Stride Toward Freedom Literary Elements

Civil Rights History, Autobiographical

"Stride toward Freedom" is set in America during the Civil rights epoch.

Martin Luther King Jr. is the narrator who uses the first-person point of view.

The tone is inspirational, whereas the mood is arousing.

The protagonists comprise proponents of black people's civil rights (such as Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr.). The antagonists are racists opposed to the black people's dignity and civil rights.

The conflict relates to the unconditional granting of civil rights to black people.

The bus boycotts are the climax of the civil rights struggle.

Martin Luther King Jr. mostly incorporates flashbacks into his past life.

Martin Luther King Jr. employs an understatement when he equates religion to an ethical system. The understatement is meant to show that religion has a role in advancing civil rights failure to which it will be just a system that preaches about an imaginary God who cannot be easily believed.

Martin Luther King Jr. appeals to historical allusions to put his book in context. He borrows from Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy as well. Additionally, he alludes to Christian teaching while making a case of black people's civil rights.

The Montgomery Bus Boycott is influential in highlighting black folks' subjugation, which triggers them to join in the boycott with the anticipation that it would highlight their plight. Martin Luther King Jr. provides clear imageries of the widespread segregation that separates the white-skinned people from the black-skinned people in all spheres. The imagery of black people clamoring for their rights depicts the pervasiveness of racism in America.

Martin Luther King Jr. describes the rampant injustice in the south using the phrase "unequal justice." Justice is supposed to guarantee equality for all people, but during the 1950s, blacks' rights were subverted while the criminal justice system protected whites.

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The term “Negro” is used to refer to black people throughout the text.

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