Give Us The Ballot: An Interpersonal Metafunction Analysis Of Martin Luther King’s Speech

Abstract

The paper uses Systemic Functional Linguistics as the theoretical framework which aims to investigate into language from a qualitative and quantitative approaches. The aim of this paper is to discover how interpersonal metafunction serves in the speech in terms of Mood, modality, and personal pronouns. The analysis indicates that Martin Luther King uses speech for providing more information by the dominant use of declarative clauses. He uses imperative Mood in his speech to motivate his audience to work together for their common c[1]ause. Martin Luther king uses modal verb “will". He uses it as a wish with future indicator. Martin Luther King uses first person plural pronouns because he does not want to part himself from his audience. This research is both qualitative and quantitative. Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) is a comprehensive framework for analysing language that focuses on the functional aspects of language use within a social context. It explores how language functions to convey meaning and fulfil social roles, emphasizing the interplay between language form, meaning, and context. SFL views language as a resource for expressing various social meanings and accomplishing communicative purposes, rather than just a set of grammatical rules or structures.