John Adams, visiting professor of rhetoric and communication, said in a VOA radio interview that he's struck by Martin Muther King's lavish use of metaphors -- unexpected words and ideas that create vivid images. The interview will air on VOA's Coast to Coast program on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Monday, Jan. 19. The show, heard around the world, aired at 7:33 a.m. and 11:33 a.m. Eastern Standard Time.
Adams said, "Much of its power flowed from its delivery. Others may perform the speech, but none can match Mr. King's looks and gestures, rhythm and heartfelt sincerity." He said, "It perfectly and poetically spoke to the urgency of the moment -- this transcendent hope for justice and freedom. Take just the second paragraph, where he claims that the Emancipation Proclamation [declaring slaves free during the US Civil War] came as a 'great beacon light of hope' to millions of people who had been 'seared in the flames of withering injustice.'"
