A Lesson on Freedom and Rhetoric

I almost forgot it was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day today. Brent had to work, and my day is as usual: entertaining myself, helping other people, doing chores and running errands (usually in that order). But I but when I realized what day it was I couldn't help but share my strong feelings about this day and this man and, mostly, his famous speech.

I love the "I Have a Dream" speech. Most people remember the "I have a dream. . ." part, but there is so much more to it than that. If you have never heard the entire speech, you must. Here is your opportunity:

A year ago this week, I taught my students about rhetoric in order to find deeper meaning in this speech. Rhetoric is the art of using language to effectively persuade. Even though many people learn the term rhetoric and rhetorical tools (techniques used to persuade) in high school, I never learned about them until I worked at the BYU Writing Center. Since then, I sometimes find myself picking out rhetorical tools while reading a talk from General Conference or an op/ed article in the newspaper.

So here's your English lesson for the day. Watch Dr. King's speech and think about what rhetorical tools he uses and what effect they have on you. If you have trouble identifying the rhetorical tools, here are some to get you started:

• Repetition: What words or phrases does Dr. King repeat over and over again? What effect does this have? 
• Metaphor: What comparisons does he make to freedom and injustice? What added meaning does this bring to these ideas?
• Allusion: Dr. King references religion, sports, history and music. How does this add or detract from his message?

Let me know what you think/ how you felt about the speech. I feel moved every time.