On April 4, 1967, Martin Luther King delivered his first major public statement against the Vietnam War, entitled "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break the Silence." Addressing a crowd of 3,000 at Riverside Church in New York City, King condemned the war as anti-democratic, impractical, and unjust. It is why while he attacks America's intervention in Vietnam on the one hand, on the other he brings people's attention towards the other side of life where America can become a beacon of hope and peace for the entire world including Vietnam. The image of death, as powerful as it is, becomes amplified when Martin Luther King associates the injustices of segregation with the Vietnam war. The irony is explicit in Kings words that the war is just an attempt to cover and hide the more pressing issues before America. King wants his audience. You are free to use it to write your own assignment, however you must reference it properly. Martin Luther King Jr. was a social activist that led the Civil Rights Movement, and other movements until his assassination in 1968. The Speech "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence" by Martin Luther Vietnam War Rhetorical Analysis - 896 Words | Bartleby Martin Luther King Jr is an African American preacher and civil rights activist that along with every other African American male and female in 1976 was waging a war in America for their not-so-natural born rights. Then the segregation of African Americans and White Americans started. 2022. Not only were they fighting for their own rights in 1976, but they were sending away the son, husbands, brothers of other Americans thousands of miles away to the country of Vietnam to fight an unjust war for the rights of the people in Southeast Asia. On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr gave us one of one of the most rhetorically moving speeches ever given. Dr. Kings purpose is to make the church leaders he is speaking to aware that the time has come for them to speak out loudly in opposition of the war in Vietnam. He does this by appealing to certain issues the public see as important, using irony, and using diction and tone in persuasive ways. He uses metaphorical imagery, powerful diction,and symbolism to create an impact on the audience. Rhetorical Devices In Beyond Vietnam Speech | ipl.org StudyCorgi. Instead, King chooses to use facts to show what an illness war is. This is a logical fact with which no one can argue. America is overlooking its own poor and pouring resources into a war which does not offer any political, economic or social advantage. He is using vivid language to describe the casualties; however, they are also supported by evidence, as he is using precise numbers in this part of the speech. Rhetorical Analysis In King's Beyond Vietnam He strengthens his argument through his use of rhetorical questions and an anecdote. Beyond Vietnam A Time To Break Silence Analysis - Bartleby Throughout the first paragraph of Kings speech, he used emotional diction with words such as struggle, poverty, and poor to prove that the war in Vietnam was bringing down the Americans and their families fighting overseas. 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. 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/. 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. Choose skilled expert on your subject and get original paper with free plagiarism So far we may have killed a million of them, mostly children (King). 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. 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. The author is using pathos as one of his central rhetorical strategies. To get his point through and make the meaning clear, King uses phrases like break the silence of the night, a vocation of agony, based upon the mandates of conscience, deeper level of awareness. Moreover, Martin Luther King states that after the French were defeated, it looked as if independence and land reform would come again through the Geneva Agreement (King). The American intervention came at a time when the Vietnamese were expecting freedom and peaceful life and it came in a manner that was even devastating compared to the French occupation. Rhetorical Analysis In King's Beyond Vietnam. StudyCorgi, 4 May 2022, studycorgi.com/the-speech-beyond-vietnam-a-time-to-break-silence-by-martin-luther-king-jr-rhetorical-analysis/. King proved this partly with the quote, America would never invest the necessary funds in the rehabilitation of its poor so long as adventures like Vietnam continued (King, Beyond, 9). To further strengthen, the credibility of his argument and question the morality behind the war, he says, Since I am a preacher by calling, I suppose it is not surprising that I have seven major reasons for bringing Vietnam into the field of my moral vision. In conclusion, Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Beyond Vietnam" speech was a powerful and eloquent call for peace and justice. Apart from drawing a parallel between the situation in Vietnam and America, he shows neither stood to gain from it. While his I Have a Dream speech is considered his best one, his other speeches too offer a glimpse of his powerful rhetoric and his art of persuasion. More importantly, King states that, the poor has been manipulated into believing a type of reality that simply isnt accurate or fair on their part. Thank you for sharing this page with a friend! Analyzes how john kerry's "beyond vietnam- a time to break silence" by martin luther king jr. uses rhetorical devices that emphasize the importance and meaning of his speech. Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King Beyond Vietnam 534 Words | 3 Pages In 1967, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his speech "Beyond Vietnam-A Time to Break Silence." In the speech, King argues against American involvement in the Vietnam War and explains why he cannot remain silent. Encompassed within this quote is pathos because the harsh accusation leads the reader to think poorly of the government while pitying the poor. In a sense, he dives right into the idea that it is unrealistic for them to find freedom in a region halfway across the world when they couldnt even find it in America. This part of the speech is evoking violent images of death that would affect the emotions of the audience. Don't let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game. Society's punishments are small wounds compared to the wounds we inflict on our soul when we look the other way." Many of us have felt the anxiety to speak up against what we know is wrong. "Beyond Vietnam-A Time to Break Silence" is an article written by Martin Luther King Jr himself. 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. Overall, Martin Luther King Jr. eloquently argues against the United States involvement in Vietnam through his use of parallelism, diction, and imagery. Rhetorical Analysis of MLK's Speech "Beyond Vietnam" - Teen Ink The third section is King's call for change. To achieve this, he used rhetorical strategies such as appeal to pathos and repetition. This is an obvious and extremely effective argument, especially among a group of Christian church leaders. He calls the situation some idle political plaything of a society gone mad on war. Favorite Quote:Make as many as mistakes as you want, just don't make the same mistake. 