50 and 150 years ago

[Puppycow]

It's been a long time since I listened to this. I can't even remember if I ever listened to the speech in it's entirety, but since this is a belated anniversary, I sat down and listened to the whole thing. This is clearly one of the greatest rhetoricians America has ever produced. Perhaps one of the greatest the world has ever produced. My eyes did not remain dry.

MLK's speech at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963:

 

[Tiktaalik]

There was a woman, who might have been his daughter, who spoke at the memorial who was pretty darn good, too. I think it's a combination of not dumbing down the vocabulary, tone and emphasis, and tempo of speaking that accounts for a lot of it. Add some powerful content, and you've got one of the greatest speeches in the history of humankind (IMHO).

 

[Puppycow]

He also gave nods to previous great works of American rhetoric. "Five score years ago" was clearly a hat tip to Lincoln, the preamble to the declaration of independence, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that ALL men are created equal", a hat tip to the founding fathers.

 

[epepke]

Yes, an excellent rhetorician and orator, but probably also a bit smart as well. Although I've heard him dismissed as a commie or a preacher who happened to be at the right place and time, some of his writings are pretty good. I note that he even struggled a bit with Nietzsche.