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 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 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. This ‘Wait’ has almost always meant ‘Never.’” (Dr.King, 176). When people wait for something, there is always the hope Here is one example, “...and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children, and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental sky…” (Dr.King, 177). The entirety of the paragraph is an example of pathological rhetoric, which if a person can relate or sympathize with anything King has written, they can be convinced that segregation laws should be changed. In this excerpt, King conveys the prejudiced feelings that every African American would feel in this kind of society, which causes the reader to automatically feel sympathy towards the cause. Martin Luther King Jr.’s approach towards ending segregation was not only tactful, it was forthright in the ideals of racial equality. His argument holds such strong logic, that it seems like it is unchallengeable. This letter is solid proof of the intelligence and passion that contributed greatly towards African Americans gaining the rights they fought for, and rightfully
The tone set by Dr. King in the part of the letter where he describes “pent-up resentments and latent frustrations,” and where he recognizes the “vital urge” being suppressed, is very passionate. His passion shines through loud and clear. The way Dr. King feels is, in fact, quite clear throughout the entire letter, yet the overriding sense of reason and logic that anyone can relate to is ever apparent. As he describes the unrest he finds in his community, the community as a whole really; he explains that he did not encourage them to “get rid of your [their] discontent” he instead encouraged them to, “make prayer pilgrimages to city hall;… go on freedom rides,… and try to understand why he [they] must do so”; these quotes from the letter point out the ways Dr....
Recently you have received a letter from Martin Luther King Jr. entitled “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” In Dr. King’s letter he illustrates the motives and reasoning for the extremist action of the Civil Rights movement throughout the 1960’s. In the course of Dr. King’s letter to you, he uses rhetorical questioning and logistical reasoning, imagery and metaphors, and many other rhetorical devices to broaden your perspectives. I am writing this analysis in hopes you might reconsider the current stance you have taken up regarding the issues at hand.
Martin Luther King Jr’s “Letter from Birmingham”, is such a powerful document because of how each part of it is meticulously worded. From the start of the letter he makes an emotional connection to the reader, which is smart because that gives the reader a slight personal feel to what’s being talked about. Then there are the areas that states facts a specific evidence with respectable sources, this looks to attract the attention of realist. Last, there are his personal experience that readers respect, because when people discuss topic they have experience there is a more genuine care for it. King made this letter able to affect many people who have different mind sets. At the end of the letter he states “I hope this letter finds you strong in the faith. I also hope that circumstances will soon make it possible for me to meet each of you, not as an integrationist or a civil-rights leader but as a fellow clergyman and a Christian brother. Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty.” Dr. King last words were of much respect and hoping that the differences of each could end and become
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. First and foremost, King calmly responded to the statement from the clergymen that his non-violent direct action was “unwise and untimely”. King logically does so by describing the situation where the negro leaders tried many times to negotiate with the city fathers to remove racial barriers, but the promises never held true.
The “Letter From a Birmingham Jail” is a text directed to all of America in 1963, written by Martin Luther King Jr., during his stay in one of the of Birmingham’s prisons. His intention of writing an open letter was to tell the world the injustice “the white people” had done not only to him, but to all Afro-Americans. The main stimulus was a statement made by a Clergymen naming the actions and the activities of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference as unwise and untimely. However, the purpose of this letter is to show that those actions are totally wise and timely.
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.