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. First of all, King makes his point clear by appealing to the reader's common sense, beliefs and values (logos). Moreover, Martin Luther King Jr meticulously chooses specific words that carry with them a negative connotation that helps associate the Vietnamese war with injustice. By showing his own emotions, King inspires compassion in the. Rhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther King's Beyond Vietnam He does it to engage peoples imagination and to awaken their consciences. The paper also analyzes Martin Luther Kings speech I have a dream with the purpose of rhetorical devices and how well they have been used in the speech, and how Afro-Americans conditions have been at the time. In "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence," Martin Luther King, a civil rights leader, uses his voice to bring attention to the injustices of race. Please enter the email address that you use to login to TeenInk.com, and we'll email you instructions to reset your password. For example, this quote personifies war as being an enemy. StudyCorgi. King successfully brings out the irony behind the war through the use of figurative speech and plenty of imagery to paint a picture of destruction and doom in Vietnam. He attempts to call upon sympathy within the audience by using highly expressive language. King is effectively able to convey his point about his topic by using rhetorical devices such as logos, ethos, pathos. Despite criticism from speaking out about things other than civil rights, King uses syntax, rhetorical strategies, and appeals to . 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.". King also links the issue to the question of Americas integrity. Retrieved from https://graduateway.com/rhetorical-analysis-of-martin-luther-kings-beyond-vietnam-a-time-to-break-silence/, Rhetorical of Analysis of Martin Luther Kings, I Have a Dream Speech, Break, Break, Break by Alfred Lord Tennyson Analysis, Martin Luther King Jr.: A Civil Rights Activist Who Changed, Rhetorical Analysis Martin Luther King Jr. versus Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr. Rhetorical Mlk Speech "Beyond Vietnam". He efficiently uses the anecdote to tell how he has spoken with young men, telling them how violence will not solve their problems. Martin Luther King Jr. disagreed with the way the war was being handled, and thought nonviolent demonstrations would be more efficient. (These links will automatically appear in your email.). How Does Martin Luther King Use Rhetorical Devices He wants them to go back to their churches and spread the message. Moreover, this set of diction allows King to logically state that he can not continue to fight on behalf of the oppressed if he himself doesnt address their oppressor, the U.S. government. 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. Please note that while we value your input, we cannot respond to every message. We try to make TeenInk.com the best site it can be, and we take your feedback very seriously. For instance, he does when he depicts the, "Negro and white boys on TV screens as they kill and die together for a nation that has been unable to seat them together in the same schools." Favorite Quote:What doesn't kill you only makes you stronger. Though disappointed, King still loves the church. In 1967, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his speech Beyond Vietnam-A Time to Break Silence. In the speech, King argues against American involvement in the Vietnam War and explains why he cannot remain silent. Martin Luther King Jr. applies imagery throughout his speech in order to illustrate the horrors of the war to arouse anger at its atrocities and injustice. He repeatedly stresses upon breaking the silence because in this situation being silent was a sin. Martin Luther King notes that we have been repeatedly faced with the cruel irony of watching Negro and white boys on TV screens as they kill and die together for a nation that has been unable to seat them together in the same schools (King). Public Speech. Dr. King's purpose is to make the church leaders he is speaking to aware that Graduateway.com is owned and operated by Radioplus Experts Ltd 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. All rights reserved. His speech emphasizes at transitioning from war to peace and from violence to a nonviolent and peaceful society. 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. Martin Luther King was a determined activist for equality for all. To make his claims stand out and have a deeper impact, he uses instances from Vietnamese history to show the level of injustice faced by its people how war has destabilized them. Martin Luther King Jr says in his first paragraph that,"It seemed as if there was a real promise fr hope to draw men and skills and money like some demonic destruction suction tube." His audience at Riverside Church, likely familiar with his Civil Rights work, would most likely than view him with more credibility because they too could sympathize to an injustice done by the American government. 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. The Braveheart speech, while famous for being powerful, is very different from another powerful speech, the one from Dead Poets Society. Manacles of discrimination, Lonely island of poverty and Chains of discrimination paint a bleak picture of life as a minority in America, and contrasts phrases such as Bright day of justice and Sacred obligation which symbolize freedom. Introduction Martin Luther King, Jr in his speech "Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence" argued that US foreign policy was hypocritical when compared to the inequality present in the United States. "The Speech Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence by Martin Luther King, Jr: Rhetorical Analysis." What Is the Macro Environment in Business Analysis? Correct writing styles (it is advised to use correct citations) The audience felt empowered by the sentence alone. To start, Dr. Kings use of metaphors allows his audience to understand his viewpoint better. For instance, he does when he depicts the, "Negro and white boys on TV screens as they kill and die together for a nation that has been unable to seat them together in the same schools." - M.J. 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. "The Speech Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence by Martin Luther King, Jr: Rhetorical Analysis." By claiming that the United States, "the greatest purveyor of violence," prefers, "massive doses of violence to solve its problems," King effectively establishes the U.S. government as the pervasive wrongdoer. He tries to make people see the other side of the picture where both black and white men were being pushed into hell without considering and questioning the outcome. 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(8).