Stylistic-Features-of-a-speech

Stylistic Features of a speechAbstractThis paper give us a brief description of stylistics with the example of I HAVE A DREAM .On the base of the definition of stylistics, this thesis gives a detailed analysis of some the of stylistic devices used in the famous speech by the well-known American civil rights movement leader Martin Luther King, And then probes into the stylistic characteristics of speech as a style within Parallelism ,Repetition,Metaphors,similes and Contrast.Key words:speech , Stylistics, Stylistic devices. what is a speechPublic speech is the transmission of a message in English from one person who addresses to an audience who is physically present. Public speech is not a new trend. In fact, people have been speaking in public since human beings first developed the ability to talk. Public speech is a skill that everyone needs to learn. Almost everyone of us will be involved in Public speech in some form at some point in our lives so that we need to be prepared to do a good job when that time comes. Of course, even if you are never called upon to vocalize your own ideas in front of others, learning how to effectively speak in public will increase your confidence, and make you more comfortable with other people. Being an effective public speaker can give you the tools to make you success in your business, in your community, even in the world.Public speech is an important social-cultural phenomenon. It covers a fairly large range. So far as the field is concerned, there are speeches like the business manager explaining next year budget, the military officer briefing subordinates, the teacher lecturing in a classroom, the union leader informing members about details in the mew contrast; there are speeches on questions of fact, on questions of value, and on questions of policy and there are also speeches on special occasion: speeches of introduction, of presentation, of acceptance and commemorative speeches, etc. So far as the functional tenor is concerned, speeches can be formal or less formal or informal. So far as the mode is concerned, there are impromptu speeches (speeches made on the spot), speeches with a set of brief motes or an outline to jog the memory, speeches from reciting and speeches from a manuscript; but many of the speeches are written to be spoken before an audience. Of all aspects of Public speech, persuasion is the most complex and difficult. Its job is to change the audiences minds to get them to agree and perhaps to act. Its goal may be to defend an idea, to refute an opponent, to sell a programme, or to inspire people to action. what is Stylistics and Stylistic Analysis?Simply defined,Stylistics is a discipline that studies the ways in which language is used ;It is discipline that styles of language in use.This definition,however,needs elucidation.the stylistics we are discussing here is modern stylistics ,a discipline that applies concepts and techniques of modern linguistics to the study of styles of language use.It has two subdivisions:general Stylistics and literary Stylistics,with the latter concentrating solely on unique features of various types of language use.Stylistic analysis is generally concerned with the uniqueness of a text; that is, what it is that is peculiar to the uses of language in a literary text for delivering the message. This naturally involves comparisons of the language of the text with that used in conventional types of discourse. Stylisticians may also wish to characterize the style of a literary text by Systematically comparing the language uses in that text with those in another. Halliday points out, “The text may be seen as this in contrast with that, with another poem or another novel; stylistics studies are essentially comparative in nature”(1971:341). On this points, Widdowson is of the same opinion as Halliday. He says：“All literary appreciation is comparative, as indeed is a recognition of styles in general” (1975:84). Thus, we may conclude that stylistic analysis is an activity that is highly comparative in nature.As an interdisciplinary field of study, stylistics promises to offer useful insights into literary criticism and the teaching of literature with its explicit aims and effective techniques. It is very useful in the analysis of various styles of writing. In this thesis, the author tries to offer a stylistic analysis of the famous speech by Martin Luther king, I Have a Dream. Stylistic Analysis of I HAVE A DREAM1. the content of I HAVE A DREAM This article is about the speech by Martin Luther King, Jr. For other uses, see I Have a Dream (disambiguation).I Have a Dream is a seventeen minute public speech by Martin Luther King, Jr., in which he called for racial equality and an end to discrimination. Kings delivery of the speech on August 28, 1963, from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, was a defining moment of the American Civil Rights Movement. Delivered to over 200,000 civil rights supporters,the speech was ranked the top American speech of the 20th century by a 1999 poll of scholars of public address.According to U.S. Representative John Lewis, who also spoke that day as the President of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, Dr. King had the power, the ability, and the capacity to transform those steps on the Lincoln Memorial into a monumental area that will forever be recognized. By speaking the way he did, he educated, he inspired, he informed not just the people there, but people throughout America and unborn generations.At the end of the speech, King departed from his prepared text for a partly improvised peroration on the theme of I have a dream, possibly prompted by Mahalia Jacksons cry, Tell them about the dream, Martin!He had delivered a speech incorporating some of the same sections in Detroit in June 1963, when he marched on Woodward Avenue with Walter Reuther and the Reverend C. L. Franklin, and had rehearsed other parts.2. About its AuthorMartin Luther King, jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia, the son of a clergyman and the grandson of a slave. After attending several colleges he received his Ph. D. in theology from Boston University in 1955. He led the bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955-1956. As president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, he then led civil rights demonstrations in many cities. In 1963 he helped organize the march on Washington, which brought together more than 200,000 people. A leader in establishing a nonviolent civil rights movement, King was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 1964. King was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1968, shortly before his fortieth birthday. Since then, he has become an American folk hero, and on November 2, 1983, a law honoring Dr. King was signed by President Rigan, effective January 1986, making the third Monday of January a national holiday. He is the only U. S. citizen other than George Washington to be recognized in this way.In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation freeing all slaves in the United States. One hundred years after this decree was signed, however, the life of blacks was still “sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the Chains discrimination.” On August 28, 1963, a quarter of million people of all races came to Washington, D. C., to show their support for freedom and justice for all Americans, and for black people in particular.3. Its StyleWidely hailed as a masterpiece of rhetoric, Kings speech resembles the style of a Baptist sermon (King himself was a Baptist minister). It appeals to such iconic and widely respected sources as the Bible and invokes the United States Declaration of Independence, the Emancipation Proclamation, and the United States Constitution. Early in his speech