Comparing 'Consider The Lobster And Letter From Birmingham Jail'

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In the pursuit of sharing struggles of unjustness, inequality, and racism David Foster Wallace and Martin Luther King Jr. reveal their stories, focusing on morality. “Consider the Lobster”, by David Foster Wallace, addresses the possible inhumaneness in the cooking of lobster, and inhumanness and injustice is addressed once again, in a different form- the form of racism, in “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King Jr. Both articles utilize pathos and stylistic devices in order to create an effective, persuasive essay. As “Consider the Lobster” investigates the ethics of how one cooks lobster, it employs pathos while explaining the actions and reciprocations of cooking a lobster. As Wallace addresses the steps in which one cooks …show more content…

As MLK begins his article, he uses pathos to bring attention to his dispute. He starts by announcing, “Perhaps it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say, “Wait”... But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your brothers and sisters at whim;... when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six year old daughter why she can’t go to the public amusement park....when you have to concoct an answer for a five year old son who is asking: “Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?” (4) MLK utilizes the topic of family to allure empathy; using this topic ensures that any reader may relate to his current situation. He discusses family falling to death, the idea of a child, at a very young age, having to endure blunt and hurtful racism. MLK presents examples of devastating situations in order to connect with the reader. As both articles, “Letters from Birmingham Jail” and “Consider the Lobster” discuss various situations, they are also using …show more content…

At the end of his article, he explains, “I believe animals are less morally important than human beings; and when it comes to defending such a belief, even to myself, I have to acknowledge that (a) I have an obvious selfish interest in this belief, since I like to eat certain kinds of animals and want to be able to keep doing it, and (b) I have not succeeded in working out any sort of personal ethical system in which the belief is truly defensible instead of just selfishly convenient.” (64) Because Wallace does not state his open opinion, one may argue his article is less persuasive. Wallace's approach to persuade the readers differs from most due to his abundance of information he presents on both sides of the topic. Although Wallace states both sides of the debate, instead of solely focusing on his opinion, he gives the reader an opportunity to make an educated decision based on the facts. With this method the reader is able to not form automatic bias, and establish a stronger foundation of their

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