Martin Luther King Letter From Birmingham Jail Analysis

On April 16, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a compelling letter from a Birmingham jail cell. This letter was to his peers, fellow religious leaders of the local churches who had felt his direct action tactic in their city were of poor taste. He was written a letter from these leaders and King felt a need to respond. Dr. King was a man who was used to being criticized and usually turned the other cheek. In this particular moment, he felt the need to respond to his peers and he did a successful job of addressing their concerns. King was proficient in using descriptive adjectives that provoke emotion and forces the reader to empathize with his points. Most successful was his use of biblical and philosophical reference to support his argument and remind the clergymen of their role and responsibility. King uses a plethora of non-basic words which stresses his level of education, ability to be well-versed and worldly knowledge. His sophisticated use of words definitely makes him a leader to his peers or any adversary that dares question him.

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.

During the course of living human being are subjected to many controversial arguments and ethical stations. Education in concept of ethical reasoning and in the fundamentals of the principles are important for one to be skilled in ethical reasoning. Ethical reasoning is a very important element in human nature of living either professionally or individually. Ethical reasoning offers critics with the capability to represent viewpoints, ideas and make judgement. Moreover ethical reasoning enable critics’ to consciously give examination for them to reach a solution that does not harm anybody else. Ethical reasoning can be defined as arguing the wrong and the right of human behavior.

Every immigrant man, woman, or child has a story to tell, whether they travel alone or together, they have a reason to travel and start a new beginning. If a immigrant travels to America from a foreign country, they aren't always treated equally or fairly. Martin Luther King Jr. writes in his essay, "Letter from Birmingham Jail", about various topics regarding equality. Even though King writes about African-Americans and equal rights in America, he's writing about every person who is not welcomed in their country. He would have helped anyone in any country who was treated unfairly, "Had I lived in Germany at the time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers"(King 227). Immigrants face the same issue that King had to deal with during his time. There are five main issues that prevent immigrants from being accepted; equality, justice, oppression, freedom, and the advantages and disadvantages to allowing immigration.

Martin Luther King junior’s letter from the Birmingham jail is a letter that is peculiar and consequently, it attracts the attention of many readers. Having written it in the year 1963 while Luther was serving his jail term after being arrested for parading without a permit from the local authorities, the author had applied writing styles that made it seem more of literature than a mere letter (King, 2012:177). This paper will discuss the contents of Luther’s letter and the reasons why it remains relevant in the modern setting of our civilized society.

Throughout history, there have been many significant documents and speeches that enlighten and inform us on what is and was happening during those times. Abraham Lincoln’s speech, The Perpetuation of our Political Institutions, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s Letter from Birmingham Jail are two important pieces of history. In Lincoln’s speech he speaks about the dangers of slavery in the United States and warned everybody that people who disrespected American laws could destroy the United States. On the other hand, Martin Luther King Jr. defended the strategy of nonviolent resistance to racism, and argued that people have a moral responsibility to break unjust laws. Based on these facts, Martin Luther King Jr does not agree with Lincoln’s counsel.

Topic: Read Martin Luther King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” (in your Nexus book) and Brent Staples’s “Black Men and Public Space.” What do these works say about racism, prejudice, and bias? Have we made any progress in these areas since their publication? What problems do you still see and what solutions can you offer?

In Martin Luther King’s “A Letter from Birmingham Jail”, the rhetorical appeals of kairos, logos and especially pathos are implied heavily throughout the piece, effectively responding to the absurdity of the eight clergymen’s letter and to the civil disobedience displayed in the racial protests. Over the course of the letter, MLK makes multiple allusions to ancient philosophers, such as Socrates and Aquinas, as well as Bible verses and their lessons. King establishes himself as someone who is educated in the events happening in the community of Birmingham. Providing endless examples of personal anecdotes and details of the horrific events that he finds upsetting supports his knowledge on the civil disobedience. “We have waited for more than 340 years for our constitutional and God given rights.” (Language Acts!175) MLK’s progress embodies respect and dignity, however because of the emotional appeals he is drawn to fight for the cause, and will not remain inactive.

When it comes to racism, any person of any skin color or ethnic background can commit the immoral act of racism. However, as shown in Dr. King’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” it is often African Americans who have prejudices held against them. This is true today as well as around 55 years ago when “Letter” was written. King’s response letter to the critiques of eight clergymen was able to assume “a multitude of perspectives.”(Patton 1) Dr. King’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” is effective at convincing the audience of the urgency and necessity of the Civil Rights Movement because he uses his own credibility as a Reverend, addressing the religious men and others of the white majority who do not believe his cause is justified, and

During civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr.’s incarceration, he received a letter from his fellow Alabama Clergymen expressing their concerns about appealing to law and order and common sense. Because he had a lot of time on his hands, as stated at the end of his response, he wrote a quite long and elaborate letter. In this letter, King justified himself from the arguments made by the clergy communicating his thoughts both passionately and conveying confidence. They accuse him of being an outsider utilizing hatred and violence in an “unwise and untimely” manner. He defends his position on nonviolent direct action addressing not only the 8 clergymen but any apathetic persons in the United States.

Fighting for freedom is fighting a war where there are no treaties or compromises. Yet the bloody truth is that in the end there is only one victor. In the Letter from Birmingham Jail Martin Luther King Jr. eloquently brings to the forefront of the readers mind that not only is it time for this particular war, but it is long pass due. The brutal truth of this letter written in the margins of a newspaper spun from a web of lies shows the need for action in the aspect of freedom and prosperity. Not only does King rally together a group of people with the many allusions to how past always repeats itself but the indispensable references to authorities that effect everyone and the heart wrenching use of pathos keep the reader enticed to go onto

In the 1960s, Birmingham, Alabama was arguably the most segregated city in the United States. African Americans living there were constantly berated by racist men and women, forced to never visit “white-only” areas, and were even threatened by members of the infamous Ku Klux Klan. To retaliate, African Americans decided to protest against the racial issues in a peaceful manner in order for African Americans to gain civil rights. Martin Luther King Jr. was among these protesters, though he was soon arrested for his involvement. While in Birmingham Jail, King received information about a letter written by several Christian clergymen named “A Call for Unity”, which was a letter to the public, specifically to African Americans, to end the protests so that peace can be kept in Birmingham.

People over the year have died, been in imprisoned and fought all in the name for freedom .One that show people be imprisoned is in a story call “ Letter from Birmingham Jail” the show the cost of freedom.Another one is an article called How many Americans have died in U.S. War that show the cost that people are will to take to protest freedom.But some people believed it do not cost anything to have.

In 1955 Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to vacate her seat for a white woman on a Montgomery, Alabama bus. Following Park’s arrest, a group of Southern activists started the Montgomery Improvement Association and chose Mr. Martin Luther King Jr. as their leader. In order to garner support for his movement of desegregation, King called upon Southern church leaders to gather for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference to educate fellow black ministers and leaders on his ideas for direct action. About six years later, King was still helping to lead the fight for racial equality in the southern states. When Martin Luther King Jr. wrote “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” in April of 1963, he wrote with

Letter from a Birmingham Jail” is Martin Luther King Jr. response to several white clergymen who previously criticized the Southern Christian Leadership Conference protest in Birmingham Alabama. He argues how segregation in South is morally unjust and has systemically oppressed African Americans for over 300 years. The only way to fight this ongoing injustice is to create tension in the community. The clergymen disapprove of this method and calls for him to be patience instead of being radical. He responds by saying that this level of tension is needed and takes the term extremist as a compliment. Martin Luther King Jr. says in this argument: “the question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will we