Rhetorical Analysis Mlk Letter from Birmingham Jail Essay

Lastly, King appeals to character as well as establishing his creditability. For starters, the the vocabulary King chose to use shows that he is educated and possesses the knowledge to respond to the clergymen. King also informed the clergymen that he had previous experience in conducting and participating in non-violent campaigns. This provides credibility because it showed that he had prior knowledge of the behavior and purpose of those participating, while also addressing that past campaigns have always been “untimely”, but with desired outcome. The last and most obvious proof of credibility, is that King was a black man that faced the same adversities that he referred to in the last paragraph of this section. The example being of having to personally tell his daughter why she could not be allowed to go to a public amusement park because she was black and looked at as less than.

In order for King to persuade the audience of his purpose, justifying direct action, he must explain logically to the audience his claims about the issue. “Logos” also known as logical appeal is argument based on facts and reason. Once King has the intended respect from the clergyman, he begins to prove to the clergyman about the

Thesis: King brilliantly applies rhetorical strategies such as pathos, logos and ethos that are crucial in successfully influencing detractors of his philosophical views on civil disobedience.

To begin, King uses techniques of diction like antithesis and connotation to help get his message across to the clergymen. First, he develops antithesis to strengthen his purpose. King makes this stand out to the clergymen by putting words together such as, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere,"and “...freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed,”so they take notice wording. (282, 284) King wants this to stand out for the clergymen and notice the opposite meanings. This helps bring attention to the opposite words being placed together to get across Drawing the clergymen to pay closer attention It builds on what he truly wants to get across. King uses the words “never” and “must” to build emotional appeals with the clergymen, but also have them have a sense of what is going through his mind, when he is protesting willing in the streets of Birmingham. He wants to make them see truly the effects the African Americans have gone through either segregation and make them realize how they are at fault for continuing to support this behavior and not help out. “Injustice” and “Justice” help force the clergymen to take notice of the powerful association and have them think over it. It stands out as they read the letter, but also makes them think over it as they continue reading. The phrase makes the clergymen wonder if what

Thoreau and King use rhetorical devices repeatedly throughout their writings to help them convey their messages to their audience. A rhetorical device that is utilized most in these writings are three emotional appeals: pathos, logos, and ethos. In King’s letter, his first two paragraphs contain ethos. He is building his credibility as to why he is responding to the clergymen. He states some of the groups he is a part of and has affiliated with while holding his position as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. The group has organizational ties in many of the southern

King then sums up this passage by turning his voice back to the clergymen he's addressing and says, "Then you will understand why we find it difficult to

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.

First Martin Luther King effectively makes use of logos throughout his letter. He clarifies all of the reasons for his arguments and supports them

     Martin Luther King Jr. writes the Clergymen that have written him a letter disputing his actions in Birmingham. King is disturbed and offended by the Clergymen disagreeing with his purpose in Birmingham. King say he normally does not respond to criticism because it would waste to much precious time, but since these were men of good will he wanted to give his answers to their statements. In King's letter he appeals to many emotions as pathos, ethos, and logos to appeal to his audience.

Obviously, again my primary motivation for writing my Rhetorical Analysis of Martin Luther King’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” is that this is a requirement for my English Composition Class. My heartfelt motivation for writing my Rhetorical Analysis is the respect I have for Martin Luther King’s intelligence and commitment that he displayed for the equality of the African American population. In analyzing “Letter from a Birmingham Jail”, I developed an even stronger understanding of the dedication Mr. King had for the disadvantaged poor black population and the injustice that victimized them on a daily basis.

King’s audience is the clergy, men who are familiar with biblical figures and events. His allusions to religion

Dr. King states in the beginning of his letter that “[He had] the honor of serving as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization operating in every Southern state, with headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.” (paragraph 1) He does this to produce a sense of leadership and credibility so that the readers acknowledge the fact that he understands exactly what he is discussing. This also sets the stage for an intelligent debate over the issues proposed by the clergymen and the issues that Dr. King fights for. He continues to use logos throughout his letter to announce his credibility inside the church when referencing the indifferent white ministers; “I say it as a minister of the gospel, who loves the church; who was nurtured in its bosom; who has been sustained by its spiritual

Ethos, Pathos, and Logos are used to persuade the audience that one’s ideas are correct. Throughout the essay, King use of ethos (comparison), pathos (emotional tools), and logos (contrasting terminology creates a powerful tone to complement his strong opinions. King’s use of these literary tools in "Letter from Birmingham Jail" allows him to convey his ideas to the readers and help them understand how racial prejudice must be combated.

In his letter, King uses all three modes of persuasion- ethos, logos, and pathos. King addresses all of the clergymen's concerns methodically and answers them both with clear, indisputable facts and with emotional appeals to allow the reader a closer and honest view of a colored person's life in the South at the time. King uses ethos to establish his character, but also to reassure the reader of his intentions. In this letter King keeps his tone unemotional and informative allowing logic to prevail. Throughout his letter King is successful using metaphors and imagery to express ideas or emotions that would otherwise be difficult for the reader to grasp.

While the pathos was highly mentioned in the above paragraphs of this essay through the way he mentions his family and children, the use of ethos might be concealed by the pathos. While he states the information of how there are just and unjust laws, he then states “I would be the first to advocate obeying just laws”( 14). That statement itself shows he is trying to persuade others to follow the laws because he himself, a good person who is fighting for what he believes is right would do it as well. Not only this, but it would have many people respect him for the fact that he follows the laws which he believes are just, meaning he has morality and logic which guides him instead of just emotions. Combining this with the pathos used throughout the paragraph strengthens it to the point in which people will fully sympathize with him and follow him on whichever journey he takes. Not necessarily because of his letter and bravery to stand up to a few comments given to a newspaper, but rather for his bravery altogether in the letter and how he connects himself with others then explains underneath the words how he sets the example for other men and women who are angry with the