“I Have a Dream,” Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address” and Kennedy’s inaugural address
Which of the three is the most metaphorical in its content? In other words, which makes the most use of figurative language?
Answers
Explanation:
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s most memorable speech from his life as an activist, “I HAVE A DREAM,” was delivered August 28, 1963, before more than 200,000 people in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. The speech was part of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The speech not only helped to galvanize the already growing civil rights movement across the country at the time, it also became one of the most influential and inspirational pieces of rhetoric in American history.
Remarkably, midway through his delivery, King suspended his pre-scripted text and began to improvise; what resulted was the speech’s most recognizable section, the passage in which the words “I have a dream” are passionately repeated. Indeed, King’s background as a Baptist preacher in the South instilled in him a talent for improvisation as a speaker and the skill to frame the urgency of the moment.
What is also apparent in “I Have Dream” is King’s deep commitment to scholarship (he earned a Ph.D. from Boston University). King was clearly well-versed in both American history and religious scripture, and he seamlessly weaves references to both into the fabric of his oration. Overall, “I Have a Dream” can be held up as a masterful creative work in itself; its dramatic structure coupled with its image-laden content render a remarkably moving piece of American