Both men start their speeches with the idea of fundamental principles that guided the formation of America as a country. Abraham talks about four score years before the speech when America was conceived in liberty and equality for all men. On the other hand, Luther speaks about a promissory note that assured all men, black or white, equality in the eyes of the American Constitution (Luther). While Abraham is talking about the sacrifice made by men to liberate America, the casualties of the civil war and the need to rise and prove that lives of those men were not lost in vain, Luther is talking about the start of a dream. He sees the struggle of the black man in its beginning; where, the black man will gain his rightful place in the society, get a chance to be happy and enjoy the opportunity to live in abundance like his white counterpart.
Still, on the issues in both speeches, both leaders express the importance of sacrifice and writing history through actions. Abraham notes that the battlefield is a kind of a grave to men who are ready to die for the liberation of America, for the overcoming of the dangers of the civil war. Martin Luther, on his side, understands the violence that the negro might have to go through, and imminent deaths that will happen, on the journey to full acceptance. Though he notes that the demonstrations were not designed to bring trouble (by saying that the procession only aimed at dramatizing the pursuant of civil rights), he insinuates that the black man will have to make a sacrifice in the fight for freedom. He says this by noting that the people who turned up for the procession had to overcome police brutality and escape jail cells.
Both men express optimism for the future. Abraham is convinced that America will emerge victorious from the civil war, and that, a government ‘of the people, by the people, for the people’ shall not be in vain, and get wasted from earth (Lincoln). Martin Luther Junior is very keen on the freedom of the Negro, saying that he has a dream of white kids playing with black kids without racial discrimination. He has a dream that the Negro will come out strongly, screaming ‘free at last, free at last.' The aspect of freedom as the real human struggle comes up in both speeches through the expressions of the optimism that is not only electrifying but also convincing.
On the use of language, oratory, and wordplay skills, the speeches share a richness of language that makes them memorable. In fact, outside these sources, the sentiments of these speeches have been used all over the world. Lincoln's statement of a government ‘of the people, by the people, for the people' has been the building block for democracy in many countries (Lincoln). The speech, I have a Dream, by Martin Luther, has been used in studying justice and as a motivator for people fighting for change. The strength of the wording of the speeches, the urgency of the pronouncements and the delivery made the two men to become great visionaries and perfect examples of pragmatic leadership. “I have a dream” is a message to the discriminated, and the “Gettysburg address” is a call to rise again to the principles of democracy (Luther).
Works Cited
Lincoln, Abraham. “Today’s document from the national archives.” National Archives. 11 July 1863. Web. 6 June 2016.
Luther, Martin. Martin Luther King I have a dream speech. 1963. Web. 6 June 2016.
