Martin luther king paper - Essay Example

LB 715 Martin Luther King Paper Introduction After his election as the president of Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Martin Luther King, at 28 years, asserted the mission to save the soul of America. Luther believed that the treatment needed for America was analogous to the healing provided by Karen Horney’s cure of the neurotic (Horney 1-4). However, Martin Luther used demonstrations, protests, and marches as a way of exposing America’s ills instead of letting shame and guilt consume her.

Luther specifically offered individuated culture as the course towards healing and wholesomeness. Two highly regarded achievements by Luther still remain and are Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. These victories were achieved a year and two years after Luther’s electrifying speech of 1963 delivered from Lincoln Memorial. Advancement towards racial equity was also evident for Africa Americans by 1968. With such historical changes within America’s after Luther’s great speech, this paper explores ethos and logos as use in his speech moving people to embrace change.

Logos Logos rhetoric is used in the speech excellently and is demonstrated through high-level reasoning and logical plea. Everything that Luther says is justified like the generalization concerning segregation and discrimination. For instance, the speech begins by stating America’s history followed by an explanation of the reasons why there was a meeting. According to Luther, a time had come when God’s children would enjoy opened “.doors of opportunity…” Luther also explained clearly the reason for holding the meeting at Washington as intended at “…cash a check…”(852) This meant that all men, black and white, would be certain of alienable rights, pursuit of happiness, and liberty and this words aligned with independence declaration.

Luther analogously presented the way thing were during the independence days and the way things would be in coming days. He cites that “We cannot be satisfied …” (854) walking unaccompanied, with exhausted bodies, or with children robbed their self-esteem and their adulthood exposed.PathosOne great usage of pathos was Luther himself. He was an unbearable symbol of American the wrongs in America’s culture and the Americans themselves resulting to his idolization and coronation with a national holiday in Luther’s name.

Such an honor indicates the extent to which Americans trusted Luther and supported his call to protest, demonstrate, and march in search of an America free from racism, materialism. The speech also uses intense visual imagery that inculcating resentment at discrimination against African American group by defining a comparison with broken promise demonstrated by “…a bad cheque…” (852) come back marked insufficient funds” while offering a redemption symbol. Luther also uses the word “we” intentionally to indicate the extent of society segmentation and their togetherness in facing difficulties and this appeals to most of the people gathered at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963.

In addition, the use of “we” demonstrates a struggle and impending optimism on the expected outcome. In order to invoke unity and sense of pride to the groups facing similar difficulties, Luther uses the American dream and Constitution. This worked well in assuring those gathered at the memorial a common ground for unity to fight what was unjust.Conclusion I believe that Luther successfully used rhetoric devices of pathos and logos in electrifying the people to have the government grant them the rights to vote and civil rights like any white American.

He uses specific examples to ground his argument and metaphors to demonstrate contrasting concepts. In the end, he wins the trust of the people who even after his death carryon with his work against racism and discrimination.Works CitedHorney, K. The Neurotic Personality of Our Time. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1937.Little BrownNorton Reader