Stylistic Analysis Of Sermons Of Martin Luther King

Martin Luther King, Jr. is one of the most influential people of this century. He was honored as "Voice of the Black", and got Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. He is a scholar of high literary attainments and skilled in language. Every piece of his sermon text is well-written. It is logically organized after careful consideration and repeated polishing. They are good samples for us to learn English. If we put in efforts to study these rich and extraordinary treasures, they will not only add life and animation to our writing, but also brighten up and enrich our daily lives and conversation.The aim of this thesis is to challenge the reader to think of the style of King's sermons as a style not absolutely and consistently true to Black preaching practices but skillfully adapted and frequently lively. Since style for the preacher is a tool with which to move men's minds and feelings, it is of great necessity to do the in-depth stylistic study of King's style.The significance of the current research is as follows:(a) it is to get possible answers to the research questions. Through the overall stylistic analysis, we shall know the linguistic and rhetoric features of King's sermons. His use of plain words, simple and direct sentence structures, rich employment of figures of speeches are all very impressive. King applies metaphor often; the use of metaphor makes his sermons persuasive. More importantly, his identification with his audience plays an important role in his sermons, which makes his audience know that they have a voice. The thesis is only an experimental work to promote the research on sermon analysis. (b) King's sermons are good materials for English teaching and learning. The analysis of King's sermons contributes to teaching of such courses as literature, stylistics and rhetoric. Following the rhetorical and structural analysis, students can develop a sense of appropriateness and understand and evaluate the text better. Literary appreciation can be made well. Furthermore, students can learn his style of persuasiveness. (c) The research contributes to the academic exploration. The in-depth study applies the stylistic theory to a wider scope of discourse analysis and testifies the applicability of the theory.The thesis falls into six chapters. The first chapter is introduction. In the introductory chapter, the author explains the research background, puts forward the research questions and states the purpose, the significance of the current study. At last, it provides the organization of the study.The second chapter introduces briefly the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the influences on his thoughts.The third chapter is the literature review. It introduces briefly the previous research on sermon and King's sermons. It also states the theoretic bases, data selection and methodology of the study.The fourth chapter reveals the linguistic features of King's language. It tackles King's use of language from three aspects, such as choice of words, syntax structure and rhetoric devices. Through the linguistic analysis in this part, we know King's language is plain, direct, vivid, and powerful.The fifth chapter deals with the discourse features such as the cohesion, the structure of King's sermons--especially the introduction and the conclusion part, the characteristics of King's sermon, such as the dialogue form, the strong use of intertextuality-references to stories, holy songs and precedent's writings.The last part is the conclusion. In this chapter, the author summarizes the research result and limitations of the thesis, leaving some suggestions for further studies.