I Have A Problem

I Have A ProblemBy Scott Richardson

An ImitationInspired by Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream”Professor: Will DuffyIntended Double-Major: Strategic Communications/Creative Writing April 26, 2010

Home Example #1 Example #2 Example #3Description My Take StrengthsChallenges Taboo? What I Learned Writing Process Inspiration ENG 110 Objective

DescriptionI wrote this piece for an assignment in

my College Writing class. The requirement was to select an example of argumentative and persuasive writing and then write an imitation of it, following the structure of the original text while substituting new subject matter.

Along with the actual imitation, the assignment called for a rhetorical introduction of the piece. The introduction serves as a brief explanation of the rhetorical features of the original text and a description of which of these features I chose to incorporate into my own imitation of the piece.


The persuasive text that I chose to imitate was Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. I have changed King’s central message, “I Have a Dream,” to “I Have a Problem.” In addition, I have changed the central theme of the text from hope to procrastination.

My Take


StrengthsI believe that the strength of my

paper lies within its humor and its faithfulness to the language of King’s speech. My goal was to create a successful parody by taking my subject seriously, and by writing as cleverly as possible without crossing the line into sheer silliness. I enjoy writing, especially writing humor, and I feel that the final version of my work reflects the passion I had for writing this particular piece.


Example 1MLK: “I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.”

ME: “I am happy to present for you today what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration of procrastination in the history of College Writing 110.Two weeks ago, a college professor, in whose class I spin around in circles in my swivel chair, allocated to his class the second graded writing assignment of the semester. This six- to eight-page paper came forth as a tremendous damper on the lives of my classmates and myself, who had anticipated the weekend before our fall break to be full of joy and partying. ”

My Work


Example 2MLK: “In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir…It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds.”

ME: “In a sense, it is now “do or die” time. By waiting this long to start my paper, I am guaranteed to be sleep-deprived come Monday morning. At this point, it is obvious that I am not looking out for my best self-interests, for if I were I would have brainstormed further or actually come up with an acceptable idea before Saturday night. Instead of planning properly, I have thrust myself into a pressure situation, one that will require nothing short of a rhetorical miracle in order to secure myself a halfway decent grade.”

My Work


Example 3MLK: “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.”

ME: “With this faith, I am submitting this assignment knowing full well that it could be offensive and/or obnoxious. With this faith, I will completely leave it up to Will to decide if I did indeed write this paper on Sunday or if I am actually an intellectually creative individual. With this faith, I am dropping a fair amount of expletives throughout my paper, hoping that I will be graded not by the color of my language but by the content of my characters.”

My Work


ChallengesMartin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream”

is one of the most powerful and beloved speeches of all time. By choosing this text to imitate, I set a high standard for myself. A challenge I faced was making sure that the rhetorical features I borrowed from King still came across as persuasive and convincing, especially since I was changing not only the theme but the tone as well. This task was a tricky one because I was attempting to mimic a motivational speech but give it a light-hearted spin without losing credibility.


Taboo?Another challenge I faced was

projecting the appropriate level of respect for King’s speech. I knew that satirizing one of the most inspiring moments of the civil rights movement could be offensive if not handled well, but I was willing to take the chance just so long as I could keep a dignified tone. My intention was to create a parody without a great sense of irreverence toward the original source.


What I LearnedFrom this project I have learned that

in order to create a piece of good writing you cannot play it safe. The topic, a parody of a pivotal civil rights speech, was risky, but I believed that I could make this topic work if I committed fully to the task. I therefore learned to trust my intuition.

I had heard portions of King’s speech before, but through this project I viewed it in a way I never had before. By reading it in its entirety so many times in order to create an imitation, I appreciated the power and imagery of the words, and the skill it took to create them. Exposure to such a great work helped me to become a better writer, and for me, this benefit was an unexpected consequence of the project. Home Example #1 Example #2 Example #3Description My Take Strengths

Challenges Taboo? What I Learned Writing Process Inspiration ENG 110 Objective

My Writing ProcessIf you believe the legend, Mozart was

able to write perfect first drafts, as if he were taking dictation from God himself. However, for the rest of us mere mortals without such a direct connection to the Lord, the process of creating takes work. From this assignment I have gained an appreciation for writing process and the amount of work that goes into creating a piece of good writing.


My InspirationSince I am not Mozart, I value the

importance of proofreading, peer-editing and revising, all of which are necessary steps in the process. This is one of the reasons I chose my topic of procrastination. I wanted to parody the writing process itself.


English 110 ObjectiveMy project best meets the objective

of developing a more sophisticated writing process. My project parodies the writing process, and I feel that I could not have created a successful satire of it without fully understanding it.

In creating this piece, although it is a parody, I wrote it the same way as if I were writing a serious essay. I wrote the first draft with great attention to the original King text. After several rounds of edits, I received some peer responses, and edited it again based on my peers’ comments. I think the fact that I could mock the difficult process of writing demonstrates how my project meets this first objective.
