Rhetorical Analysis Letter From A Birmingham Jail

During the 1960’s, racism was still a prominent problem in America. The Civil Rights Movement was under way. African Americans were fighting for their basic human rights. One of the most notable figures of the Civil Rights Movement was Martin Luther King Jr. He fought for African American’s rights using nonviolent resistance; however, during a protest in Birmingham, Alabama, Dr. King was thrown into jail. While in his jail cell, Dr. King wrote a letter to clergymen from the Birmingham jail claiming his stance on peaceful confrontation on defending African American’s human rights. In his letter, Dr. King uses rhetorical devices to strengthen his argument in his letter to the clergymen. In Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham

Martin Luther King, Jr. sat in Birmingham jail not because he committed a crime but because he took part in a non-violent demonstration. King received an invite to a nonviolent demonstration by a local church and was later jailed for his actions (King 1). While in jail, King reflected on the injustice in not only Birmingham, but the world as well. King addressed injustice as a universal wrong which can only be undone by people themselves and not by action forced by the government. He quickly announced that keeping the peace and obeying the law are not the same, the people ahead do not simply relinquish their role because of the selfishness of the human nature. Those who are oppressed will seek to leave injustice behind. Martin Luther

It is known to all that Martin Luther King is a famous person in America, who strongly goes against the racial discrimination all the time. Here, in this letter, Letter from Birmingham Jail, it is easy for us to realize that racial discrimination appears and the non-violence action is still serious at that time. As a matter of fact, this letter is coming from the people in the Birmingham jail, stating their inner thoughts about the non-violence action, which just goes against the violence and the injustice in most cases. Although this essay response intends to provide the people in the Birmingham Jail of how to solve the serious problems of the

The fight for civil rights and freedom is a reoccurring subject that has appeared throughout American history. Henry David Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience” and Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter From Birmingham Jail” were written over one hundred years apart. Although they are set in different time periods, they discuss the rights the American people should have, while also criticizing the people with superior power in the government. Thoreau’s aggressive writing style and King’s peaceful, calm style help to deliver their messages. Not only their writing style but also their emotional appeals, tone, and other rhetorical strategies help to give their audience a sense of the social issues they are disagreeing strongly with.

In the essay, Letter From Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. considers the accusation from other clergymen that his nonviolent protests are “extreme”. In his essay he uses many rhetorical devices to respond to his critics. At first, being categorized as “an extremist” disappointed him but as he contemplated the issue, he began to gradually embrace and relish the label that was given him.

King’s tone appears outwardly polite and deferential. However, the first hint of irony is when he uses ‘secretary’ in the plural, suggesting that he considers himself above them in material means. however, at the end of the first paragraph, he writes that he would try and answer their criticism in ‘patient’ terms. Since we are normally the most patient with people below our mental level, this changes his tone to tolerant and somewhat condescending, suggesting that he is doing them a great favor by taking the time to ‘answer their statement.’

The rhetorical triangle has been used for many centuries in writings, and speeches. The triangle is composed of three parts, and all three parts influence each other in communicating the information being delivered. The first part of the triangle is the Logos (logic) which provides facts, statistics, evidence from studies, and historical precedent. The second part of the triangle is the emotion known as the Pathos. On the pathos, the person delivering the communication appeals to the reader’s superiority with personalized issues, and associates with admirable people. The third part of the rhetorical triangle deals with ethics referred to as the Ethos. The ethos establishes credibility, trustworthiness, educational background, and challenges conventional wisdom. Many people have used the rhetorical triangle throughout history to convey information, one person to use the triangle effectively was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. On a “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, King used the three parts of the triangle to explain to the clergymen the motives for protesting.

Martin Luther King Jr. led a nonviolent protest against segregation that led to equality for African-Americans; however, not everyone agreed that King conducted his actions in a “timely manner.” After eight Alabaman clergyman criticized King for making the situation in Alabama worse, King writes the “Letter from Birmingham Jail as a response to the clergyman and a justification for his actions. King uses pathos, ethos, and logos to prove his claim that his actions occurred in a timely manner.

