Table of Contents

I Have a Dream Questions and Answers

Short Questions with Answers

Q. 1. What did Martin Luther King say in the I Have a Dream Speech?

Ans. I Have a Dream is a public speech that was delivered by American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington for jobs and freedom on August 28, 1963, in which he called for civil and economic rights and an end to racism in the United States.

Q. 2. What are the words to Martin Luther King Jr I Have a Dream Speech?

Ans. Martin Luther King Jr says, “I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed. We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal.”

Q. 3. How many times did Martin Luther King say I have a dream?

Ans. Martin Luther King Jr. used the phrase ‘I have a dream’ eight times in his speech. One phrase was “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the complexion, but by the content of their character. I have a dream today.”

Q. 4. Was Martin Luther King’s dream fulfilled?

Ans. According to people, Martin Luther King’s dream not realized. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream of racial equality and harmony has not been fulfilled, according to African Americans and whites alike in a new Washington Post poll. But there is no denying the fact that this speech helped secure passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964.

Q. 5. What is the theme of I Have a Dream?

Ans. The theme of the speech is that all humans are created equal and that this should be the case for the future of America. This speech pleaded for the racial justice towards the maltreated black community of America. Martin Luther King, Jr. wished that people will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by their complexion but by the content of their character.

Q. 6.Why is I Have a Dream Speech famous?

Ans. Martin Luther King was a leader in the Civil Rights Movement, a drive to get more equal treatment for all Americans, not just white Americans. This speech was important in several ways: It brought even greater attention to the Civil Rights Movement, which had been going on for many years.

Q. 7.What is the purpose of Martin Luther King I Have a Dream Speech?

Ans. The purpose of Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech is to expose the American public to the injustice of racial inequality and to persuade them to stop discriminating on the basis of race, religion and ethnicity.

Q. 8. Where did Martin Luther King give his I Have a Dream Speech?

Ans. Martin Luther King, Jr. On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr., delivered a speech to a massive group of civil rights marchers gathered around the Lincoln memorial in Washington DC.

Q. 9.What is the main idea of the speech I have a dream?

Ans. The “I Have a Dream” speech let people see each other differently, and did not judge each other because of their complexion. The speech “I Have a Dream” By Martin Luther King, main idea is about the Negros getting their freedom. Also I found this main idea because of all of the figurative language.

Q.10. How did Martin Luther King I Have a Dream Speech change America?

Ans. Martin Luther King Jr. took on many roles: he was a pastor, activist, humanitarian, and most widely known for his work and improvements to the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is famously known for his “I Have a Dream” speech, which he gave during the March on Washington in 1963.

Q.11. Has Martin Luther King’s dream come true?

Ans. The 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s historic I Have a Dream speech will be marked on 28 August 2013. He declared to more than 200,000 civil rights activists that he had a dream of racial tolerance, where people would not be judged by the colour of their skin, but by the content of their character.

Q.12. What is the message of the I Have a Dream Speech?

Ans. “I Have a Dream”, speech by Martin Luther King, Jr., that was delivered on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington. A call for equality and freedom, it became one of the defining moments of the civil rights movement and one of the most iconic speeches in American history.

Q.13. At what event was the I Have a Dream speech given?

Ans. “I Have a Dream” is a public speech that was delivered by American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963, in which he called for civil and economic rights and an end to racism in the United States.

Q.14. What was the result of the March on Washington Movement?

Ans. The March on Washington Movement (MOWM), 1941–1946, organized by activists A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin as a tool to produce a mass march on Washington, D.C., was designed to pressure the U.S. government into desegregating the armed forces and providing fair working opportunities for African Americans.

Q.15. Was the I Have a Dream Speech improvised?

Ans. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963 was unusual among great American speeches in that it is most famous words “I have a dream” – were improvised. “Look, Martin,” he said, “you do what the spirit say do.”

Q.16. “I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of interposition and nullification; one day right there in Alabama, little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers”. Explain the concluding part of the speech.

Ans. The speech I have a dream concludes with emotion and encouragement. The above quoted lines are remarkable for their power and resonance. This speech is widely accepted as the greatest one of the 20th century. The phrase ‘I have a dream’ has acquired a universal appeal in the United States as well as elsewhere. There is no denying the fact that this speech helped secure passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964.

