Analyzing Speeches
The Lesson Activities will help you meet these educational goals:
21st Century Skills—You will assess and validate information.

Directions
Please save this document before you begin working on the assignment. Type your answers directly in the document. _________________________________________________________________________

Teacher-Graded Activities

Write a response for each of the following activities. Check the Evaluation section at the end of this document to make sure you have met the expected criteria for the assignment. When you have finished, submit your work to your teacher.

1. Comparing Speeches
a. Read President Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech. What emotions do you feel while reading these speeches? What elements of the speeches evoke these emotions?

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The Gettysburg address strikes emotion in everyone, due to the who wrote it & due to the subject material. The Gettysburg address evokes happiness, sadness, & pride in our country, In the speech Lincoln makes lots of references to the was that had happened, & he also makes lots of reference to how great The united states, which makes people think that everything will be alright & that the country is strong enough to endure this civil war. As for Martin Luther King Jr’s speech it invokes different emotions such as disgrace in our country & sadness, the elements that invoke these emotions are Kings way of speaking, the way he references Lincoln, and the fact that he remains hopeful although hope appears to be lost.

b. Do you notice any similarities between President Lincoln’s speech and Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech? What are the similarities? Why do you think King drew parallels between his speech and Lincoln’s?

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c. Think about the audience that President Lincoln was addressing with the Gettysburg Address and about the audience that Martin Luther King Jr. was addressing with his I Have a Dream speech. Describe each audience, and explain how the speeches reflected, and were appropriate for, their audiences.

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2. Rhetorical Devices
a. Revisit the Gettysburg Address and I Have a Dream. As you read, list the rhetorical devices that you notice: state the device, define it, provide an example of it from the speech, and explain its emotional impact.

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The Gettysburg Address

Rhetorical Device
Definition
Example
Emotional Impact

I Have a Dream

Rhetorical Device
Definition
Example
Emotional Impact

b. Listen to one (or more) of the readings of the Gettysburg Address. Did you notice any rhetorical devices when listening to the speech that you did not notice when you read the speech, and vice versa? Do the rhetorical devices have a different effect when they are spoken as opposed to read? Explain your response.

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c. Listen to Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech. What differences did you notice between the way the Gettysburg Address and I Have a Dream were delivered? Which rhetorical devices were more effective in each speech?

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d. Were you able to recognize the rhetorical devices in I Have a Dream when listening to it? Was it easier for you to recognize them as you heard them or as you read them? Why?

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3. Analyzing Speeches
a. Review the Gettysburg Address and I Have a Dream. What organizational pattern does each speech utilize? Do you see evidence of more than one type of pattern present in either speech? Give examples of the patterns in the speeches, and explain why the organizational pattern used is or is not the most effective.

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b. Describe which elements of the introductions of the speeches, if any, are notably attention grabbing.

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c. Do the speeches answer the questions Why should I care? and