In this way, he appeals to the emotions of the audience and challenges the logic behind an unnecessary war. His use of diction and imagery arouses anger while increasing his credibility since he criticizes the unjust war he describes. Favorite Quote:Make as many as mistakes as you want, just don't make the same mistake. Favorite Quote:What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. He also affirms that people have better options and that the idea of war, despite that it sounds patriotic is basically inhuman. By continuing well assume you board with our, Rhetorical Analysis on Kennedy Steel Speech, Rhetorical Analysis of The Mexican-American and the Chruch Speech, Analysis of Dr. Martin Luther Kings I Have a Dream Speech, Rhetorical Devices in Bill Clintons Speech at the Democratic Convention, Speech Analysis: Speech in the Virginia Convention, How to secure financing as a small business owner, How to Make a Business Plan for Any Business, 7 Crucial Macro Environment Factors to Include in Your Analysis, Macro Environment Examples in the Real World. He says we were taking the black young men who had been crippled by our society and sending them eight thousand miles away to guarantee liberties in Southeast Asia which they had not found in southwest Georgia and East Harlem. King uses this statement to point out the inconsistency with America trying to establish freedom far away before establishing freedom on their own home soil. By repeating the phrase, "for the sake," he creates a rhythmic flow that causes his audience to be more receptive to his idea. Widely known for his work in the Civil Rights Movement, Martin Luther King Jr eventually also gained momentum in the anti-war movement against the war in Vietnam. Martin Luther King Jr proves to all throughout his speech Beyond Vietnam --- A Time to Break Silence that the Vietnam war was unjust by his use of emotional diction, the allusion of Jim crow, and repetition. By repeating the phrase, for the sake, he creates a rhythmic flow that causes his audience to be more receptive to his idea. King is effectively able to convey his point about his topic by using rhetorical devices such as logos, ethos, pathos. The Speech Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence by Martin Luther King, Jr: Rhetorical Analysis. "The Fine Art of Baloney Detection" Essay by Carl Sagan. Rhetorical Analysis Of Beyond Vietnam A Time To Break Silence analytical essay Martin Luther King Jr.'s speech "Beyond Vietnam- A Time to Break Silence", he used a variety of techniques to reinforce the argument and persuasiveness of the American involvement in the Vietnam War. The Speech Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence by Martin Luther King, Jr: Rhetorical Analysis. King calms the African Americans who are being oppressed by using the words, this situation can and will be changed. and Let us not wallow in the valley of despair. which gives them hope that there will be a new day when a change will take place. Dr. King says, Even when pressed by the demands of inner truth, men do not easily assume the task of opposing their governments policy, especially in time of war (3). In a similar light, King addressed the speech I have a dream to a peaceful mass gathering in Washington asking for change. The war with Vietnam was just as unjust as unnecessary. To this day, Kings speech remains one of the most famous and influential speeches in, Martin Luther King was a determined activist for equality for all. He states, Many people have questioned me about the wisdom of my path. assume youre on board with our, Martin Luther King Jr. vs. President Obama, https://graduateway.com/rhetorical-analysis-of-martin-luther-kings-beyond-vietnam-a-time-to-break-silence/. This lecture became an explosive example of colorful language and visual examples that expanded the idea of rhetoric. To construct a clear and strong picture and show how condemnable the war exercises in Vietnam were, King compared it with an arena of gladiators which even if it amuses and engages, is something absolutely animal and barbaric. In case you can't find a relevant example, our professional writers are ready StudyCorgi, 4 May 2022, studycorgi.com/the-speech-beyond-vietnam-a-time-to-break-silence-by-martin-luther-king-jr-rhetorical-analysis/. Perhaps the most convincing part of the speech is the emotional appeal. Apart from the use of ethos, pathos and logos in his speech, he builds a rock solid argument by involving religious figures and facts from history and philosophy. On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr gave us one of one of the most rhetorically moving speeches ever given. In conclusion, Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Beyond Vietnam" speech was a powerful and eloquent call for peace and justice. King said, the war was doing far more than devastating the hopes of the poor at homeWe were taking the black young men who had been crippled by our society and sending them eight thousand miles away to guarantee liberties in Southeast Asia which they had not