Malcolm X And Martin Luther King Use Of Rhetorical Strategy

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Martin Luther King Jr. professed peace and brotherhood between people of all races. At the time when Malcolm X delivered his “Ballot or the Bullet” speech, he was an orthodox Muslim preaching the equality of all races, but that blacks must help themselves. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. on August 28, 1963. Six months and one day later, in Washington Heights, Malcolm X warned his audience of their dwindling abilities to gain freedom; that they needed to use the power of their votes in order to gain equality. These two men had a similar goal in their minds, but the paths in which they would each preach to attain those goals in their speeches varied with great distinction. While the content and underlying ideas of the speeches may have inconsistencies with each other, they both use many common literary devices and rhetorical strategy.
King is best known for his peaceful protests and his non-violence movement. The underlying purpose of the “I Have a Dream” speech is to compel his audience to strive for equality among blacks and whites. King had two audiences in mind; he gave his speech during the march on Washington of that year where he had thousands of people listening to him as he addressed the masses crowding the Washington memorial and the Lincoln Memorial. King knew, however, that people everywhere would be listening, mostly black, but also whites. He had attained a status in society that made people listen to him. Malcolm X was delivering his speech during the height of the black suffrage movement. He was a key player in gathering support by his audiences of primarily black people to whom he spoke. This is important when understanding some of the language that both Malcolm X and King used in their speeches.
The way in which King spoke directly reflects his acknowledgement of his audience. Throughout his speech, King created a sense of comr...