“Letter from Birmingham Jail” indicates the struggles Martin Luther King Jr previously dealt with in an attempt to end segregation. MLK uses rhetorical devices such as allusion, pathos and anaphora to assist his reasoning. The devices applied help MLK direct and relate the conditions African Americans were facing due to their discrimination.

Martin Luther King, Jr. was a powerful speaker and a major contributor in the Civil Rights movement. One would think that because of the type of person he was, he would never end up in jail. Unfortunately that is exactly where he ended up due to the injustice that he faced in Birmingham, Alabama. He wrote a persuasive, straight to the point letter directed towards the white church and to those who sit idly by doing nothing about the racial injustice that engulfs the community of Birmingham. Kings argument in “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was so coercive and successful at piquing the readers’ emotions by his use of pathos in a way that typifies inactions and hypocrisy.

Throughout the letter, King illustrates the struggles systematic racism have on the psyches on black people within the nation and how it propagates socioeconomic imbalances, “twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society,” (King #15) by the usage of vivid imagery King invites audiences, primarily white America to glimpse at the reality of black struggle insteading of purposefully veiling themselves in ignorance. Capturing emotional responses through short narratives involving his own children and life experiences to accomplish the set goal of creating a conversation of raw honesty for true change to occur on a judicial level, “see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told Funtown is closed to colored children, and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental sky.” (King #15) Through wholeheartedly eliudiating segregation impact on the youth of the time King strikes a fundamental cord in audiences -- the impact institutionalized racism has on future generations and in turn the future of

Each essayist has some kind of drive when composing a bit of work. Regardless of whether that drive originates from an innovative source or the need to demonstrate a point, it exists. For Martin Luther King Jr. that drive was the need to put a conclusion to racial treachery that appeared to be all around. Martin Luther King Jr's. "Letter from Birmingham Jail" is an impeccable illustration. "Letter from Birmingham Jail" was King's reaction to eight priests' "A Call for Unity." His drive originated from the pastors' unjustifiable suggestions and allegations. This letter permitted King to propose a rejoinder as well as to legitimize his own particular common insubordination, and additionally

In “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Martin Luther King Junior uses logos and allusion to persuade the reader on the values of civil disobedience. A prime example of logos in this text is, “An unjust law is a code inflicted upon a minority which that minority had no part in enacting or creating because they did not have the unhampered right to vote(MLK, 13).” This example of logos shows the reasoning for civil disobedience and why people act upon it. For a minority to be targeted by a law that they had no part in is intolerable. The primary value for civil disobedience is equality. For a country to have a law against a minority is against the beliefs and values of civil disobedience. “There are just and there are unjust laws… An unjust law is

Late civil rights leader, Martin Luther King, in his detrimental letter to the eight religious leaders, “The Birmingham Jail” , conveys and expresses his feelings of religious and civil injustice of segregation against not just African Americans but also the general public. King primarily aimed his letter at the eight religious leaders of the Southern Church but also extended it to encompass the president down to those of ordinary citizens. To persuade his readers King prominently exercising the three basic appeals of ethos, logos and pathos, by not only appealing to his own insight but invoking feelings of morality, sympathy , and justice in the readers. Finally we see him appeal to logic, but supporting his assertions with evidence

Civil disobedience is a way to peacefully protest and release the negative feelings we have toward the injustices many of us face throughout our lives. These issues we face can have a detrimental impact in our development and our way of thinking, but there are ways that we can overcome this and be successful. In Letter from Birmingham, Martin Luther King Jr. expresses topics that are socially uncomfortable, politically contentious, religiously irrelevant, and culturally radical. But, he also demonstrates how peaceful protest can be used to successfully battle social injustice and improve our wellbeing.