Grade 10 English - King vs Orwell Essay

Martin Luther King Jr. was a man that believed in turning the law around and to make his people (African Americans) heard and he did this through multiple years of peaceful protesting and riots. He fought for so many years against discrimination and ended up beating it and it made a huge difference today in our society. This endless struggle is reflected in his Letter to Birmingham which he wrote in a jail cell after being arrested for leading a peaceful riot in downtown Birmingham, Alabama. Dr. King addresses the clergyman in his letter saying that he was upset about their criticisms and he would like to address their concerns. Dr. King further explains in his letter about who the antagonist was, the white people and how he must always wait for their approval. He states, “Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct action campaign that was "well timed" in the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. For years now I have heard the word "Wait!" It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. This "Wait" has almost

One technique King supports his argument is by using logic. In King’s letter he states, “I cannot sit idly by in Atlanta and not be concerned about what happens in Birmingham. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. Never again can we afford to live with the narrow, provincial “outside agitator” idea. Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere in this country.” (649). This quote shows that King and every person, black, white, asian, hispanic, etc… has every

In paragraphs 12-14 of “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, Dr. King begins addressing the clergymen’s belief that the peaceful demonstrations conducted by him and his associates were untimely. King starts answering questions frequently heard by opposing or moderate forces, as well as essentially denouncing the resistance to desegregation. King then introduced the relationship between the oppressor and the oppressed; concluding that the oppressor is not inclined to act on things that do not directly affect them. Therefore, providing a platform of his argument as to why blacks could no longer wait to be given their basic human rights. Action needed to take place because fair treatment was no longer a hope to be given, it had to be taken.

Dr. King’s letter, Letter from the Birmingham Jail, talked about some things on why there shouldn’t be segregation. In his speech he used a rhetorical device such as when he made a Juxtaposition statement, “ Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” This means that if you do something bad to one person, like telling a black person that she cannot sit here it is for whites only, will affect other black people even though the action was not towards them. This happened and affected every black person during the time of segregation.

King’s use of many rhetorical devices in these three paragraphs of “Letter from Birmingham Jail” solidify his conviction that segregation needs to be quelled immediately. Dr. King’s explanations justify the demonstrations and protests that he is participating in. Although this was a letter meant for clergymen, Dr. King simultaneously taught all of America a very important lesson: justice is a universal natural right, and when it is denied, it needs to be demanded. Racial equality is the form of justice in this case, as segregation was the culprit that divided society into two racial groups. Thus, Dr. King successfully advocated civil rights through this letter with powerful, clever

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was a powerful and eloquent letter that effectively argued the point that segregation is fundamentally unjust and should be fought with nonviolent protest. This letter, through describing the injustice taking place during the civil rights movement also provided some insight about Dr. King’s view of the government in the 1960s. Three mains themes present in Dr. King’s letter were religion, injustice, and racism.

African Americans have undergone unimaginable hardships in this land and were powerless to effect change in the system with their vote. I find this to be great injustice. Another example of injustice in this reading is King’s arrest. He writes, “I have been arrested on a charge of parading without a permit. Now, there is nothing wrong in having an ordinance, which requires a permit for a parade. But such an ordinance becomes unjust when it is used to maintain segregation and deny citizens their First Amendment privilege of peaceful assembly and protest.” As King explains how a just law can become unjust through capricious or malicious application, I find myself confused by the situation. African American citizens are struggling for the equality America was founded on, and these people are being arrested for improper parading. After exhausting many other approaches, African Americans moved to peaceful protest and even that was stifled. I find myself asking where else were they to turn, how else could they effect change, and where is their justice? Would anyone have blamed Dr. King for being angry with his situation? I doubt it. King made a wise choice to remain optimistic, to address those who questioned his motives with reverence. In fact, he defines how he will respond to his critics in the opening paragraph of his letter: “I want to try to answer your statements in what I hope will be patient and reasonable terms.” This statement demonstrates King’s commitment to

In the letter Dr. King wrote from the Birmingham Jail, he states, “for years now I have heard the word “Wait!” It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. For King and the black community at the time, the word “wait” symbolized the unwillingness of the government to rectify the inequality and unjust treatment they suffered. King goes on to illustrate the litany of abuses blacks have been subjected to over time and were continuing to suffer from. One example of inequality King uses to support his claim is, when he must explain to his young daughter she that is unable to go to the public amusement park because of the color of her skin. For King, “Wait”, has also produced a desperate sense of urgency for him to right those wrongs.

