Introduction Political Rhetoric: Brief History Many ancient kingdoms such as the Egyptian Empire and the Mesopotamia Empire highly valued eloquence. A leader would address the public and he would be expected to convince it over various issues. In order to achieve this, such a leader would be expected to be appealing in his speech (Bolman & Deal 1997, p. 65). However, the current political rhetoric traces its roots to the ancient Greece. Aristocrats governed the Athenians. They strongly believed that a man’s worth is determined by his or material wealth. As Corcoran (1979, p. 56) states, this society had a clear groupings of individuals as per their amount of wealth. The speech had to console to the bereaved. Bottery (2001, p. 64) notes that when the Athenians demanded for democracy, the leadership realized that rhetoric was a very useful tool that would help one acquire and stay in power. The speech had to use various stylistic devices and the speaker had to be eloquent enough. Hansen (2007, p. 79) observes that the speaker had to tell the audience what they wanted to hear, not what they ought to be told. This was the beginning of political rhetoric, which is currently in use. Historical Background of the Speech: “I Have a Dream” Situation Martin Luther King Junior was a Black American who was born and brought up in a society that racial segregation was rife. McCarthy (1991, p. 67) argued that King found the situation a little intriguing. Being a black in this country was by itself a condemnation, as McCarthy and Carter (1994, p. 81) observe. As Austin (2007, p.40) observes, the courts were openly biased and whenever a black had a case against a white, the black would most certainly loose despite the evidence that might have been available to validate the case. Baum, Viens and Slatin (2005, p. 60) report that he believed that the blacks, just as whites, had the ability to achieve the most out of their lives and transform the society positively. Reception This speech came at the right time. Lindon (2006, p. 75) reports that in 1963, many African nations were being liberated from the colonial rule and the entire world was feeling liberated. In America, the blacks were joining positions of affluence but racism was still an impediment. King’s speech therefore came at a time when it was needed most. This speech was therefore accepted in different quarters and by different races. The blacks, the Indians and other minority groups felt that the speech was a call for liberation from the chain of segregation that had affected this society for a very long time (Hurst 2007, p. 47). Even a large section of the whites warmly received this speech, as a beacon of hope to all. Effect Blank (2004, p. 39) argued that this was one of the most famous speeches in the world ever. The effect of this speech was gradual but heavily felt. Just as he said in the speech itself, it came as a rude awakening to the American leadership and the society. The society realized that there was need to have a society that was fair for all. President J.F. Kennedy and many other senior government officials, who were whites, felt that as per the message of the speech, it was time for liberation,