Letter From Birmingham Jail By: Austin Ignatovich 11/18/15 Martin Luther King (MLK) Jr. was one of the bravest protesters for the civil rights movement and was also very well educated. In his letter from a Birmingham Jail to his “fellow Clergymen” he answers some questions the Clergymen have on his actions and views about the civil rights movement. MLK’s contemplative tone shows that he knows what what he wants to do and exactly how to do it. He knows what time of year to do it, where to do it, and why it will appeal to the Clergymen. Also, he doesn’t want it to just appeal to the Clergymen, he wants it to appeal to black families who aren’t as well educated as he is therefore he uses references to the bible and Hitler. He is persuading …show more content…
Ethos appeals to ethics such as credibility and what is right and wrong. In an example from the letter, he states that “...who willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for law.” This statement is Ethos because he states that breaking a law is wrong but when one does it they have a very high respect for the law which appeals to right and wrong. MLK also says in this quote that if one breaks a law they know that they will take a punishment. One of the reasons why laws are broken is because they might be unfair or unjust laws which is stated in the first amendment that Americans can peacefully assemble. MLK knew he was going to break the law and go to jail, but he felt the law was unfair so he has the right to do so. Another use of Ethos in the letter is where MLK says that “...just as the Apostle Paul left his village of Tarsus and carried the gospel of Jesus Christ to the far corners of the Greco Roman world, so am I compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my home town.” He is saying that since Paul carried the word of Jesus Christ, he is carrying the word of freedom not just to his hometown but to the whole nation which he succedes in doing. MLK’s use of Ethos is very effective because he knows it will appeal to his audience, such as, examples from the Bible which appeal to all of …show more content…
MLK knows when to use certain examples that will appeal to his audience and make them believe the way he does. He uses Ethos effectively by using credible sources such as the Apostle Paul to say that he has the right to promote freedom for all races. He uses Pathos effectively by painting a great picture to show the harsh conditions of Birmingham jails. He also uses Logos effectively by proving that segregation is a sin, therefore his actions are completely necessary. The most effective literary device that MLK uses is Logos because he shows that separation is a sin and that using time wisely and correctly can result in a more positive outcome. MLK’s letter shows that he will continue protesting until the law is changed because he is passionate about his cause and believes that he is
In Martin Luther King Junior's Letter from Birmingham Jail, King responds to a public statement made by eight Alabama clergymen about African Americans being too extreme and their actions untimely. In this public statement, made on the twelfth of April, 1963, the clergymen also commended the police on their control of the situation. Four days later, King writes a letter showing his opinion on the statements while he sits in the Birmingham jail for parading without a permit. King carefully uses rhetorical devices to force the clergymen to realize that they are the ones responsible for teaching morals. King uses figurative language to create pathos in his audience of Alabama Clergymen
In his Letter from Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. uses his personal experience to convince others of the importance of revising the segregation laws that were in place during the 1960’s. In paragraphs 13 and 14 in particular, there is a lot of language used to persuade the reader’s opinions and emotions toward King’s argument. He does this not only to convince his fellow clergymen, but to inform others of the reality that African Americans faced in the 60’s. Right away in paragraph 13, King uses irony to give his earlier statements about freedom the sense of urgency that it needs: “For years now, I have heard the word ‘Wait!’. It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity.
The letter from Birmingham jail by Dr. Marin Luther King was written as a response of King to nine criticisms made against the Southern Christian leaders and King’s participation in demonstration in Birmingham. King handled many rhetorical devices to convince his opponents such as the white clergymen with his rights to protest, create tension for direct action and to achieve the racial justice. The devices fluctuate between Logos, Pathos and Ethos in a clever way to appeal to his audience and criticize them at the same time. King provided logical supports such as biblical figures, historical and philosophical references. In addition, he used verities of metaphors, allergy and poetic language. In my essay, I will point out some of the rhetorical devices and
Martin Luther King, Jr., born on January 15, 1929, was well known for his nonviolent movement to bring justice and to an end to the segregation of the people in the United States back in the 1950s. With King being the leader of a peaceful protest, it failed to bring equally to the colored people. Martin Luther King, Jr. was labeled as an “outsider” who was “hatred and violence” and that his actions were “unwise and untimely” from the Public Statement by Eight Alabama Clergymen (clergymen). In response, on the day of April 16, 1963, he wrote the Letter from Birmingham Jail to declare and defense his movement was not “unwise and untimely” at all. To analyze his points, King used the powerful literary devices of pathos- use of an emotional appeal.ethos-
Reverse Outline of “A Letter from Birmingham Jail ” I. Purpose: To argue the claim that his non-violent campaign is “unjust or untimely” II. Body: Contradiction I. Rejecting the claim that he is an outsider that doesn’t belong in Birmingham a) He was asked to participate in Birmingham. b) He has organizational affiliation in Birmingham II.
In 1963, Birmingham was one of the most segregated cities in the South, so civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. brought his campaign of nonviolent resistance to Birmingham. After leading a demonstration on April 12, 1963, King was arrested for violating demonstration ordinances. Shortly after, eight white clergymen in Birmingham sent out a public statement claiming that although they support desegregation, they advise against anymore protests advocated by King, stating that the “demonstrations are unwise and untimely” (Carpenter et al). While in jail, King took an opportunity to continue his campaign by responding to these eight white clergymen. In his “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” King uses religious and philosophical allusions to effectively convey his intellect and credibility to his audience: the clergymen and his followers.
