King and the Dream of Dreams

A Story by devon

An essay I had to write for Literature. Let me know if you have any suggestions, or just what you think of it! Thanks!

Martin Luther King, Jr. is most famously known for both his contributions towards the Civil Rights Movement and his great literary works discussing equality; namely, his “I Have a Dream” speech and his “Letter from a Birmingham City Jail”. While “I Have a Dream” is a more passionate, intense piece of work, “Letter from a Birmingham City Jail” is geared more towards being a personal and emotionally moving piece. Both of these writings discuss the hardships that African American people of that time period were faced with, and it showcased King’s feelings on the treatment of humans in general: that everyone should be treated equally. The structure of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s writing and the impact of his experiences emphasize a need to change the current treatment of humans.

Easily recognized as his most famous work, “I Have a Dream” is a speech that sparked a nation. King spoke to the entire country and told them of his vision for the future �" a world where people will not be judged by their race, religion, gender, or any other quality besides the content of their character. Martin Luther King, Jr. not only engaged his audience to make sure they heard his message, but also to stir feelings of hope and perseverance inside their hearts. By addressing his audience as, “my friends,” and then later on including names of many states in his speech, he is unifying all of the American people to fight for a very important cause. King hammered his dreams of a better world inside the American people’s heads by repeating, “I have a dream that one day…” and “I have a dream”. Mr. King had a dream for the United States of America, a dream that the American people began to believe in, too.

Nowhere near as popular as his speech, his “Letter from a Birmingham City Jail”, offers a more raw and personal view on the hard times, King, and his passion for the equality of all humanity. “We will reach the goal of freedom in Birmingham and all over the nation, because the goal of American is freedom,” King says in his letter. Just this one sentence makes those who read it feel a passion passed onto them by Mr. King well up inside them, wanting them to fight for a battle already won many a decade ago. He uses very emotion language and includes personal anecdotes like, “…Let us all hope… the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all of their scintillating beauty.” This gives the reader a sense of knowing King and feeling his anger, his hurt, and his undying determination. The sound of King’s voice rising with a fierce fight for freedom is practically ringing in the ear of anyone who reads his letter.

Many factors went into the success of the movement for Civil Rights, but no one person comes to mind as much as Martin Luther King, Jr. Through the power of his pen and the passion that shook his voice, he was able to launch a very literal movement of the American people. The man who sat in the Birmingham City Jail sat inside steel barred cages, and he inspired us. The man with a dream stood upon the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, and he inspired us once more. He had magic in his words �" a magic that brought an entire nation to the front door of Justice and Equality as he held the door wide open and welcomed them inside.