Rhetorical Analysis Of Letter From Birmingham Jail

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

While imprisoned in Birmingham Jail, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. received a letter from the local clergymen that condemned his actions, calling them rash and extreme. In response, Dr. King wrote his own letter back defending his decisions. In his Letter from Birmingham Jail, Dr. King appeals to ethos and pathos as he attempts to convince the clergymen of the need for direct action in Birmingham, by showing the similarities in his own struggles and those faced by countless historical and biblical figures.

In Letter from Birmingham Jail Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is writing a letter in response to eight white Southern religious leaders. King begins by giving his reasoning for addressing them. He mentions that he usually doesn’t address the criticism he receives. He says, “But since I feel you are men of genuine good will and your criticisms are sincerely set forth, I would like to answer your statement in what I hope will be patient and reasonable terms.” (King 1) To me, it seems as if Dr. King had a bit of a sarcastic tone, and this is what intrigued me to read this letter.

In 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote Letter from Birmingham Jail that went on to become one of the most controversial and important pieces of work during the Civil Rights Movement. Like many other well written rhetorics, King alludes and uses Aristotle’s three main appeals: logos, pathos, and ethos. How does King uses these appeals in his rhetoric? King effectively uses these appeals to evoke his audience’s emotion to feel remorseful for the extremity that African Americans went through and dealt with.

In the midst of the Civil Rights movement, Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. found himself in a jail cell in Birmingham, Alabama, one of the most segregated cities in the United States at the time. While in that jail cell, King wrote Letter from Birmingham Jail in response to the city’s religious leaders. Through his use of ethos, pathos, and logos, King made a thought-provoking and powerful argument for the Civil Rights movement which continues to inspire change in the hearts of his audience, both implied and actual.

Injustice is a big problem in today’s society. Martin Luther King wrote the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” in which he addressed many forms of injustices that was present then and continue to be present in today’s world. Martin Luther King did a lot of things that still effect today. He got in trouble for some things as well; such as like protesting how blacks were treated. He was arrested and was sent to Birmingham City Jail. He wrote a letter to defend the strategies of nonviolent resistance to racism. He employs the use of pathos, ethos, and logos to support his argument that nonviolence resistance is definitive. Based on the pathos, ethos, and logos present in this letter, the article is overall effective to this argument.

Martin Luther King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is a great example of an effective and cleverly written response by a complex but yet sophisticated leader of our time. It was written in response to an editorial addressing the issue of Negro demonstrations and segregation in Alabama at the time. He delivers the message in a way with sneaky superiority. He is inviting and open allowing the clergymen to feel as though they have contributed and will contribute. He is not condescending or belittling in his approach. Even his opening is non-confrontational which is shown in his opening sentence: “My dear Fellow Clergymen” (03). King was an activist for civil rights during this time and came to Alabama to help out his fellow brothers that were

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.

It takes great determination to achieve great goals.  Determination is like a freight train, it takes a great force to get it started, but once it gets going, anything that stands in its tracks will be forced out of its way.  Likewise, for a train to stop it takes a long time and a lot of effort, that is why they just keep on going until they reach their destination.  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. knew this concept well.  In 1963, King wrote the “Letter from Birmingham Jail”.  Determined to destroy the injustice of racism in America, he set out with the goal of reaching his destination.  His undying will eventually landed him in a jail cell, but that did not stop him, he kept going and forced the obstacle aside.  From the jail cell, he wrote this letter.  In his letter, he talks about many different solutions that our nation could use to resolve the problem.  Committed to solve injustice no matter what came his way, Reverend King showed his determination in this letter using the three common rhetorical appeals of ethos, logos, and pathos.

Martin Luther King Jr. wrote an argumentative letter to respond to the editorial that the white clergymen of Birmingham, Alabama wrote. Dr. King was parading without a permit and therefore was arrested. Dr. King's attempt to obtain a permit was shot down by the local white government. He was determined to march against unjust laws and the right to vote. The result of his actions brought condemnation from the local white clergy. Dr. King’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” uses logos, ethos, and pathos to display criticism of the white moderate clergy. good opening paragraph. Nice revision on the model I placed on the board.

Dr. Martin Luther King was a Nobel Peace Prize winning minister whose cry for balance among the populace of our country wasn't being heard where it mattered. From a jail cell in Birmingham, Alabama Dr. King penned a letter compelling his audience to open their minds to see the genuine racial injustices being exhibited by our nation. He composed “A Letter from Birmingham Jail” using three persuasive techniques to persuade his readers to see things from the perspective of a “negro” man.

Martin Luther King Jr. compassionately responds to eight criticizing clergymen in “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. Refuting the opposition posed by the catholic church, King retorts in a non-confrontational manner, raising many topics to defend his nonviolent protest. King utilizes his time in jail to accurately represent the African American perspective, and the struggles that motivate them.

Martin Luther King Jr. marched the streets into Birmingham leading Fifty three fellow African Americans on Good Friday in 1963. King and his fellow African American’s were protesting about the already existing segregation laws: they were all arrested by clergymen and thrown into the Birmingham Jail. The clergymen of Birmingham wrote a letter, based on King’s and the other African American’s beliefs and protesting, asking the black community to stop the protesting of segregation laws. The letter king wrote in response to the clergymen is known as A Letter from a Birmingham Jail. This letter was a turning point for the Civil Rights Movement and provided inspiration to the racial equality ("Martin Luther King"). King’s letter strives to justify

On April 16, 1963, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a letter to the eight clergymen while he was incarcerated. Dr. King wrote this letter to address one of the biggest issues in Birmingham, Alabama and other areas within the United States. The “Letter from Birmingham Jail” discussed the great injustices that were happening during that time towards the black community. Dr. King wanted everyone to have the same equal rights as the white community, the he went into further details about the struggles that African Americans were going through for so many years, which he felt like it could change.

Writing from the heart, expressing feelings, having a strong emotional impact on ones audience, using an appeal to emotion and logic, using facts and presenting arguments in a professional way, to the enlightenment of one's viewers; Martin Luther King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail; consists of three Rhetorical Strategies throughout his letter that is known and taught around the world as ETHOS, PATHOS and LOGOS. An appeal to ethics, a means of convincing someone of the character or credibility of the persuader (ethos), an appeal to emotion, and a way of convincing an audience of an argument by creating an emotional response (Pathos), and finally, an appeal to logic, and is a way of persuading an audience by reason (Logos); these three Rhetorical Strategies are used countless times throughout Martin Luther King’s Letter for Birmingham Jail.