In accordance to the TRACE elements needed in a rhetorical situation, all five are present. The text includes a letter type written by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. explaining why he is in a Birmingham city jail and the injustices he sees in the state of Alabama. The targeted audience is the eight fellow clergymen whom he is replying to after being presented a letter by those clergymen. The audience also includes the general public like the whites and the blacks in the community. The author of the letter is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. himself, a Baptist minister who preached nonviolence and was a pivotal leader in the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Dr. King was the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, a vital group that led many affiliations to peaceful marches and sit-ins throughout the civil rights movement. The main motivation for this letter is Dr. King’s own view of the injustices apparent in the Negro community and the intended actions the community is taking. Some constraints Dr. King faces...
Martin Luther King, Jr. is known to be a civil rights activist, humanitarian, a father, and a clergyman. He is well known for fighting for the equal rights of colored people and ending discrimination. King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail is an important part of history that showed King’s opinion of a letter that he happened to read in the newspaper written by a group of clergyman. In this letter, the group of clergyman report that colored people, also known as black people, are being violent towards Birmingham City. Also, the clergymen believed the time that will allow segregation to be diminished was not happening anytime soon because it is not convenient. King refuted the clergymen’s argument in a variety of ways using tactics of argumentation and persuasion like appeal to emotion through real life examples, appeal to logic, and even articulating certain phrases through metaphors and word choice. Many of these different tactics of argumentation and persuasion made his letter very effective and is now seen as a great piece that is looked upon highly today.
In his letter, Martin Luther King is trying to persuade his readers to understand his action and point of view of an African-American living in this era. He did so all while replying to the public published statement and criticisms written to him by the eight Alabama clergymen. This illuminating work of art that King had created was filled with heightened terminology which was gratified by his precise framework. By King writing this response letter with such high dialect, it reflects off of his determined and highly educated mentality immensely. In this letter King directly tries to build a connection
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote his famous “A Letter from the Birmingham Jail” on April 16, 1963 while he was imprisoned in the Birmingham Jail for being involved in nonviolent protests against segregation. The letter is directed at eight white clergymen from Alabama who were very cynical and critical towards African Americans in one of their statements. Throughout the letter, King maintains an understanding yet persistent tone by arguing the points of the clergymen and providing answers to any counterarguments they may have. In the letter, King outlines the goals of his movement and says that he will fight racial inequality wherever it may be. Dr. King uses the appeal three main rhetorical devices – ethos, logos, and pathos – in order to firmly, yet politely, argue the clergymen on the injustices spoken of in their statement.
According to Millers terms of argumentation, king argues using ethos and we notice his different characteristics. King shows that he is intelligent by expressing to the clergymen that its not his intention to turn people against the whites because he knows that if he does that it will result in an anarchy. MLK also shows that he respects. He makes this obvious when he talks about accepting the penalties when disobeying the unjust laws. A Good example is him going to jail and his demonstrations by not fighting the law. Finally he shows his daringness and respect to go to the moon and back for his people. He show this ethos when he speaks of showing steps to being people with the highest respect for the law but not by creating an anarchy. His daringness comes out and says unlike the “rabid segregationist” who want nothing but an
In Martin Luther King’s letter from Birmingham Jail, pathos, ethos, and logos are vividly expressed throughout it. All three rhetorical devices are vital to the meaning of the letter; the most influential being pathos. MLK takes advantage of the human body’s strong response to emotion. It is illustrated in his appeal to empathy, exercised mainly through gruesome depictions; his call for action to his peers, as shown when he expresses his disappointment in them as they preserve order over justice; and his strategic use of pathos as a supporting effort for both ethos and logos arguments.
In 1963 on April 16th, Martin Luther King Jr, who was in the Birmingham jail for non-violent protesting wrote a letter in response to a statement from eight white Clergymen, in which they stated that his recent activities were “unwise and untimely.” In this letter King proceeds to state his purpose and reasons for his timing and his protests and powerfully he does so. He most obviously directs the letter to the Clergymen but there seems to be a many different audiences he wishes to enlighten on his thoughts. From what I gather he wants public figures and everyday men to read his letter, and by doing so he hopes to raise awareness for the cruel acts that have been done to the blacks. King gets his point across, that segregation is unfair and morally not right and that man has a responsibility to act against unjust laws, by using many different strategies throughout the letter. He uses logos, pathos, and ethos to do so. While using these devices he shows emotion, gives logic to his reasoning’s and gives credibility as well.
Martin Luther King Jr. wrote “Letter from Birmingham Jail” in 1963, during the height of the Civil Rights Movement. Before the civil rights movement, the nation had the civil war, from 1861 to 1865. Then, following the war the country added the 13th amendment to the constitution, which made slavery illegal on December 6, 1865. Consequently, after the civil war the south went under “reconstruction”, a period in time where the federal government aided in rebuilding the southern states. Once President Hayes became president, federal troops left the south. Nevertheless, supremacists began to enforce segregation and limited African Americans from voting. However, Dr. King, a leader in the Civil Rights Movement advocated against segregation across
Dr. King uses the words “rise from the bondage of myths” to compare how Socrates helped individuals overcome certain myths, just as Dr. King is helping African Americans prevail over the injustice of segregation. This quote is an effective example of ethos because it shows Dr. King’s credibility to the clergymen by comparing himself and his techniques to Socrates’s strategies.... ... middle of paper ... ...