To begin, King points out that freedom is never voluntarily given from the oppressor. King states, for years he had heard the word “Wait!” and that it rings in every Negro with “piercing familiarity “(224). This "Wait" has almost always meant "Never." use of the word "piercing" makes the familiarity more negative and forceful. Later in this
... does an exceptionally good job at making a connection between an African American citizen in favor of equality to people in favor of segregation. He is able to construct a common ground between his readers in many ways. King forces his readers to compare Hitler's genocide agenda to the suppression of African Americans in America. He is also able to connect with his audience on levels such as religion, law, and morality. His use of logic as a method to bypass racist feelings and ideas allows him to get his point across without his readers brushing off his letter as just another attempt for equality. Instead, he greatly influences his readers while they gain a significant amount of respect for his words and ideas.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a pastor, activist, and leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. Mr. King was a man of honor and respect, even in the troubling situations of serving jail time. People who were supposed to support him questioned his actions, but Dr. King still stood by what he believed in. In Birmingham, Alabama, Dr. King hoped that the white religious leaders would come to his aid but instead found reluctance and opposition. In the “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, Martin Luther King, Jr. refutes his critics claims through the use of passionate tones, metaphors, and allusions.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the leader of a peaceful movement to end segregation in the United States this mission led him in 1963 to Birmingham, Alabama where officials and leaders in the community actively fought against desegregation. While performing sit-ins, marches and other nonviolent protests, King was imprisoned by authorities for violating the strict segregation laws. While imprisoned King wrote a letter entitled “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, in which he expresses his disappointment in the clergy, officials, and people of Birmingham. This letter employed pathos to argue that the leaders and ‘heroes’ in Birmingham during the struggle were at fault or went against their beliefs.
In Conclusion, A Letter from a Birmingham Jail met its intended purpose to those of the audience being the clergymen and the reader today. Martin Luther King, Jr. has proven himself to the clergymen of Alabama, in regards to his reasoning for a more equal nation. The bottom line is that every man was created equally, so we should all have the same rights as the next person. In my own opinion, I think the letter was very necessary. These men of faith were more focused on what man thought rather than their creator's. This piece by King is very affective to the reader as well as the audience. It is evident that Martin Luther King, Jr. works went unnoticed, because we are living in a mixed racial society. The reader is very affected by the letter's history and how it came to be.
Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the most convincing civil rights activists recorded in history; but what made his speeches so successful to the public? According to Aristotle, there are three rhetorical appeals: ethos, pathos, and logos. Ethos appeals people through trustworthiness, pathos appeals by creating empathy from the crowd, meanwhile logos is the appeal of reason.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. changed America with his non-violent campaigns during the civil rights movement. Although his campaigns consisted of morally legal protests, speeches, and marches, he was still sentenced to jail on multiple occasions due to unjust laws. In King's “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” he addresses the issues and injustices in Alabama with his responses to his fellow clergymen. King’s letter effectively uses Aristotle’s strategies of ethos (credibility), logos (logic), and pathos (emotions) to convince his readers that he is on the right side of these racial issues.
During the early 1960s, segregation and racism was still a common and influential issue. The ensuing conflict between the whites and the blacks led to violence, hate, and anger within the community. It was very difficult for either side to understand each other’s opinions and views; as the whites seemed to provide irrational and hateful views, while the blacks responded with peace (most-part) and presented a more rational and empathetic view. Martin Luther King Jr. was a staple in the Civil Rights movement, where he organized many protests, boycotts, and masses, to help increase the morale of the African American community. In 1963, during his time spent in Birmingham Jail, he wrote a letter in response to criticizers. In order to help persuade
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a minister and a civil rights activist during the mid 1950s Civil Rights movement. Dr. King was one of the major influencers in changing federal and state laws in the betterment, by removing segregational laws, of the African American community. Dr. King won a Nobel Peace Prize along with other awards for his involvement in raising awareness of the civil liberties being taken away from the African American community. One of the reasons why Dr. King was so influential in his movements, along with his speeches, was because he was able to communicate his and the African American community’s feelings towards segregation and use his orating and writing abilities to move that community into action. King was highly motivated to do what was right and did not care of the consequences of acting out towards his suppressors. The Letter from Birmingham Jail is a perfect example of a time King uses his ability to communicate feelings into getting a large group of people to join his movement. Although his letter had little to no effect on the issues of Birmingham, since by the time the letter was written most issues had been resolved, it did help gain support for the 1964 Civil Rights Act. The Letter from Birmingham Jail uses pathos to criticize the white church and gain sympathy for the atrocious acts committed towards the African American community to increase the white churches’ support for integration.