How Does Dr King Use Ethos In Letter From Birmingham Jail

Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most influential figures of the American civil rights movement. Famous for his prowess with words, King was known for writing powerful texts throughout his life. Two of his most famous compositions were his “I Have A Dream” speech and his “Letter From Birmingham Jail”. Although King uses many styles of writing effectively, his writings with pathos are the most prominent. Since “I Have A Dream” uses more pathos than “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, “I Have A Dream” is more effective at inspiring change.

In the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” Martin Luther King uses pathos, logos, and ethos to really convey his message. Though he uses all three very effectively, King most effectively uses pathos and logos by giving illustrations of what African Americans faced every day, examples in history in which the law was not right, and the make-up of a just or unjust law.

In this analysis ,”Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King’s was exhibiting his skills in the usage of Ethos, Logos ,and Pathos to respond to his fellow Clergymen who blamed him for organizing the blacks to demonstrate and make the whole world aware of how they are been treated in the Birmingham community. After reading King’s letter I have realized that he was such a passionate and strong man who was able to fight to the end to achieve his goal, had it not because of his actions the injustice will still be going on in this country up till now. Despite everything his opponents do to bring him down, he still stood strong to fight for the black community. I was also impressed about his work of art and the choice of words that he uses to make his letter a success. After I finished reading the essay I felt sad for him going to jail and the punished he experienced over there, but it takes one person’s sacrifice to save the rest.

Martin Luther King Jr. skillfully uses ethos throughout his “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” In paragraph two, he establishes credibility by writing, “I have the honor of serving as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference." The SCLC is a legitimate organization that has organized nonviolent resistance against racism in the south, and by saying that he leads this group King is implying that he is in a position to where he can be trusted. Throughout the letter King repeatedly establishes his ethos to his target audience, the white clergymen from “A Call for Unity”, by referencing to important biblical figures such as Jesus Christ and Apostle Paul. In paragraph three, King compares his work on the Civil Rights Movement with the

King uses logos by backing up each of the points he makes with just more facts and counter arguments, often saying what could be different but then coming up with an answer. Such as King listing what usually happens in a nonviolent campaigns on page 1. He also uses facts that people can’t deny. King was fighting against injustices and unjust laws and was rallying the people to go against these injustices and encouraging people to fight against laws that are wrong, it is the citizens duty to know what is right and wrong, which Martin Luther King was telling people to do. Swift on the other hand wasn’t half bad, he had logical points backing up his inhuman ideas but still people would not agree unless they are mentally sick. King used Logical points that people could agree with unlike Swift. King uses logos because he knows people will listen to his valid points and hopefully change the world, Swift uses logos to catch people eys on how thought out his grueling plan

In Martin Luther King Jr’s famous speech, King uses Logos and Pathos to express the Negroes’ fight for fair treatment. “When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence… was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men would be guaranteed the ‘unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.’” (pg. 261-262, P4) This quote from MLK’s powerful speech used Logos by presenting a logical and convincing fact. It states how our founding fathers wrote the freedom of African Americans in the same legendary documents that we follow and live by today, not just white people, but all men are created equal. Other than using Logos to appeal to his large audience in front of the Lincoln Memorial, he also presented a large amount of emotional phrases

Every writer needs an inspiration to craft a brilliant literary piece. Whether this inspiration is tangible or intangible, it is still necessary. Some forms of inspiration come as passionate love while others appeal as injustice. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail" was a response to "A Call for Unity" by eight white clergymen. His inspiration for writing the letter was the clergymen's unjust proposals and the letter allowed him to present his rebuttal. Martin Luther King Jr. effectively crafted his counter argument by first directly addressing his audience, the clergymen, and then using logos, pathos, and ethos to refute his opponent's statements and present his own perspective.

They both use ethos by giving the reader plenty of sources to back up their information. King uses tons of pathos to show the rich emotion that African Americans felt throughout this dark time. He also uses pathos as a way to give the reader emotion while they are reading this to relate to all the devastating things that happened. Pathos also helps gives the reader a image of what it was like to be there and what it was like to be a African American and be scared for you and your family. Thoreau uses lots of logos to make it clear that not only is he educated about this topic but people who believe him are also educated as well.” The only obligation which I have the right to assume, is to do any time what I think right”( Para.4,941) Both writers know what appeal will get their point across the best and will make people want to read about it.

Martin Luther King Jr. was an astonishing writer and speaker. In every piece of work done by King, he is able to effectively use all kinds of appeals in a number of ways to gain the favor of every audience he is trying to reach, whether it be in his speech “I Had a Dream” or his Letter from Birmingham Jail, but even more so he is able to use hyperboles that strengthen his speech and is able to compare the black struggles to every aspect of life. King is able to establish his credibility through his words in which he personalizes every piece to reflect his credibility. In the Letter from Birmingham Jail, King is able to establish his credibility through his use of ethos, theme, and imagery.

In Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech, King makes use of an innumerable amount of rhetorical devices that augment the overall understanding and flow of the speech. King makes the audience feel an immense amount of emotion due to the outstanding use of pathos in his speech. King also generates a vast use of rhetorical devices including allusion, anaphora, and antithesis. The way that King conducted his speech adds to the comprehension and gives the effect that he wants to rise above the injustices of racism and segregation that so many people are subjected to on a daily basis.

Martin Luther King Jr. does integrate variety of choice of words and language techniques in relaying his information. His work Letter to Birmingham remains an artistic masterpiece. He is very careful in the choice of words that he does select. Essentially, he utilized the art of pathos, logos and ethos deeply to persuade the readers, making theme emotional and inducing the act of understanding the message in an easier manner. Moreover, his choice of words does match and combats the oppression being faced by humanity at that time. His letter was a response to the clergymen on a call to remain united.

Martin Luther King’s use of Pathos and Logos in “I have a Dream” showcases how he uses the devices to inspire others, compared to how he uses these rhetorical devices in “Letter From Birmingham Jail” to persuade the Clergymen. Martin Luther King, also referred to MLK, uses both Pathos and Logos to fit the audiences and occasions for each text. His uses of Pathos and Logos in these two texts are examples of how words can inspire change.

The “I have a dream” speech delivered by Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the greatest speeches given during the civil rights movement. Appealing to the audiences’ emotions plays a crucial role in the act of persuasion and with his utilization of pathos, King does just that. “I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character” (King). The reference to his children helps charge an emotional image into the listeners mind, more so because they are likely to pity the way the actions of others affect the younger generation.

King used logos to make a connection to prior historical events that outlawed segregation. For example, Dr. King talked about the Constitution and Declaration of Independence being a promissory to which every person falls under (King 48). Unlike in No One Turn Me Around they only used logos when they were talking about Dr. King’s speech so the author did not use logos in their own way. They also did not really use ethos Dr. King’s speech was all about ethos. He even included it in his text when he said “Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds.”

In this way, Dr. King was able to connect to his viewers’ emotions in the sense that he took the common practice of religion and incorporated it to add humanity and life to his words of race, a relationship many of us didn’t know existed. These complex references were something everyone was able to understand and enjoy because it did not involve the barrier of education, something many colored people struggled with because of the lack of educational opportunities they received in the segregated South. He was able to forge a complex relationship between religion and race, and make it easily comprehensible to people of all different lifestyles by using the perfect point of comparison, something that is not often seen today. Lastly, he was able to show that race is a very complex and difficult issue, but one that can be solved because it is socially constructed, which means that race is not a determination of anything besides what we choose to