Short Essay Type Questions with Answers

Q. 1 . What are examples of parallelism in the I Have a Dream Speech?

Ans. Parallelism involves using similar structures for two. or more parts of a sentence or sentences to create a comparison or pattern. One example in the “I Have a Dream Speech” is the four sentences that begin “one hundred years later” in the third paragraph to discuss all the ways in which African-Americans are still not free. Within one of these sentences that reads “One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination,” King also uses parallelism. The phrases “manacles of segregation” and “chains of discrimination” are in parallel form, as they are three-word phrases with a noun, the word “of,” and another noun.

Later, in the sixth paragraph, King begins several sentences with the parallel phrasing “now is the time to…” to speak about the agenda of the Civil Rights movement to end injustice and segregation. After he states “we can never turn back” later in the speech, he uses parallel constructions for several sentences that begin “We can never be satisfied as long as…” These sentences not only use repetition, but they also use parallel constructions, as the parts of the sentence that follow this phrase are all written in the present tense about an injustice that is currently occurring in the nation. Later, King ends the speech with several parallel sentences that begin famously with “I have a dream that…” These sentences also use repetition and are all written with the same structure, as they contain the future tense and use of words such as “will,” “will be,” or “shall” to express a hope for something that will happen in the near future.

Q. 2. What are the main three arguments stated in Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” Speech?

Ans. Dr. King’s speech is powerful because of its structure. The three main parts to the speech can be seen as embodying much of what the Civil Rights Movement was about.

. In the construction of the speech that represents “the past,” Dr. King explores the plight of African-Americans in American history. Dr. King uses the phrase “one hundred years later” to help illuminate the struggle intrinsic to people of color. The focus on the past is how Dr. King evokes the struggle of slavery, post-slavery, and how the current fight for social equality has its roots in the past.

When Dr. King contrasts the plight of African-Americans with the past, he also is able to suggest that the fight for Civil Rights is uniquely American. It is here in which Dr. King argues that there is a “promissory note” that needs to be fulfilled.

As a result, Dr. King is able to pivot into the second part of the speech that constitutes the present tense. The speech was delivered as part of an event entitled “The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.” The focus of the event was to raise awareness of the economic and social injustice that African-Americans face in the modern setting. Event leaders like Bayard Rustin understood that there had to be a firm statement being made that would move the issue of Civil Rights to the forefront of American consciousness. This meant that economic injustice and social injustice had to be raised so that White Americans could recognize that something was fundamentally wrong in society. Dr. King uses this in his speech when he talks about how African-Americans are situated on a “lonely island of poverty” in the midst of a “vast ocean of material prosperity.” In such a contrast, Dr. King is able to evoke how modern America is at a critical juncture, one where the steps towards change can be undertaken in order to create a vision of the future where people from different narratives can “sit together at the table of brotherhood.”

As a result, Dr. King is able to create a vision of the future as the third part of the speech. In this section, Dr. King suggests that the dream is one where individuals can envision a world where social and economic equality are present. Racial harmony is achieved in

Dr. King’s “dream,” a realm where the past and present have merged to make the future better than what was. It is this portion of the speech where Dr. King’s repetition of “I Have a Dream” becomes poignant and quite stirring. Dr. King’s speech is constructed in the same way that a human being sees time. The past has led to the present, which has set the stage for the future. In portioning out his speech in such a manner, Dr. King is able to humanize a political struggle, making Civil Rights for people of color an encompassing issue for all Americans.

Q. 3. Can you state couple of antitheses from the I Have a Dream speech?

Ans. An antithesis can be illustrated by juxtaposing two arguments which oppose each other. It can also be illustrated by a contrast of oppositional ideas such as “Give me liberty or give me death”. In describing the current state of inequality, despite the Emancipation Proclamation, King writes:

One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity.

Island and ocean are not necessarily opposites but they are contrasting ideas. The significant antithesis in this sentence is the combination of poverty and prosperity.

King also uses imagery to convey the current plight of African-Americans as compared to a hopeful future. In these next two lines, darkness is the antithesis of the sun; and the quick sands are indicative of a hopeless sinking situation, the antithesis being a solid foundation of brotherhood and equality.

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 lift our nation from the quick sands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood.

Two more examples of antithesis use imagery of the landscape and music:

With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.

The antithesis of despair is hope. The antithesis of discord is harmony or a beautiful symphony. These two lines help set up the series of lines rising to the climax of the speech. In each of these lines, King declares “Let freedom ring” as the song of equality is sung throughout the landscape of America.

The “I Have a Dream” speech is full of antitheses because King is describing the current situation of racial inequality and the speech is bursting with hope for future racial equality.

