cause. By combining nonviolent resistance, direct action, and a firm conviction of their cause, King was confident that the oppressors would come to join him in the quest for equality. All other issues would fade away and the only thing left to see would be the true issue, a "good versus evil"…

    • 668 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Mr. King's Speech
    • 649 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Mr. King's Speech

    The key phrases that I have identified are Negro and America from the beginning sentences. The correlation that I notice with the use of these phrases is that he is expressing to the public that a change needs to occur for America to create unity and equality for the Blacks to be included in society. In the following sentences from his speech, he expresses how no change has happened over the course of time towards the Black population. “But one hundred years later, we must face the tragic fact that the Negro is still not free.” “One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.” These key phrases express the main objective in his speech and that is the division between the Whites and Blacks in society. Mr. King is emphasizing that Blacks are still not free in society even though slavery has been abolished. He addresses the segregation that still exists which is promoting a form of discrimination among society. The end goal of his speech was to open the eyes of the nation to identify the problem and to act on this issue of discrimination by not engaging into the problem anymore.…

    • 649 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    AP English 3 Rhetorical Analysis
    • 714 Words
    • 3 Pages

    AP English 3 Rhetorical Analysis

    King initially draws connections from the current state of African American peoples by referencing allusions to historical documents which assisted in the advances against oppression. In his speech, King begins with a nod to Abraham Lincoln, using “Five score years ago” as his opening statement. He then praises Lincoln, claiming that he was a “symbolic shadow in which we [the people] stand today” and mentions his effort toward the ending of slavery, the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. However, the signing of the document was only a literal end to slavery, but in reality, African Americans were still enslaved by society. King was aware that slavery had been abolished, but obstacles such as Jim Crow laws were almost as detrimental to the Negros as slavery. Although, as he emphasizes, the Declaration of Independence evidently states that “all men are created equal,” African Americans were still being denied their unalienable rights. In theory, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness were to be given to all Americans, regardless of color, but for the Negros, liberty was remarkably lacking. By alluding to…

    • 714 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Birmingham Jail Thesis
    • 643 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Birmingham Jail Thesis

    From a critical viewpoint, King makes a very persuasive argument using logic and emotions to influence the audience that he is in fact right in taking a non-violent action but more so justified from the basic humanity laws. He denies idea that he is supporting some laws while breaking other by making a distinction between just and unjust laws. He talks about the difference between moral and political and just and unjust laws. For example, Parade law that put him in jail is just in letter but unjust when applied to violate constitution. King also justifies breaking laws by citing historical examples of civil disobedience, such as: the Old Testament, Early Christians in Rome, Socrates, Boston Tea Party, Freedom Fighters against Hitler. He then uses emotions to convince his readers that it is the white moderate that are really at fault, conveying the message that he is a victim of circumstance and society. He uses this to lead into the criticism of his extremism. King is really a moderate between two extremes of black action between doing nothing and becoming violent. He cautions that without his movement, the extreme of hating whites will win out and cause more violence. He then shows that he is indeed a pacifistic by recognition and praise of those whites who have helped his cause. King tries to refute the clergyman’s disapproval of the actions that occurred in Birmingham, he tries to redirects praise to the civil rights protestors, and reconstructs a harmonious…

    • 643 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King Jr
    • 693 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King Jr

    Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was well known for giving many inspiring speeches that had an affect on the American society during the 1960's. I believe his speech in 1967, "Beyond Vietnam- A Time to Break Silence" advances the cause of African Americans during the Civil Rights Movement because Dr. King is challenging the logic that both black and white Americans fight in war together but they can not sit in the same seat in the same class together in school. As well as challenging the movement of peace by speaking for the weak or the voiceless.…

    • 693 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Martin Luther King Rhetorical Analysis
    • 373 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Martin Luther King Rhetorical Analysis

    Martin Luther King, Jr. gave us many examples of how to handle conflict without physically hurting someone. There are ways I handle conflicts without being violent. I will tell you about them.…

    • 373 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King Jr
    • 1213 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King Jr

    Throughout our nation’s history, African Americans are consistently and involuntary forced to stand as an omnipresent representation of inferiority. Starved of a Negro consensus, white men—mostly European—began persecuting them and exalting their supposed mediocrity. Hundreds of years after this tenet hit America, an exceedingly astute preacher named Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. exemplified himself as the backbone of the Civil Rights Movement in the mid-1900s. Notwithstanding the omnipotent fear plaguing the Negro community, Dr. King apprehends the vindictiveness of classifying the black men and women as inferior and engenders a movement. One hundred years after the passing of the Emancipation Proclamation, Negros still encountered perilous suppression.…

    • 1213 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Martin Luther King Rhetorical Analysis
    • 829 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Martin Luther King Rhetorical Analysis

    With the use of logos appeal, Martin Luther King Jr. logically proves each point he makes objectively and uses indisputable evidence to support his statements. Dr. King went to great lengths to educate his people in the benefit of non-violent aggression. He chose to respond to hard and brutal acts with non-violent resistance. In his letter, he tries to support the fact that they had no alternative except to prepare for direct action. However, Martin Luther King, Jr. has several logical examples of evidence to prove his point. He states, “In any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: collection of the facts to determine whether injustices exist; negotiation; self purification; and direct action. We have gone through all these steps…

    • 829 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics