In times of great need and suffering, historical figure Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) and the fictitious boar Old Major both gave a speech. Both highly influenced the cause on which they spoke. MLK and Old Major each gave their speech with the intention to inspire the masses with a dream of a better future for those suffering from unfairness

Upon the examination of the structure and rhetoric used by the two speeches, one might discover the many similarities between the two speeches. To begin with, both of the men based their speeches on dreams of a better future. The two speeches also both focus on cruelty in some forward towards those suffering from discriminatory unfairness, either race- or species-based, and address the rights of those suffering. However, the two speeches do not simply address problems, the also present a better future that requires change to achieve. In an effect to prove their points, MLK and Old Major use rhetoric. Towards the end of both speeches, an allusion to an inspirational song, “My Country ‘Tis of Thee” in MLK’s speech and “Beasts of England” in Old Major’s. Neither speech relies very heavily on alliterations to help get their point across, instead using other forms of rhetoric. The structure and rhetorical devices used in each speech creates an underlying that conveys that accepting the present situation could prove disastrous to the audience.

Despite having so many similarities the two speeches given by MLK and Old Major differ in several ways. The present situation described by MLK depicts a world where only whites recieve full citizenship rights, whereas Old Major describes one where Mr. Jones owns the animals and uses them for food and money. Though the whites may have many more rights than blacks, the whites do not use the blacks as Jones uses the animals. Also, the unfairness shown to the blacks differs from that shown to the animals as the blacks have limited rights and suffer from segregation; but the animals get overworked, little food, and their eggs and milk taken away. To solve these problems, MLK and Old Major offer vastly different visions for the future. MLK wishes to enjoy equality and have the same rights as whites; while Old Major wants to do better than Mr. Jones and enjoy freedom from him. In order to accomplish his goal, MLK calls for civil change, without the use of violence. Old Major, however, demands a rebellion and the overpowering of man, which requires violence.

Not only do these to speeches differ in structure, the rhetoric used by each speaker varies greatly. When using repetitions, MLK repeats the phrases multiple times in a row, as opposed to Old Major whose use of repetition appears much more subtle as he repeats words or phrases only a few times. Repetition in MLK’s “I Have a Dr eam” speech helped emphasize the image he had of the future, unlike Old Major whose subtle repetition emphasized the present situation and rules to abide by. Old Major also neglected to use any metaphors, preferring to state his points in a more simplistic way, whereas MLK used many metaphors in order to better paint an image of the cruelty the blacks faced in the mind of the listener. While Old Major lacks in his use of metaphors, he does use several rhetorical questions with the intention of making the animals realize for themselves the injustices inflicted upon them by Jones. MLK, however, prefers to use statements to get his point across, only once asking a question, which he immediately answers for the listener. Though both speakers allude to songs, MLK makes many more allusions to several historical documents in addition to “My Country ‘Tis of Thee,” but Old Major chose to stick with only one allusion, “Beasts of England.”

Using different styles of rhetoric to appeal to audiences of varying degrees of intellect, Martin Luther King Jr. And Old Major managed to inspire many to rally for change. Though the two speeches varied in many ways, both possessed similar intentions. Through their inspiring words, the two speakers managed to unite the masses to achieve their goals.