How Do Words Inspire Change?

How do you change the world? Often, change has come through the use of words. Particularly in the United States, we can connect major cultural and political changes to persuasive words that preceded it, from Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” (1776) to Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” (1963) and beyond. Words also often have the power to inspire smaller, personal changes in individuals. Despite the written or spoken words' power, many people find that speaking out and using their words is challenging or intimidating. What can you say about the power of words to inspire change?

Read and carefully consider these perspectives. Each suggests a particular way of thinking about how words inspire change.

Write a unified, coherent essay about how words inspire change. In your essay, be sure to:
● clearly state your own perspective on the issue and analyze the relationship between your perspective and at least one other perspective
● develop and support your ideas with reasoning and examples
● organize your ideas clearly and logically
● communicate your ideas effectively in standardized written English
Your perspective may be in full agreement with any of those given, in partial agreement, or completely different.

You may wish to consider the following as you think critically about the task:
● Strengths and weaknesses of different perspectives on the issue
● What insights do they offer, and what do they fail to consider?
● Why might they be persuasive to others, or why might they fail to persuade?

●Your own knowledge, experience, and values
● What is your perspective on this issue, and what are its strengths and weaknesses?
● How will you support your perspective in your essay?