This scientific work aims to study the speech called “I have a dream” by Martin Luther King Jr. This is a public speech by an American activist who advocated for the rights of the black population in the United States of America. It was delivered during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963. This inspiring speech focused on granting equal rights to the black population with white Americans and ending the oppression of the rights of the colored community. This directly concerned all spheres of life, including civil and economic rights, but most of all, Martin Luther King Jr. focused on ending racism in the camp.
That day, most of the audience that arrived to listen to the speech were representatives of the black community. However, when viewing it, it was possible to notice a fairly large number of white Americans who also supported the cessation of discrimination and disrespectful attitude towards another race (Rare Facts, n.d.). This is an indicator of a positive trend, which was a representation that more and more people wanted to overcome the existing situation in the country.
The style of delivering the main idea plays a big role in its effectiveness and the ability of people to correctly perceive its main points. In this case, the approach used can be called extemporaneous, which is most suitable for this kind of performance. It consists of the presentation of speech when using support with the main thoughts to trigger the memory of the speaker. Research showed that “its advantage is that the speakers are able to speak in a more conversational tone by letting the cards guide them, but not dictate every word they say” (“Methods of speech delivery’, n.d., para. 12). Hence, listening to Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech was very persuasive and wholesome. Moreover, the video shows the full impact of the speaker, and in the tone and sequence of the speech, it is clear how much this problem worries the author and that the man is ready to do anything to make his dream a reality.
Therefore, it can be concluded that Martin Luther King Jr. used such a style extemporaneous in his speech. It consists in relying on notes to awaken the main thoughts in memory. This allows you to increase the engagement and loyalty of the audience of that time. By giving examples from life, the speaker also contributed to the formation of empathy and motivation to change the situation of racism in the country. Moreover, when using this style, the speaker has the opportunity to use a more conversational style, which unites society more for the introduction of changes.
References
Methods of speech delivery. (n.d.). Lumen.
Rare Facts. (n.d.). I have a dream speech by Martin Luther King. Jr [Video]. YouTube.