Mlk's Letter To The Birmingham Jail

In Dr. King’s, "Letter from Birmingham Jail,” King specifically writes to the Clergymen of Birmingham, AL. While taking into consideration those who might hear his acknowledgments of what’s going on, to justify and explain his intentions, while also trying to appeal to these audiences to make them see the harsh consequences of unfair and biased inequalities that consume the city of Birmingham Al., during this time. Dr. King specifically writes this letter to the priest who had insinuated that the situation of racial discrimination was controlled by those of the law and authority, which they felt was not to involve Dr. King and his followers.

Martin Luther King wrote the “Letter From Birmingham Jail,” after an unfair proposal made by white clergymen. Their claims were that no negro should be allowed to establish or lead any protests. King replied directly to the clergymen, but used religious ties to establish himself as legitimate authority in the eyes of his audience, to show the inconveniences of black people in America, to justify his cause, and to argue the necessity of the immediate action. In the passage King used both ethos and pathos.

1.In the letter “Letter From Birmingham Jail” Dr.King is making the charge. The charge that he is making is that if the church does not get it together, no one is going to take the church seriously.

I think Martin Luther King(MLK), JR.’s letter relates to the civil rights timeline by in MLK’s letter he refers to 1954’s timeline. An example is “Since we so diligently urge people to obey the supreme court's decision of 1954 outlawing segregation in public schools, at first glance it may seem rather paradoxical for us consciously to break laws.” This shows that he did talk about 1954’s timeline. His letter influences the events because in the timeline 1964 it states “Congress passes the civil rights act, declaring discrimination based on race illegal.” And in 1965 “A march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, leads to the signing of a new voting rights act.” This shows that MLK’s letter had an effect on the events in the timeline.

In “Letter from Birmingham Jail” MLK is trying to create equality for all human beings. He is telling citizens to fulfill their moral duty and disobey segregation laws. Saying ‘injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere’. While in Harrison Bergeron a very critical view of equality is set. Vonnegut feels that society is over obsessed with equality which is ruining it. He feels that equality sometimes puts a handicap on those who are truly talented.

In his "Letter," Martin Luther King Jr.'s ability to effectively use pathos, or to appeal to the emotions of his audiences, is evident in a variety of places. More particularly in paragraph fourteen, King demonstrates his ability to inspire his fellow civil rights activists, invoke empathy in the hearts of white moderates, and create compassion in the minds of the eight clergyman to which the "Letter" is directed.

On April 16th ,1963, MLK wrote his well-known “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” in order to address that if you believed in something, which was equality at that time, then you have a moral obligation to do something about it. If one does nothing about the problem, then you are part of the problem itself. This important message striked the “Negro community with no alternative” other than to fight for their rights as citizens and human beings. Nevertheless, many believed that because MLK was not from the City of Birmingham he possessed no rights to protest; however, MLK proved himself qualified by stating that as the president of SCLC and similarities between him and apostle Paul, he had a moral duty to fight the injustices of discrimination

MLK Jr’s letter is intended to reach the white people, who he was discriminated from. MLK Jr. is showing how it is like living life while being discriminated by writing the letter from Birmingham Jail. He wants to show how the discriminated people are feeling and being treated. If it reaches the white people, they might understand how it is like to be treated unfairly.

In MLK's letter to the eight clergymen from Alabama, he focus on addressing the fact that the clergyman believe “his present activities are unwise and untimely”. MLK begin the letter by stating all his credentials which show that he is educated enough in the matter to further along the cause of ending the the segregation. His purpose while not evident in the first paragraph of his letter is seen later on when he states “ I am in Birmingham because injustice is here” ( Do I have to cite the letter) and then again when he says “ injustice anywhere is a threat to injustice everywhere” (CITE). His purpose in the letter is to rebut not only the eight clergymen, but also white men as a whole. While his letter does not urge the clergyman to pick a side with or againsts the civil right activist but more like he explains the need for direct action which you can see when he says “the purpose of our direct-action program is to create a situation so crisis-packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation”.

Dr. Martin Luther King wrote a letter from Birmingham jail on April 16, 1963. The letter was written in response to his “fellow clergymen,” stating that Dr. King’s present activities was “unwise and untimely.” The peaceful protest in Birmingham was perceived as being extreme. The letter from Birmingham Jail was a letter of grievance to the white clergy, and their lack of support in the civil rights movement. Dr. King explained in his letter the difference between what is just and what is unjust and his reasons being in jail at Birmingham. He believed clergymen are men of genuine good will and that they deserve a response, so Martin Luther king wrote a letter from Birmingham Jail.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. motivation to write “Letter From Birmingham Jail” was to address the injustice he received during his time of his incarceration. King felt distraught and deeply offended by the treatment of the clergymen. He decided that it was useful to put his emotions on paper to express how to best explain his unlawful situation. King wrote this letter with disapproval, sorrow, and disappointment to convey his principles were wrongly tried. He used this letter to justify his reasoning for nonviolent acts of defiance against segregation. Dr. King structured his counterargument for the clergymen after listening to his view, then used ethos, logos, and pathos to make an appeal to his readers his perspective about the unfair treatment of African Americans.

One evening in jail, a young man by the name of Martin luther king jr, received a letter outlining the the concerns of eight clergymen in reference to the demonstrations taking place of which he was a clergyman to. Martin was always aware of the criticism and retaliation of other and learn to keep order with it. But for some reason, this letter struck him, and he decided he must write a response to this letter. MLK being one of the most influential people in the world today, wrote a response letter to the right clergymen highlighting the concerns of being an outsider, having untimely and unwise demonstrations, and having extreme ideas.

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s, “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” emphasizes the need for civil disobedience when faced with unjust laws. This idea contradicts Socrates’ claim made in Crito, that one must follow the law under all circumstances. In this paper, I will argue that Socrates is not a proponent of civil disobedience based on King’s definition of civil disobedience and Socrates’ charges. Moreover, I will argue that both Socrates and King disagree with one another based on the concept of civil disobedience—breaking the law and rejecting certain ideals.

Aristotle, a famous philosopher once said: “ It is absurd to hold that a man ought to be ashamed of being unable to defend himself with his limbs but not of being unable to defend himself with speech and reason, when the use of reason is more distinctive of a human being than the use of his limbs” (Aristotle). He believed that rhetoric was more powerful than fists would ever be. Another man, a very influential social activist, shared the same ideals, preaching to his people to fight for their freedom with words and not their fists. Martin Luther King Jr. used the power of rhetoric during the civil rights movement to gain equality for the black community. MLK was a master of rhetoric and used his knowledge of proper arguments to sway the

Letter from the Birmingham City Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr argues about how defending the use of nonviolent civil disobedience brings out legal change. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led a boycott defending racism and later on becoming the prime spokesman for the American civil rights movement. However, during the 1960s, many public businesses were segregated and blacks experienced acts of discrimination and violence. In 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested and sent to jail for practicing nonviolent disobedience acts that blacks encountered. While Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was in jail, he wrote an open letter that was intentionally meant to his clergymen using a pen that was smuggled in by his lawyers along with sheets of paper that was lying around. After time past, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated in the year of 1968. Surprisingly, his letter became the most famous document during the movement and printed nearly a million copies.