Q. 4. What is an analysis of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech?

Ans. Dr. King uses Aristotle’s three modes of persuasion, as well as a great deal of figurative language, in order to convey the idea that there cannot be true peace or freedom in America until all citizens of color are granted the same rights and privileges and opportunities enjoyed by white Americans. He argues that this is the only way to achieve real justice and righteousness for the country.

Dr. King employs ethos when he speaks about making “justice a reality for all of God’s children.” He implies that he has the same values and beliefs as his audience, as well as the majority of Americans, in order to persuade the audience that God would want all citizens to have equal rights. Dr. King employs pathos when he argues that, even one hundred years after the abolition of slavery, “the Negro is still badly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.” With this metaphor, he implies that black Americans still endure a kind of enslavement or captivity, something that ought to engage the American people’s sympathy for this cruel treatment and help them to see their own ethical obligation to remedy it. Dr. King employs logos when he reasons hat the Constitution and Declaration of Independence make promises to ALL citizens, including citizens of color, and that those promises have not yet been fulfilled.

Dr. King describes the effects of these unfulfilled promises, saying that “the whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright days of justice emerge.” He uses metaphors to compare rebellion against unjust policies and practices to tornadoes, and justice to clear and cloudless days. The nation, he implies, will continue to experience the great storms of revolt until this broken system is fixed, and only then will it be able to enjoy the sunshine-filled days of peace brought about by the workings of justice. He also uses another metaphor when he says that black Americans have “been seared in the flames of withering injustice.” Injustice is compared to a fire, a fire that harms and consumes. He uses such figurative language to create powerful images that will persuade his listeners of the rectitude of his claims and his dream.

Q. 5. Critically comment on the themes of freedom, justice and dignity in Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech?

Ans. Theme is sometimes used interchangeably with motif. Any imaginative work is designed to involve and make persuasive to the reader. Some critics claim that all serious works of literature, including lyrics and public speeches, involve an implicit theme which is dramatized in the evolving meanings and imagery. In Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech the themes of liberty, justice and dignity are reverberated in eloquence.

The word “freedom” is repeated multiple times in this famous speech by Martin Luther King. King underlines the fact that freedom, described by the founding fathers as an “unalienable right,” has historically been denied to black Americans, and continues to be denied to this day, one hundred years after Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. King describes, in vivid detail, what true freedom would mean. In a truly free world, black Americans would be able to stay in any hotel they wanted, vote in every state, and be offered social “mobility” that moved beyond simply exchanging one ghetto for another. Freedom is the key to what King and his supporters are seeking and it is the hope that America will “let freedom ring” which characterizes this speech.

Justice: The concepts of freedom and justice are intertwined but King uses vivid imagery particularly relating to “promissory note[s]” and “the bank of justice” to underline the fact that granting this freedom to black Americans would represent true fairness and justice. King draws upon the history of the country, referring to Abraham Lincoln and the Declaration of Independence, to bolster his point. To white people who ask when black Americans will be “satisfied,” he indicates that they are entirely justified in asking for their true freedom, as this has, in fact, already been offered, and then denied to them. –

Dignity and peaceful protest: A significant portion of King’s speech is devoted to the insistence that his supporters should not devolve into violent or aggressive protest, although violence may be meted out to them. He specifically refers to police brutality as one of the evils still afflicting the black man in America today. Yet, drawing upon faith in God, he asks his supporters to trust that maintaining their dignity and protesting peacefully is the only good way to make their point and achieve what they have been seeking.

Q. 6. Write a note on the role of race religion and repression as the themes of Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech.

Ans. Theme is sometimes used interchangeably with motif. Any imaginative work is designed to involve and make persuasive to the reader. Some critics claim that all serious works of literature, including lyrics and public speeches, involve an implicit theme which is dramatized in the evolving meanings and imagery. In Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speechthe themes of race, religion and repression are reverberated in eloquence.

Race: Obviously race is the name of the game here. If white leaders had given due rights to African Americans from the start, there might have been no need for a March on Washington, a Civil Rights Movement, or the “I Have a Dream” speech. Nope, nope, and nope. From day one of American history, race has been the huge ketchup stain on America’s cashmere sweater. It’s a stain that hasn’t totally come out, even with multiple washings.

MLK’s idea of race is a progressive one. Instead of trying to wash out the stains, he imagined knitting a new sweater-moving slowly toward something new and better, namely a society without racism. In this speech, the end of discrimination is described as America’s IOU to African Americans. It’s not a potential improvement, but a necessary overhaul.

Religion: MLK offers encouragement to people who have been harassed by police, arrested, mugged sadly, the list goes on. The resistors of the Civil Rights Movement were not going to budge easily. Some of the basic infrastructures of society – schools, jails, police forces, public transportation, voting booths-were deployed to punish protesters. Repression means being held down by the powers that be-also known as The Man.

