Stylistic Devices - Essay Sample

Martin Luther King, I Have a Dream

In the speech of Martin Luther King, 'I have a dream' the use of metaphor is evident throughout the speech. For example, in his line "now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice."(Alexandra, 335-357) in the quote, he compares dark to the days of slavery and oppression of the black people and further equates light to freedom.

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Parallelism is the use of words in a sentence having the same grammatical meaning and are similar in their construction sound and meter. It gives ideas a smooth and rhythmic flow. Martin Luther King uses the art of parallelism in his line " with faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together knowing that we will be free one day."(Alexandra, 335-357). These words make the message memorable and persuasive.

The smile is evident in the "I have a dream" speech in the lines "no, no we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream. (Alexandra, 335-357) The smile is used to illustrate the belief that equality occurs naturally and describes the power of justice and righteousness.

Repetition is evident in the phrase "I have a dream." he uses this phrase to illustrate the ideas of what his dream entails. He portrays an image of a country with unity and equality among all the races. Antithesis is seen in the lines "one hundred years later; the negro lives on a lonely island of poverty amid a vast ocean of material prosperity." (Godwin, 23) The island and ocean convey a different idea, in the same way, he combines poverty and prosperity in his speech. The king describes the current racial inequality among the people while giving them hope for future equality.

Alliteration is the use of that repeat the same consonant sound at the beginning of the word. It is meant to create a smooth transition of words and further creates rhythm. Martin Luther makes use of this style in his line "five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the emancipation proclamation."(Alexandra, 335-357)

Across the Universe by the Beatles

The song, "across the universe" by The Beatles is a sweet song with a whole wide range of stylistic devices. Repetition is evident in the line "Nothing gonna change my world" (Petrie, 197). As though the singer is trying to persuade himself that nothing will shake him down. In this context, the singer attempts to accept the world as it is. It gives him a calm and happy feeling and wants nothing more or less from the world. He tells of the peace achieved when one gets peace in finding our universe. A society that cannot be changed or ruined by others.

The singer also uses simile in the line "words are flowing out like endless rain into a paper cup" (Petrie, 197). He compares the word to the rain that never stops to fall and in this way overflowing the cup. Another smile is seen the line "images of broken light which dance before me like a million eyes. The line shows a period of hopelessness in which the singer sees the light is dimmed and broken which would be in this case be the hope giver to the singer. And the million yes are the many vivid memories that still run across his mind. The singer uses multiple similes in his song because this provides various interpretations of the song sing people have different views of judging things. Different people would tend to approach a situation from a different angle.

He further uses alliteration in the line "inciting and inviting me."(Petrie, 197) where he uses words with similar consonant sounds at the beginning. The words help in the creation of a rhythmic tone and the process making the words memorable and sweet when singing or listening to them.

Stylistic Devices on My Concept of Love

"Look at this man, like lilies after fall, blessed with mountains of inspiration. Look at this soul still searching for salvation and a glimpse of hope. A star in the dark skies lighting the universe with smiles of hope." in the context of love the soul searching for salvation a metaphor meaning a heart that is desperately seeking for love and attention. In a typical set up we would relate salvation to a particular form of religion that offers salvation or gives hope to a dying soul. The idea has been brought out in the above line though through a different angle.

The smile, on the other hand, shows an individual determined to achieve anything with strength compared to those of lilies just at the beginning of summer. Just after the end of the winter period the lilies growing around springs blossom and become attractive in a similar manner the line tries to compare this strength of the lilies to the amount of inspiration in this man's soul to bring a vivid image of its extent.

Another stylistic language evident in the context is repetition. The word "look at this," is seen at the beginning of each line which brings emphasis on the words being explained after them. They outline the main ideas that are being conveyed by the two sentences used. Alliteration is another style prominent in the context. "Look at this soul still searching for salvation." The similar consonant sound along the line gives it a rhythmic tone making it memorable and sweet to listen and sing. The style is also seen in the first line "like lilies after fall. "The use of such stylistic devices makes a speaker more effective in delivering their message which is an essential tool for writers.

Work Cited

Alvarez, Alexandra. "Martin Luther King's" I Have a Dream" The Speech Event as Metaphor." Journal of Black Studies18.3 (1988): 337-357.

Godwin, Jeffrey L., et al. "Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s" I Have a Dream" Speech as a Tool for Teaching Transformational Leadership and Vision." Journal of Organizational Behavior Education: JOBE 4 (2011): 23.

Petrie, Keith J., James W. Pennebaker, and Borge Sivertsen. "Things we said today: A linguistic analysis of the Beatles." Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts 2.4 (2008): 197.