Martin Luther King Jr. delivered the iconic "I Have a Dream" speech on August 28, 1963 in Washington D.C. during the March on Washington. He spoke to an audience of 250,000 people and a national television and radio audience, aiming to encourage hope and equality for African Americans. King delivered the speech to dramatize the shameful conditions of segregation and discrimination. He used repetition of phrases like "I have a dream" and "let freedom ring" to engage the audience and declare his vision of a united country with freedom and equality for all.

1. ‘I Have a dream’ Speech analysis
M M Mozahid Uddin
BSS (hon’s),MSS,JnU
Lecturer
Journalism and Mass Communication,
Northern University of Business and
Technology Khulna
PublicCommunication
Code: JMC 0324

2. S.O.A.P.S. Tone Document Analysis:
Tone
Purpose
Audience
Occasion
speaker

3. Speaker
 Martin Luther King is the speaker of the, “I Have a Dream
Speech.”
Background:
 Martin was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta,
 Georgia Martin was a Baptist minister and civil rights activist
 Martin played a pivotal role in ending the legal segregation of
African- American citizens in the South and other areas of the
nation.
 Martin received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 among several
other honors because of his mighty acts

4. Occasion:
 Martin Luther King delivered his, “I Have a Dream Speech” on
August 28, 1963 at the Memorial in Washington D.C. , during the
March on Washington.

5. Audience:
 The, “I Have a Dream Speech” was delivered to an estimated
group of 250,000 people. Martin Luther King’s speech was
broadcasted on national television and radio companies, this
particular speech overall was viewed by millions. Martin Luther
King’s words were aimed towards all Americans, and continues
to be passed down from generation to generation.
 Blacks: The speech gave a message of hope with the promise
that the goals of freedom and equality were likely to be
achieved.
 Whites: The speech connected the hope of African Americans,
placing them squarely in the context of the American dream.

6. Purpose
 The purpose of the, “I Have a Dream” Speech was to encourage
hope and equality, in a nation of inequality. Martin Luther states,
“the life of the black man is still sadly crippled by the
manacles of segregation and the chains of
discrimination.” He also states that, “ we’ve come here
today to dramatize a shameful condition.”

7. Subject
 The subject of this speech revolves specifically around freedom.
Martin Luther King, wanted to ensure freedom amongst all people,
so that diverse people could all eventually come together as one,
and walk as one. He wanted to imply a change into the world, and to
significantly make it a better place for all.
 “And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring, when we
let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and
every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's
children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants
and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the
old Negro spiritual:
 Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are
free at last!3

8. Represents hurt from experience.
 Tone:Martin Luther King’s tone is very powerful throughout the,
“I Have a Dream Speech.” He is very confident and states his
desires with much authority, experience, and emotion. Each of
the listed tones contribute to the style of this persuasive
inspirational speech. Represents hurt from experience.

9. Literary Devices:
 Martin successfully combined the use of repetition to leave a
powerful lasting impact on his audience, as well as provide a
convincing tone.
 “Now is the time” is a quote that was repeated four times in the
fourth paragraph to emphasize the immediate action of his audience.
This phrase is used to encourage the blacks to rise up and act with
urgency.
 “I have a dream” was repeated many times as well. Martin
includes parallelism and repetition to engage the audience’s
attention, while also signaling that all of his dreams are equally
important.
 Lastly, “let freedom ring” was repeated to declare to the
audience that that he is fighting for the country to be equal as a
whole, not just one group of people.

10. Ethos, Pathos, and Logos:
 Ethos: Martin Luther King uses the Declaration of Independence to
add authority. HE states, “unalienable Rights” of “Life, Liberty and
the pursuit of happiness” Martin sets up his own credibility through
the constitution.
 Pathos: He strikes emotional values of both black and white people.
‘“And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it
together.” (Isaiah) He is using the bible to provide a belief and faith in
what he is saying is truth, and that all people will stand together.
 Logos: “America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check
which has come back marked “insufficient funds” This is logic
because everyone understands money and that the listener is able to
relate to being handed a bad check.

11. Conclusion:
 The “I Have a Dream Speech” is a iconic speech in our
history. It was very powerful and led to people envisioning the
future. The speech had the power to move millions and
persuaded people to fight for their freedom. It resolved many
issues that out nation was facing such as segregation and
freedom.

12. “Free At Last!”

13. THANK YOU for enduring
me
Have a Nice day!
-M M Mozahid Uddin