Analysis of Malcolm X's "Ballot or Bullet" speech
- Date: April 12, 2004
- Level: College, Undergraduate
- Grade: A+
- Length: 5 pages (1240 words)
- Essay rating:
- Keywords:
malcolm x, epistrophe, antithesis, anaphora, black nationalists, audubon ballroom, ...martin luther king jr, luther king jr, ballot or the bullet, easter sunday, african americans, civil rights movement, class citizens, rosa parks, constitutional rights, whirlwind, martin luther king
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Subject > Law & Government Essays > Civil Rights > Black Awareness & Racism
Malcolm X Warns, "It Shall Be The Ballot or The Bullet"
The 1960s were a time of battle for change. Frustrated and fed up with the oppression with which they were forced to live, influential people such as Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King, Jr. started a whirlwind known as the Civil Rights Movement. On Easter Sunday, March 29, 1964, Malcolm X gave a speech warning of "the ballot or the bullet" (3) from the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights, New York. Extending his position to black people living in America, Malcolm X used repetition of words, epistrophe, anaphora, and antithesis to convey his message in a forceful and fascinating way.
Malcolm X spoke to black nationalists ...
... African-Americans did not choose to come to America. They were kidnapped and brought here against their will. If Malcolm X had simply said, "We did not decide to come here," his statement would not have been nearly as effective. Antithesis intensifies the force of his speech.
The diction and sentence tools that Malcolm X used helped to create his voice in the speech even on paper. In his or her head, the reader can almost hear Malcolm X dramatically giving the speech. He has a very strong, confident, persuasive voice. A writer or speaker who has control of his language has control of his audience.
The repetition of words, epistrophe, anaphora,
essay continues for another 100 words