The purpose for Martin Luther king to write “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was to respond to white Alabama clergymen who before this had criticized his action saying they were “unwise and untimely.” These clergymen had published a criticism directed towards King’s organization and participation in his protest march against segregation in Birmingham. This letter is not intended to persuade these men towards supporting civil rights, but rather to demonstrate that there is an immediate need towards direct action, and also that they need to open their eyes and see the African American community’s suffering. King withal expounds the need for tension, though only through nonviolent means, a tension that will coerce society to confront the present convivial iniquity head on. King disapproves being called an outsider because of his belief that humanity is part an "inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny."

King speaks from personal experience how difficult it can be to have to tell a child that they are hated because of their skin color. “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 that has just been advertised on television, 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 dorm in her little mental sky, and see her beginning to distort her personality by developing an unconscious bitterness towards white people” (12). King talks about his own experience because he knows others have to face this as well, and the children can never be free to live good lives because segregation ruins their self-esteem. Dr. King explains to his audience how segregation can damage people physically and emotionally. “All segregation statutes are unjust because segregation distorts the soul and damaged the personality. It gives the segregation a false sense of superiority a false sense of inferiority” (12). The meaning behind this is all segregation will ruin all who are involved, mentally and physically. It will break the people most involved and destroy the person’s mental state. Dr. King has some very strong points. His personal opinions makes his argument

Meanwhile, Dr. King also appeals to the logical side of the men within the letter, to lead them to the bigger picture of the injustice faced by African-Americans during this era. Dr. King uses facts and United States laws to prove that his actions were not untimely but in contrast these actions were overdue and that in fact he was not an outsider, but rather an invited guest.“So I, along with several members of my staff, am here because I was invited here, I am here because I have organizational ties here. But more basically, I am in Birmingham because injustice is here. Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds.” (King) He goes on by saying “Then, last September, came the opportunity to talk with leaders of Birmingham's economic community. In the course of the negotiations, certain promises were made by the merchants --- for example, to remove the stores’ humiliating racial signs. On the basis of these promises, the Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth and the leaders of the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights agreed to a moratorium on all demonstrations. As the weeks and months went by, we realized that we were the victims of a

King uses vivid imagery like “unjust treatment” and “more unsolved bombings” in order to vividly describe the extent of segregation. As ministers, King wants them to realize that he has concrete reasons as to why nonviolent direct action is necessary. King hopes that the white ministers will understand his views on protested. Martin Luther King Jr. believe that protesting is the only option to gain justice for blacks; they can’t wait any

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. mention several points on how Negros were affected by the injustice system in American. “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” stated Dr. King (1963). Factors that justified the author to believe the thesis relates to racial injustice includes when Dr. King mentioned the city of Birmingham is known for brutality against Negros through segregation, unfavorable treatment handle by the courts and unresolved bombings of homes and churches (King, 1963). Dr. Martin Luther King wrote “justice too long delayed is justice denied” as he emphasized the idea that freedom from the oppressor is involuntarily and it must be sought by the oppressed since wait constitute as never (King, 1963). Nevertheless, other factors Dr. King included in his letter were traumatic events witnessed by observing his daughter bitterness behavior after she learned that Negros were not welcomed in the amusement park she seen advertised, explaining to his son why Negros were treated harsh by whites and daily humiliation by encountering colored only sign or being called nigger (King,

Dr.King knew that non-violent protesting of these discriminations and unjust laws was the only way to bring about change without causing a war between white and black people. Dr.King provides the example that some laws were created without any input from the race being discriminated upon because these races had not been allowed to vote. The black people had to go through more rigorous screening to vote than white people causing whole counties to not have any black registered voters. Dr.King tried to make his argument more clear by drawing similarities

Jonathan Swift and Martin Luther King never compromised their principles even if it might have been practical and expedient to do so, while George Orwell admitted to having done so once, only with great reluctance and regret. At all times, King was ready to sacrifice his life for his principles and finally did so in 1968, while Orwell actually fought for his. Both of these men were in fact heroic examples of activists and intellectuals who took a stand for what they believed right and never gave up or retreated. King faced death many times, and was almost assassinated in Birmingham in 1963, and also went to jail many times for his principles. In the end, he led the civil rights movement to victory in the United States, accomplishing more than any black leader before or since. His "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" in 1963 was a classic exposition of equal rights and freedom for all human beings, just as Orwell's short story "Shooting and Elephant" was a principled denunciation of British imperialism. Swift was not nearly as great a hero and moral example as King and Orwell, who took a firm and principled stand against the major injustices of their time. His "Modest Proposal" was a strong satirical attack against British imperialism in Ireland, though, and the extreme poverty, hunger and oppression faced by the inhabitants of that island. This became his most famous essay, in fact, and one that is still read today as a brilliant example of satire and sarcasm,