Repression: To make a compelling argument for change, you have to first make the case for why change is necessary. In 1963, many whites were asking what exactly African Americans wanted. America had already gotten rid of slavery and passed a Fourteenth Amendment. Wasn’t that good enough? What else did they want?

These arguments are pretty hard to sell unless you have blinders on. Even today, economic inequality between the races is so pronounced that it’s hard to make the case that America is an “equal” society, at least in economic terms. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” points out several examples of continued repression, both racial and economic.

Q. 7. What is the meaning of “tribulation’ in paragraph 14?

Ans. In paragraph 14, Martin Luther King is addressing the black and white activists in the audience who came to the March on Washington. Tribulations are sufferings or persecutions. King specifically mentions people coming “fresh from jail cells,” perhaps where they were incarcerated for civil rights work. He also says people are arriving after suffering police brutality. He offers them special praise for their “creative suffering” for the cause.

Tribulation is a word with Biblical overtones. King, a pastor, wants to tie the struggles of the blacks for full freedom (civil rights) in the United States to the struggles of the Israelites for freedom

from Egypt. Biblical Israelites suffered many tribulations but God was always with them. Tribulation is also used in the New Testament to refer to a period of suffering before the faithful are gathered up by Jesus in the Rapture. Both allusions to tribulation hold the promise of deliverance and a better time coming, which is what King wanted people to understand was on the horizon.

Q. 8. Who are the characters of Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have a Dream speech?

Ans. Figuratively, Martin Luther King Jr.’s speech alludes to several characters. Abraham Lincoln is present both as a massive sculpture seated just behind Dr. King and as a symbol of freedom for black Americans. King characterizes the Framers of the Constitution and the authors of the Declaration of Independence as signatories to a bad check. He alludes to Christian figures through biblical passages and adopts the structure, inflection, and timing of a sermon, effectively characterizing himself as a reverend and the audience as his parishioners (King was, of course, a reverend as well as an activist). He characterizes Southern states as though they themselves are “sweltering with the heat of injustice.” In his evocative rendition of “Let Freedom Ring,” King calls for a change in the character of the land, from the mountains to the cities.

Literally, King speaks about his “four little children” who he dreams will “one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by their skin but by the content of their character.” He speaks about the governor and people of Alabama, “vicious racists” and little boys and girls alike. He dreams that “former slaves and sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.” King doesn’t characterize “God’s children,” his characters both figurative and literal, at length; but they still have depth. Even the villains have a chance to be redeemed.

Q.9. Why is I Have a Dream considered the defining moment of the American civil rights movement?

Ans. The timing, content, setting, and legacy of Dr. King’s iconic speech mark its delivery as a defining moment of the American Civil Rights Movement.

Dr. King gave the speech at the foot of the Lincoln Memorial in America’s capital in August of 1963 during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. A quarter of a million people gathered for a nonviolent protest of social conditions for African Americans, and the setting was symbolic. President Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation one hundred years earlier.

Dr. King’s thesis was that the promise of the Emancipation Proclamation had not been fulfilled, because African Americans had still not received their full rights as American citizens.

Less than a year later, President John F. Kennedy proposed the Civil Rights Act, which banned discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, or gender. Dr. King’s speech paved the way for moving that legislation along. The law was designed to end manipulation of voting requirements that kept African Americans from the polls and to desegregate motels, hotels, schools, and so on. It also outlawed discrimination against African American job seekers.

Q. 10. What does Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. predict for the future of American society?

Ans. In this speech King shares his dream for America; he says that he hopes and has faith that this dream will come true, so it is also a prediction. The dream or prediction has the following elements: i.) The equality spoken of in the Declaration of Independence is a reality for all citizens.

ii.) The descendants of former slaves and the descendants of former slave owners treat each other like brothers.

iii.) No one is judged by external qualities like skin color; people are only judged by their inward character.

iv.) Children of all races play together without sensing any differences among themselves because of their skin color.

v.) True freedom is experienced by all people in every region of the country.

Speaking in 1963, over 50 years ago, Martin Luther King, Jr. made these predictions for how life would look in America in the future. Less than a year after this speech, President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law, with Martin Luther King, Jr. in attendance. The law made it illegal to discriminate against someone on the basis of race, colour, religion, sex, or national origin. The next year, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 became law, which outlawed practices designed to make it harder for blacks to vote. Within two years of King’s speech, the country had taken great strides towards making King’s predictions for the future a reality.

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