Legend holds that King departed from his prepared text and began preaching extemporaneously, but he had delivered a similar speech incorporating some of the same sections in [[Detroit]] in June 1963, when he marched on [[Woodward Avenue]] with [[Walter Reuther]] and the Rev. [[C.L. Franklin]], and had rehearsed other parts.<ref>{{cite web | title = Interview With Martin Luther King III | publisher = [[CNN]] | date = [[August 22]], [[2003]] | url = http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0308/22/se.18.html | accessdate = 2007-01-15}}</ref>
==Style==
Widely hailed as a masterpiece of [[rhetoric]], King's speech resembles the style of a black Baptist [[sermon]]. It appeals to such iconic and widely respected sources as the Bible and invokes the [[United States Declaration of Independence]], the [[Emancipation Proclamation]], and the [[United States Constitution]]. Through the rhetorical device of [[allusion]], King makes use of phrases and language from important cultural texts for his own rhetorical purposes. Early in his speech King alludes to Lincoln's [[Gettysburg Address]] by saying "Five score years ago..." Biblical allusions are also prevalent. For example, King alludes to Psalm 30:5<ref>{{ cite web | title = Psalm 30:5 | publisher = Today's New International Version of the Bible | url = http://www.tniv.info/bible/passagesearch.php?passage_request=Psalm+30%3A5&submit=Lookup&kjv=yes&display_option=columns | accessdate = 2007-01-15}}</ref> in the second stanza of the speech. He says in reference to the [[Abolitionism|abolition of slavery]] articulated in the Emancipation Proclamation, "It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of captivity." Another Biblical allusion is found in King's tenth stanza: "No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream." This is an allusion to Amos 5:24.<ref>{{ cite web | title = Amos 5:24 | publisher = Today's New International Version of the Bible | url = http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Amos%205:24;&version=31; | accessdate = 2007-01-15}} </ref> King also quotes from Isaiah 40:4 — "I have a dream that every valley shall be exalted..."
[[Anaphora]], the repetition of a phrase at the beginning of sentences, is a rhetorical tool employed throughout the speech. An example of anaphora is found early as King urges his audience to seize the moment: "Now is the time..." is repeated four times in the sixth stanza. The most widely cited example of anaphora is found in the often quoted phrase "I have a dream..." which is repeated eight times as King paints a picture of an integrated and unified America for his audience.
