ABriefStylisticAnalysisof“Ihaveadream”DeliveredbyMartinLutherKing1.Introduction:MartinLutherKing,jr.wasbornonJanuary15,1929inAtlanta,Georgia,thesonofaclergymanandthegrandsonofaslave.Asaleaderinestablishinganonviolentcivilrightsmovement,KingwontheNobelPeacePrizein1964.HeistheonlyU.S.citizenotherthanGeorgeWashingtontoberecognized.HisfamousworkIHaveaDreamiswidelyregardedasoneofthemostpowerfuleverdeliveredintheUnitedStates.Reviewingthewholespeech,wefindoutmanystylisticfeaturesthatarerareinotherpublicspeeches.Therefore,itdeservesourexplorationtoexhibitwhatthestylisticcharacteristicsofspeechare.ItisanexampleofformalEnglishwithaconvincingstyle.Theexaminationwillbecarriedoutinsemanticanalysesperspective.2.AnalysisonSemanticFeatures:2.1Repetition:Throughoutthespeech,Dr.Kingrepeatswordsandsentence.Inaspeech,repetitionnotonlymakesiteasyfortheaudiencetofollowwhatthespeakerissaying,butalsogivesastrongrhythmicqualitytothespeechandmakesitmorememorable.Inparagraphs8through16,forexample,Kingusesthewords“Ihaveadream”ninetimes.Thisrepetitionhelpstoachievethefunctionofcoherenceindiscourseandthefunctionofreinforcementinmoodandemotion,expressingthespeaker’sstrongemotionoflongingforfreedom,justice,righteousnessandamuchmoreunitednationofallofGod’schildren.Itiseasyforustofindoutmanyexamplesofrepetitionusedinthecontext:Butonehundredyearslater,wemustfacethetragicfactthattheNegroisstillnotfree.Onehundredyearslater,thelifeoftheNegroisstillsadlycrippledbythemanaclesofsegregationandthechainsofdiscrimination.Onehundredyearslater,theNegrolivesonalonelyislandofpovertyinthemidstofavastoceanofmaterialprosperity.Onehundredyearslater,theNegroisstilllanguishinginthecornersofAmericansocietyandfindshimselfanexileinhisownland.Herethephrase“onehundredyearslater”hasbeenrepeatedfourtimes,expressingthestrongemotionoflongingforfreedomandseeminglyindicatingthatitisreallyalongtimefortheNegrotowaitforthecomingofthetimeofjusticeandrighteousness.Nowisthetimetomakerealthepromisesofdemocracy.Nowisthetimet