found in southwest Georgia and East Harlem. War was an inhuman and barbaric exercise and America's participation was not in human interest. Martin Luther King (MLK) was an activist and a minister who claimed that the war on Vietnam was wrong. In other words, the resources were used for the soldiers, yet the poor still needed them just as so. The image of death, as powerful as it is, becomes amplified when Martin Luther King associates the injustices of segregation with the Vietnam war. It encompasses all humanity and not just America. Through his use of imagery, diction, and parallel structure, Martin Luther King Jr associates the war in Vietnam with injustice in his famous speech, "Beyond Vietnam - A Time to Break Silence.". During the final years of . Rodriguez 1 Melanie Rodriguez Ms. Jimenez Composition II 20 October, 2017 A Rhetorical Analysis of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Beyond Vietnam" "Never be afraid to do what's right. Overall, the effective use of various rhetorical strategies is what makes the speech so valuable. He does this when he writes, "It was a step that rocked the richest, most powerful nation to its foundations" (King 96-97). Kings letter is a response to those in the church who have critizied him, Yet, instead of apologizing, he stands strong for his cause and turns it around on them stating his own critisim. He notes how essential it is to break silence before all hope is lost. 663 Words; Encompassed within this quote is pathos because the harsh accusation leads the reader to think poorly of the government while pitying the poor. Kings dialect showed the audience civil right issues, involving many rhetorical strategies using ethos, logos, and pathos, to a racially tempered crowd whom he viewed as different, but not equal. In Dr. Martin Luther King's speech "Beyond VietnamA Time to Break Silence" (1967), Dr. King asserts that the war in Vietnam is totally immoral and has far reaching negative implications not only for Vietnam, but for The United States and the rest of the World as well. King uses personal anecdotes, elaborate word choice, and reliable facts to persuade his audience of the injustice of the war. In his speech addressed to the laymen and clergy at Riverside Church he used pathos, logos, imagery, and an argument shift to list the reasons why America should withdraw their troops, and to create sympathy within his audience. Not to mention, many young people protested because they were the ones being drafted while others were against the war because the anti-war movement grew increasingly popular among the counterculture and drug culture in American society and. He is using historical facts to create a parallel between the current situation and the past. On April 4, 1967, Martin Luther King, Jr., an enormously influential civil rights activist, conveys his indignant and hopeful thoughts regarding the Vietnam War, in his speech "Beyond Vietnam," by utilizing biblical allusion, anaphora, and use of diction. Dr. King genuinely believes that the war is in direct opposition to the teachings of Christ and therefore the church must speak out in a united voice against it. While pathos elicits an emotional response from the audience to make them more accepting of Kings ideas, repetition structures the speech and emphasizes key ideas for the audience to take away from listening. On April 4, 1967 Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a speech named, Beyond Vietnam- A Time to Break Silence addressing the Vietnam War. The third section is King's call for change. The problems being faced by either America or Vietnam were never going to be solved through rifles but through peaceful and nonviolent action. Moreover, Martin Luther King Jr meticulously chooses specific words that carry with them a negative connotation that helps associate the Vietnamese war with injustice. King Jr makes a strong statement against war and his speech successfully evokes compassion and sympathy for the poor and the weak in both Vietnam and America. Apart from highlighting the wicked nature of the war, King Jr 's speech also sets the urgency for protest. However, a very powerful speech, in manys opinion, is the Ive Been to the Mountaintop speech, given shortly before Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. [emailprotected] Issues have been resolved because now the draft is less common because more people volunteer for war so the poor are not forced. Through his compelling arguments and moral vision, King inspired many people to join the movement against the Vietnam War and to work for a more just and peaceful world. A few lines after, King writes about the injustice the African-American community has faced, by stating, We were taking the black young men who had been crippled by our society and sending them eight thousand miles away to guarantee liberties in Southeast Asia which they had not found in southwest Georgia and East Harlem. To further show to the audience how his community has been suffering from the war, he uses a comparison statement between the