Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail" answers a newspaper article written by a group of clergymen, who were against the demonstrations conducted by King and his associates. In the letter, Dr. King addresses the men directly, and details his reasoning behind why the demonstrations occurred in the first place; how the racial injustice in Birmingham before April 16th, 1963, when he wrote it, proves it was not "unwise and untimely" as the clergymen claimed in the article. Throughout the letter, Dr. King utilizes various agents to justify his actions. To develop his argument that his activities are not "unwise and untimely", King uses various rhetorical devices and appeals. At the beginning of his letter, Dr. King appeals to …show more content…
King uses allusions to Christianity and metaphors about the state of democracy in order to reinforce his claim that his actions are not "unwise and untimely" to his audience. In paragraph twenty-six, King alludes to Christianity and how the accomplishments of it are because of the effort of those who wished to achieve them, not simply a byproduct of time. He states, "It comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co-workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation." Here, King uses the efforts of men willing to work with God, and willing to be the force of social change, as a comparison to the struggle for freedom he is aiding in. King employs strong language and phrasing to evoke his audience's emotions and persuade the clergymen to understand his cause. This emotional appeal continues throughout the paragraph, where at the end King uses metaphor to further persuade the audience, "Now is the time to make real the promise of democracy and transform our pending national elegy into a creative psalm of brotherhood." This comparison of the state of democracy in our country to two forms of poetic verse, elegy and psalm, two emotionally tied styles, further appeals to King's audience's emotions. An elegy, often used at funerals, King uses to highlight the necessity for reflection in the nation, and how without this, the democracy and liberty promised won't be achievable. This dramatic comparison of the struggle for civil rights further reinforces Dr. King's claim that his direct action was not "untimely", and through alluding to Christian efforts for change that symbolize his own, he is able to appeal to his audience, the clergymen, more directly through their
this text, "Letter from Birmingham Jail", it begins with an activist for racism: Martin Luther King, who went to Birmingham in the year of 1963, so he can put an end to the discrimination in the city. Though things did not go his way, and he was arrested, the effects also did not impact the city of Birmingham, as of the individual's motives. Through this, he wrote a letter to an individual who thought of how foolish his acts were, which is now known as the "Letter from Birmingham Jail". While writing
racial violence in Birmingham, Alabama. On April 16, 1964, Dr. King wrote a letter in jail to refute the clergyman's statement. While writing his letter, King uses various rhetorical devices and appeals to argue that his activities are not "unwise and untimely." In the beginning of his letter, Dr. King establishes credibility by making a claim that he is not an outsider. MLK defends that he is not an outsider when he says, "Several months ago the affiliate here in Birmingham asked us to be on call
King, Jr., was jailed in Birmingham, Alabama, for leading anti-segregation protests. His" Letter from Birmingham Jail," is an accessible letter to eight white clergymen from Alabama. In it, King responds to a statement by these clergymen that communicate their belief that the struggle against segregation should be fought in the courts and not in the streets. Throughout the essay, he uses three main rhetorical devices: parallelism, allusions, and logos. These three devices help further his argument
and the racial violence that took place in Birmingham, Alabama. Unfortunately, King was arrested in the midst of his campaign, but that did not stop him or his cause. On April 16, 1963, King writes a "Letter from Birmingham Jail," a serious response to a newspaper article written by clergymen. While writing his impassionate letter, King uses various rhetorical devices and appeals to argue that his activities are not "unwise and untimely." To begin his letter, Martin Luther King establishes his credibility
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, a pro-activist against racism and inequality, gets locked up in the Birmingham jail. His recent attempts to fight inequality and unjust acts against black people. To develop his argument that his activities are not "unwise and untimely," King uses rhetorical devices and appeals. In the beginning of the king's letter he begins by establishing credibility by making a claim that he is not an outsider. King evaluates this claim by stating the organizational ties that he has
Tuner, Harriet Tubman and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. who didn't like how they were being treated and wanted to be treated equally. In the passages, Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the best civil rights messages of its time, and still is today, in the passages it explains his argument, his specific claims, his rhetorical appeals, and his argument's conclusions. In paragraph 15, King used two primary sources that help him reinforce his argument. He states, "To obey the
astonishing letter to his fellow clergymen. While behind bars in Birmingham jail for unjust reasoning King decided it would be best that his words were written and not just heard. Along with justifying his actions and proving that he is not "unwise and untimely." Building an inspiring argument and claim for his followers and partners. Compose his rebuttal, claiming that he is not against the people and simply wants equality for all. While writing the letter, he uses a variety of rhetorical devices and appeals
The “Letter from Birmingham” has many quality to it, and each serves a purpose to convince the audience. The purpose of the letter was to respond to fellow clergyman of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s, they wrote an article “A Call for Unity” in the newspaper that questioned King’s methods of protest. In King’s response he was very detailed and clear onto why the opinions of the clergyman were incorrect and no logical. Throughout the letter there are rhetorical devices used that helped better king’s
The "Letter from Birmingham Jail" written by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the most well known texts of the civil rights era. The letter written on April 16, 1963, was sent to the clergymen in hopes of protesting against the Jim Crow laws and the racial violence in Alabama. During his time in Birmingham, he became overly passionate about the people. He sees it as his obligation to advocate for those who do not have a voice. While writing his letter, King uses rhetorical devices and appeals
Martin Luther King was arrested in Birmingham, Alabama, on April 16, 1963. He was arrested for protesting without a license. Martin Luther King wrote a letter while in jail in response to the clergymen stating that he no longer wanted and waited to be heard. While writing his letter, Martin Luther King uses his claims, rhetorical devices, and sources to develop his argument. The most well known civil rights activist and president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. King is not an
1963 in Birmingham, Alabama, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested for a peaceful protest against Jim Crow laws and racial injustice faced by the black community. While in jail, King responds to a newspaper written by clergymen to explain and justify his actions. In the letter, he argues that his actions were justified and reasonable. To develop his argument that his actions were not "unwise and untimely," King used various rhetorical devices and appeals. In the beginning of his letter, King uses
In the "Letter from Birmingham Jail", Martin Luther King Jr. shares the reasoning behind his approach towards fighting against racial discrimination. Inside the letter, he refutes a newspaper that labels his actions as "unwise and untimely." By listing his creditability and background, he argues why he is there and why he isn't an outsider. Furthermore, King describes the circumstances black Americans are facing and his attempts to reason with no results to show; due to this, he is planning and preparing
To develop his arguments, King uses rhetorical devices and appeals that his presence is not unresentful and untimely in the speech "letter from Birmingham" which was written on April 16, 1963. As he speaks to the clergymen, he protests the Jim Crow laws and racial violence in Alabama during the Civil era. Dr. Martin's purpose is to argue for change, justify his actions, and answer the statement that injustices are "unwise and untimely". In the beginning of his speech, Dr King used ethos to establish
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
imprisoned for taking part in the Birmingham campaign, he managed to write an inspiring letter that even after 50 years; it is one of the seminal texts of the American Civil Rights Movement. In order for Martin Luther king to accomplish this task, he had to engage his audience in his letter and maintain their attention throughout the letter. This was no easy task; Martin Luther King used a variety of writing techniques to achieve these expectations. Without them, the letter would not have influenced as