King alludes to Abraham Lincolns Gettysburg Address by saying Five score years ago. Biblical allusions are also prevalent. For example, King alludes to Psalm in the second stanza of the speech. He says in reference to the abolition of slavery articulated in the Emancipation Proclamation, It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity. Another Biblical allusion is found in Kings tenth stanza: No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream. This is an allusion to Amos King also quotes from Isaiah I have a dream that every valley shall be exalted. Additionally, King alludes to the opening lines of Shakespeares Richard III when he remarks, this sweltering summer of the Negros legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn.Anaphora, the repetition of a phrase at the beginning of sentences, is a rhetorical tool employed throughout the speech. An example of anaphora is found early as King urges his audience to seize the moment: Now is the time. is repeated four times in the sixth paragraph. The most widely cited example of anaphora is found in the often quoted phrase I have a dream. which is repeated eight times as King paints a picture of an integrated and unified America for his audience. Other occasions when King used anaphora include One hundred years later, We can never be satisfied, With this faith, Let freedom ring, and free at last. An analysis of some of the stylistic devices used in the speech.1. Use of ParallelismThroughout the speech,the author uses some Parallelisms.Parallelism means giving two or more parts of the sentences a similar form so as to give the whole a definite pattern. It differs from simple repetition in that the identity does not extend to absolute duplication, it “requires some variable feature of the pattern-some contrasting elements which are parallel with respect to their position in the pattern”(Leech, 1969:66). To put it simply, parallelism means the balancing of sentence elements that are grammatically equal. The application of parallelism in sentence construction can sometimes improve writing style clearness and readability. It can also strengthen sequences described. Parallelism may also be known as parallel structure or parallel construction. In English, parallelism of the predicate provides for one of the few structural situations in which the subject for each verb does not need restatement. Parallelism is often achieved in conjunction with other stylistic principles, such as antithesis, anaphora, asyndeton, climax, epistrophe, and symploce.It is traditionally believed that parallelism is used for the purpose of emphasizing and enhancing, esp. in speech, the ideas expressed by the speaker (or author in written versions), thus always encouraging and inspiring the audience. We need not to be very carefully to find out many more examples of parallelism used in Kings speech and classified as is followed.：“Now is the time to make real the promises of Democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to open the doors of opportunity to all of Gods children. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.”Martin Luther King uses parallelism to create a strong rhythm to help the audience line up his ideas and can improve writing style clearness and readability.The four sentences together start with the same phrase “Now is the time” to make the listeners realize the urgent need to change the reality. The listeners have the sense of being driven to the edge by a kind of growing power-they must take action at once!2. Repetition Throughout the speech, Dr. King repeats words and sentence. This is a very outstanding feature in this speech called repetition. It belongs to the stylistic Repetition is a major rhetorical strategy for producing emphasis, clarity, amplification, or emotional effect. Within the history of rhetoric terms have been developed to name both general and very specific sorts of repetition. Used in speech, repetition not only makes it easy for the audience to follow what the speaker is saying, but also gives a strong rhythmic quality to the speech and makes it more memorable. In paragraphs 8 through 16, for example, King uses the words “I have a dream” nine times. This repetition helps to achieve the function of coherence in discourse and the function of reinforcement in mood and emotion, expressing the speakers strong emotion of longing for freedom, justice, righteousness and a much more united nation of all of Gods children.If we study the whole speech more carefully, it is easy for us to find many other examples of repetition used.For example, But one hundred years later, we must face the tragic fact that the Negro is still not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land.Here the phrase “one hundred years later” has been repeated three times, seemingly indicating that it is really a long time for the Negro to wait for the coming of the time of justice and righteousness.Here is another example ,“And if America is to be a GREat nation this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire! Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania!Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado!Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California!But not only that; let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia!Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring. When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city”The words “Let Freedom ring” has been repeated as many as nine times to indicate that it is the whole of the United States rather than any part of it that should be bathed in the sunshine of freedom.3. Use of Metaphors Throughout the speech,the author uses some metaphors.Metaphor is another syntactic,Metaphor is defined as the substitution of one idea or object with another, used to assist expression or understanding. The definition of metaphor is generally divided into living and dead metaphors, which refer to metaphors which are still considered novel versus those which have been incorporated into normal usage. The dividing line between these two is very hazy, and may depend on the culture, language, region, dialect or jargon it is found in. That is, the figurative meaning is derived from the literal meaning or it is, as it were, the literal meaning. Therefore, it is very clear that the using of metaphors can definitely add vividness and vitality to writing and make it easy for the readers or audience to understand.Take example ,One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. (Par. 2, metaphors),in this sentence,a lonely island is means a poor living condition of America ,instead of directly saying the poor condition ,its using can definitely add vividness and vitality to writing and make it easy for the readers or audience to understand.Take another example, the author compares the black people to creditor and compares the government to debtor,the author compared the relationship between black people and the government to that of a creditor and a debtor. In this way, the author dramatized the fact that the black people had contributed a lot to the construction and prosperity of the society and it was time for them to be paid and get what they deserved because the black people had provided their service in advance. Whats more, the government had promised to improve the living conditions and eliminate discrimination in the society where colored people were concerned. It was their obligation to bring out equality in the true sense of the word. 4. similesA simile is a comparison of two things using like or as. Like metaphors, similes are a type of figurative language. In this speech,the author uses a few similes.Take a example ,we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream ,that makes abstract things concrete and sharps the audiences mind. In short, it just