facts to illustrate how freedom has been hard to attain. The line, For the sake of those boys, for the sake of this government, for the sake of the hundreds of thousands trembling under our violence, I cannot be silent, demonstrates how King uses parallelism. He evaluates the psychological as well as social, political and economic implications of America's participation in Vietnam war. There were many reasons why so many Americans were against the war. In this way, he personifies war as a demon that consumes people's lives and a nation's valuable resources which would otherwise be happy if it was not being ruined by bombs and bullets. If you have a suggestion about this website or are experiencing a problem with it, or if you need to report abuse on the site, please let us know. Supplemental understanding of the topic including revealing main issues described in the particular theme; However, his words while they aim to bring the pain of the Vietnamese alive before the audience also include a request that a progressive nation should stand with humanity and not lose control of its feelings. He also makes an emotional plea by vividly describing the conditions in Vietnam. This essay was written by a fellow student. In the speech, Martin Luther King specifically indicates that America needs to end the war with Vietnam. Despite having a shining moment of experiments, hopes, [and] new beginnings during the struggle for human rights, King illustrates the Vietnam War as broken and eviscerate and a political plaything of a society gone mad on war. Copyright 2023 IPL.org All rights reserved. StudyCorgi. In addition, his use of parallelism allows him to appeal to his audience's pity for the oppressed in order for him to express his call to action, a call for activism that goes beyond Vietnam. In his argument, King mounts a multi-pronged attack on America's participation in the Vietnam war and also gains people's sympathy for the Vietnamese. We use cookies to give you the best experience possible. Please note that while we value your input, we cannot respond to every message. In multiple paragraphs of his speech, King effectively appeals to emotion by using personal anecdotes that involve him speaking to people of poverty directly. In his essay, Dr. King uses the metaphor America has given the Negro people a bad check, which came back marked insufficient funds (46). This convinces the reader to fully consider how the war has brought detrimental consequences, and through Kings diction, he is capable of convincing his audience to, When speaking about how the war had initially seem to have brought opportunities, he says, Then came the buildup in Vietnam, and I watched this program broken and eviscerated, as if it were some idle political plaything of a society gone mad on war, and I knew that America would never invest the necessary funds or energies in rehabilitation of its poor. Evidently, the program for the poor was meant to be used in helping the poor, but as soon as the funds were directed to the Vietnam War, resources were no longer cast in their direction. He includes various perspectives and addresses several counterarguments with the intention to prove the futility of war as a tool to address social, economic and political problems. Additionally, by constructing an optimistic view on the civil rights situation during that time period and immediately refuting it, King is able to establish a strong sense of, Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most influential leaders of his time and played a crucial role in the African-American Civil Rights movement. Additionally, when King claims that all this horror is in the name of America, he appeals to his audience's anger, leading them to believe that it is time for them to break silence on the fact that the United States became involved in an unjust war in Vietnam. At last the paper discusses and assesses how to what an extent Kings dream came true with self-elected sources as backrest for the asses. You are free to use it to write your own assignment, however you must reference it properly. In his speech on the meaninglessness of the Vietnam war and to persuade the audience to listen to its own conscience rather than to conform to the idea of war in the name of patriotism, King Jr draws from the realms of economy, society, polity as well as religion and philosophy. Likewise, during this time period, America [put little effort into] rehabilitation of its poor creating an even harder life for them (Source A). The war lasted from 1955 to 1975.The nation as a whole began to uproar over the war and the major consequences of the war. StudyCorgi. Because of his crowd of mix races King made sure to make his speech imploring to all no matter what the race that they may be. King argues that all people are created equal and directly challenged the outdated and abhorrent views that upheld the false flag of racial superiority among White Americans. The war according to King Jr. is nothing more than a political game played for the sake of fun and ego. And, to argue that