My hypothesis: Was that the audience will respond to rhetorical devise (use of colloquial language and

repetition) and appropriate motivation, a strong sense of empathy. Martin Luther King used these
effectively in his speech “ I have a dream”-1963 with an appropriate observation sheet, I detailing his
verbal, non verbal communication along with his relationship with the audience
Michael Argyle (1983) pointed out eye gazing can be an index of the closeness of a relationship people
share. King’s gazing plays a major part throughout his speech. It reduces his non- verbal leakage and
minimises the ambiguity in this speech. King on a pulpit, which gave him more space and according to
E.T Hall’s (1959) theory about proximity the pulpit shows his power and authority as a dominant figure.
His paralanguage varied throughout his speech; on some occasions his paralanguage was serious with
rising intonation to signify his determination. At other occasion he used an aggressive tone with
appropriate use of volume and emphasis to increase the impact of his point.
King equally was sensitive in his use of language. B.Z commented (power of Speech) that King
understood that the majority of black Americans in the sixties weren’t well educated and need to get
across them. He used rhetorical devises ranging from repetition (paragraph 16 line 1), contrasting pairs
(Paragraph 20 line 4), Catchphrases (Par 14 line 6) to colloquial language (Par1 line 1). According to
Berstein (1971) there are two types of codes, restricted and elaborated. King’s language is simple, but
includes a wide- reaching elaborated code that expresses his views on the world. It has a complete
syntax and is much harder to predict. Which itself often functions as a barrier to communication. The
audience were engaged by King rather than put off.

The most effective skill King used was his empathy, the ability to see and fell as others do to put oneself
in to another’s shoes. His stable extroverted personality shows his carefree, social, leadership qualities,
suggesting a positive self- concept and this is directed to his audience who provide positive feedback.
Berol (1960) suggested we have to know the receivers
Attitudes Belief Social and Cultural Background
King, as a preacher, understood the receiver attitudes and beliefs, was genuinely interested in they way
other experienced pain and was willing to lead the oppressed from oppression which is evident from his
message.
For my conclusion I can successfully design my own model on how to become a successful spoke person.
It will probably start with motivation, having a clear idea that becoming a successful spoke person is
what you want to do, this probably; outweighs any consideration of skill. Wanting to be effective you’ll
need to consider your self-presentation, you’ll need to present yourself clearly with a high self-esteem.
Verbal communication needs to constructive and encourage engagement and empathy, you’ll need to
inform the non-verbal communication and use it to promote a positive impression. King demonstrated
appropriate motivation, as a result, all the skills he has were effectively used.