The Negro is still not free…the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. … The Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity… The Negro is still languishing in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. So we have come here today to dramatize a shameful condition …
I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created equal.”
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice. I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of ‘interposition’ and ‘nullification’, that one day right down in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today.
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain, shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, “and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together”.
This is our hope. This is the faith that I will go back to the South with.
With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.
With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day….
And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true. So let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania……
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring. And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, black men and white men, Jews and…
a. The word ‘rooted’ stands for:
(i) ferret (ii) engaged (iii) involved (iv) established
b. The speaker is hopeful of a:
(i) justice (ii) discrimination (iii) poverty (iv) Negro-free America.
c. The word ‘transformed’ mentioned in the passage refers to:
(i) transferred (ii) changed (iii) different (iv) transmitted
d. Which one of the following is connected with the expression ‘sit down together at the table of brotherhood’?
(i) fraternity (ii) enmity (iii) colony (iv) egoism
e. What is the proper opposite word of ‘material’ used in the passage?
(i) hard (ii) soft (iii) intellectual (iv) spiritual
f. What is the meaning of the word exalted in the passage?
(i) suppressed (ii) made disorderly
(iii) filled with joy and happiness (iv) filled with anger
g. What is the meaning of the word jangling in the passage?
(i) aggrandizing (ii) aggravating
(iii) soothing (iv) having an unpleasant sound
h. What is the meaning of the word hamlet in the passage?
(i) metropolitan city (ii) small city (iii) small village (iv) large town
i. What is the meaning of the word gentile in the passage?
(i) not Jewish (ii) non-believer (iii) aboriginal (iv) Jewish
j. What is the meaning of the word sweltering in the passage?
(i) uncomfortable (ii) filled with
(iii) comfortable (iv) unpleasantly hot
k. The word vicious mentioned in the passage means:
(i) Co-operative (ii) friendly (iii) kind (iv) barbarous
l. ‘I Have A Dream’ is a famous speech made by:
(i) Nelson Mandela (ii) Richard the Lion Heart
(iii) Robert Bruce (iv) Martin Luther King Jr.
m. The word sad mentioned in the passage means:
(i) blissful (ii) woeful (iii) buoyant (iv) cheerful
o. Which of the following statements is true about the Negro according to Martin Luther King Jr.?
(i) division and discrimination are common to them
(ii) there is no difference between the white and the black
(iii) they are the most privileged caste in American society
(iv) they enjoy all human rights
r. The word chain mentioned in the passage means:
(i) loose (ii) free (iii) handcuff (iv) release
a. What do you mean by the speech ‘I have a dream’?
b. What does the speaker expect about his children?
c. What ideas of the governor of Alabama do you get from the passage?
d. How can the state of Mississippi be an oasis of freedom and justice?
e. What will happen if Martin’s dream comes true?
f. Briefly describe the condition of the Negro in the state of Mississippi.
g. The Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. Explain.
h. Why does the Negro find himself an exile in his own land? Can you explain the reason for this condition?
i. What is the dream of Martin Luther King Jr. regarding the nation and its creed?
j. Describe in brief the dream of Martin Luther King Jr. regarding the red hills of Georgia.
k. What was the condition of the blacks at that time?
l. What do you mean by the sentence “…the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination.”
m. Can he materialize his dream? Give your own explanation.
n. Which of the above dreams do you appreciate more?
o. What does Martin Luther King Jr. mean by “let freedom ring”?
One day every valley to be exalted
b. Based on your reading of the passage, explain Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision for racial harmony. Write your answer in bullet points.
i. “All men are created equal” becomes a lived reality.
ii. Former slaves’ and slave owners’ descendants unite.
iii. Racial judgment replaced by character judgment.
iv. Black and white children holding hands in equality.
v. A nation transformed into freedom and justice for all.
i. Slavery
ii. Inequality
iii. Injustice
iv. Racial discrimination
v. Lack of freedom
vi. Lack of unity