King 's most radical days were never fulfilled; that his next campaign was to confront the president over the Vietnam War and economic disparity, a direct confrontation with a president over an immoral war state Hill and Wang from the book review. Many people believed that America had no reason to interfere, Dr. King being one of those people. He picks from history as well as politics and also supports his choices with philosophical wisdom. Rhetorical Analysis of MLK's Speech "Beyond Vietnam", Key Ingredients to Being a Successful Student. He was in the process of proving that it wasn 't a money issue in America, but an equality issue. - M.J. In the article "Beyond Vietnam", Martin Luther argues that war in Vietnam has far reaching affects that not only rapaciously take away America's resources, but make an immediate impact on African Americans perspective on the civil rights movement. So, what America is doing to other nations like Vietnam also matters. You may use it as a guide or sample for Which of your works would you like to tell your friends about? King, Martin Luther Jr. Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence. Church Meeting, 1967, Riverside Church, New York City. Ironic elements are evident in abundance throughout Kings speech which elicit an comical tone and draws on the reality of the war. King uses this metaphor to emphasize the treatment of African Americans in America. Correct writing styles (it is advised to use correct citations) However, he is about to arm them with many valid reasons why it is crucial for them to join the opposition. Favorite Quote:Life is like a box of cheese and flower petal sometimes it's soft and sweet, sometimes it just plain stinks. King builds an effective argument by using imagery, noting the irony associated with the war, and pointing out the contrast between America before the war and America then. Logos appeals to reasoning and argumentation by applying statistics, factual evidence, and data. This demonstrates to the audience that he realizes it is going to be difficult for them to speak out in opposition of the government. Through the emotional, destruction of America's effort to support the war, King's powerful use of diction talking the loss of desire and new lives causes the audience to feel sorry for the poor of America. Also, if you have a comment about a particular piece of work on this website, please go to the page where that work is displayed and post a comment on it. Therefore, to remain silent would truly be betrayal. Overall, Martin Luther King Jr. eloquently argues against the United States involvement in Vietnam through his use of parallelism, diction, and imagery. We use cookies to give you the best experience possible. The persuasive techniques utilized by King Jr are aimed at making people think over the outcomes of Vietnam war and if it was not against Americas integrity. King is effectively able to convey his point about his topic by using rhetorical devices such as logos, ethos, pathos. All they wanted was to save the soul of America (King, Beyond, 42). So far we may have killed a million of them, mostly children (King). Likewise, the image of men, both black and while, "in brutal solidarity burning the huts of a poor village," helps establish the war in Vietnam as a complete disaster and atrocity. To start, Dr. Kings use of metaphors allows his audience to understand his viewpoint better. In addition, his use of parallelism allows him to appeal to his audiences pity for the oppressed in order for him to express his call to action, a call for activism that goes beyond Vietnam. When he argues that the war's immoral nature should be "incandescently clear," he implies to his audience that those who do not voice their opinion against the war are not concerned for, "the integrity and life of America.". He wants them to go back to their churches and spread the message. The author is using pathos as one of his central rhetorical strategies. to help you write a unique paper. The author here is using statistics to present the horrifying picture of the Vietnam War. For instance, he starts by stating the effects of the Vietnam War forced the American poverty program: "experiments, hopes, new beginnings." In the 1967 speech, Beyond Vietnam, the author, activist Martin Luther King jr, states reasons why America needs to end their involvement in the Vietnam War. (These links will automatically appear in your email.). In a solemn tone, he talks about their crops being destroyed and their water being poisoned, presumably referring to Agent Orange. Later in his speech, King writes again using an advanced vocabulary to reinforce his academic background with, America would never be free or saved from itself until the descendants of its slaves were loosed completely from the shackles they still wear. By using the word shackles, the reader can easily create a vivid image in their mind of how restricted the poor must feel, and whether it be physically or mentally, they can understand how much the restrained are longing for a sense of freedom.