Text and Context: Martin Luther King, through his speech “I have a dream”, targets everyone: those who subject others to racial discrimination, those who remain impassive as they watch this subjugation and above all, those who follow him in their fight for equality. As a result of powerful rhetorical language and techniques, which are cleverly manipulated in his speech, he hopes to achieve a future where he and all of his race can live in harmony with the whites, respected not for their own ethnicity but for their character: as one should, must be regarded, as is elucidated in the metaphors “The state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with heat of injustice” and “an oasis of freedom and justice”, all of which fall under his “dream”. Style and Structure: On closer inspection of the speech, it is apparent that each and every element within it plays a salient role in its persuasiveness and in its rhetorical prowess. The speech is structured in a manner that makes understanding simp...