Question

Read the excerpt from Martin Luther King Jr.’s "I Have a Dream” speech.

And 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 the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that: Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.

From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

The most likely reason King uses allusions in this part of his speech is to

share his knowledge of American geography.
compare Northern and Southern destinations.
remind listeners about small-town accountability.
encourage listeners to envision freedom everywhere.

Answer 1

encourage listeners to envision freedom everywhere.

King lists locations across the country to evoke a national sweep — from north to south and coast to coast — so listeners picture freedom ringing everywhere.