Rhetorical Devices Used In Letter From Birmingham Jail

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To develop his argument that his activities were not "unwise and untimely," King used various rhetorical devices and appeals. On April 16, 1963, in Birmingham, AL city jail Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote to the clergymen in response to their statement that his activities were "unwise and untimely" that what he hoped would be patient and reasonable terms. In his response, he justifies his actions with his nonviolent protests against racism, segregation, Jim Crown laws, and racial violence in Birmingham, AL. In the beginning of his letter, King establishes credibility and makes the claim that he was not an outsider. To strengthen his credibility and his claim, King appeals to ethos and organizational ties by making the statement that, he was honored to be serving as the president of an organization in every southern state called the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. This informs the reader of King's status in the south and gives reason for why he was not an outsider. Furthermore, King continues to appeal …show more content…

there is something in the very flow of time that will inevitably cure all ills.". To demonstrate this, he expresses that time is neutral and it can be used either destructively or constructively. This presents King's use of metaphors by portraying time as a tool that can cause damage or improve something. Also, when specifying the audience misunderstanding of time, King calls the flow of time a cure for all ills, further painting it as a medicine used to rid one of disease. In fact, with his metaphoric use, King compares racial injustice to quicksand, saying that the national policy is sinking in and human dignity to solid rock, after stating that time should be used creatively when one knows the time is right. This aids King in making the point that the time is here to enhance the nation and all its

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