The mountaintop by katori hall free pdf

Discussion

“I’VE BEEN TO THE MOUNTAINTOP” This play is named after Martin Luther King Jr.’s last speech, popularly known as “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop.” Delivered the day before his death, April 3, 1968, at the Mason Temple in Memphis, Tennessee, he discussed the Memphis sanitation workers’ strike, the ideals of American democracy, and the possibilities for social change through boycotts and peaceful protests. Aware of the danger he faced from white supremacists and their threats on his life, he ends by addressing the possibility of his untimely death.

“Something is happening in our world. The masses of people are rising up. And wherever they are assembled today, whether they are in Johannesburg, South Africa; Nairobi, Kenya; Accra, Ghana; New York City; Atlanta, Georgia; Jackson, Mississippi; or Memphis, Tennessee -- the cry is always the same: ‘We want to be free.’”

“We have been forced to a point where we are going to have to grapple with the problems that men have been trying to grapple with through history, but the demands didn't force them to do it. Survival demands that we grapple with them. Men, for years now, have been talking about war and peace. But now, no longer can they just talk about it. It is no longer a choice between violence and nonviolence in this world; it's nonviolence or nonexistence…We aren't engaged in any negative protest and in any negative arguments with anybody. We are saying that we are determined to be men. We are determined to be people. We are saying -- We are saying that we are God's children. And that we are God's children, we don't have to live like we are forced to live.”

“And then I got into Memphis. And some began to say the threats, or talk about the threats that were out. What would happen to me from some of our sick white brothers? Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn't matter with me now, because I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land! And so I'm happy, tonight. I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man! Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord!!”

MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.: JUST A REGULAR DUDE Dr. King is one of the most important people in American history; sometimes when public figures reach the status he has, we start to think of them as mythical heroes and not as people. In this play, Katori Hall gives us a more human version of Dr. King – one who chainsmokes, has stinky feet, and has the same fears and dreams as everyone else. Here are a few more weird facts you might not know about him:

1. His favorite meal was fried chicken with black eyed peas, collard greens, and cornbread.

2. He and Coretta Scott King spent their honeymoon in a funeral home. It was owned by a friend of theirs who let them stay there because hotels did not rent honeymoon suites to African Americans at that time.

3. He got a C in public speaking when he was in his first semester in the seminary.

4. He was a total Trekkie. He was a huge fan of the original Star Trek series, and famously convinced Nichelle Nichols to stay on in the role of Uhura when she considered leaving to pursue a theatre career.

5. He was a Grammy award winner?! He won posthumously in 1971 for Best Spoken Word Album for Why I Oppose the War in Vietnam.