Rhetorical Analysis Of Letter From Birmingham Jail

In paragraphs 12-14 of “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, Dr. King begins addressing the clergymen’s belief that the peaceful demonstrations conducted by him and his associates were untimely. King starts answering questions frequently heard by opposing or moderate forces, as well as essentially denouncing the resistance to desegregation. King then introduced the relationship between the oppressor and the oppressed; concluding that the oppressor is not inclined to act on things that do not directly affect them. Therefore, providing a platform of his argument as to why blacks could no longer wait to be given their basic human rights. Action needed to take place because fair treatment was no longer a hope to be given, it had to be taken.

Martin Luther King, Jr. writes from the Birmingham jail, where he is in prison for participating in nonviolent demonstrations against segregation, his response to a statement issued by eight white religious leaders of the South. King writes passionately about the sufferings caused by segregation and moves his argument along using tone. His letter can be broken down, based on tone, into five main sections. These five sections, when combined, make up one of the most irrefutable arguments of all time. By skillfully utilizing diction to create tone, King conveys his message to the United States that segregation is not just a law, it was now a way of life.

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.

King uses irony, by giving examples of him using peaceful actions that were condemned anyway because they were said to ?precipitate violence?. He went on to say, ?Isn?t that like condemning a robbed man because his possession of money precipitated in the evil act of robbery??(King 563). Dr. King also realizes that the white moderates are mostly religious. He reminds them ?Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability, it comes through tireless efforts of men willing to be co-workers with God??(King 563). Again, he urges the audience to get up and become active, and that there will be no change without their action.

Dr. King starts paragraph 12 with explaining why the clergymen were naive to say his protests were untimely. Dr. King poses a rhetorical question that shows he is cognizant of criticisms from opposing parties. The rhetorical question states why he did not give the new administration time to act. Dr. King responds by saying that the new administration “must be prodded as much as the outgoing one” (A Portable Anthology, page 206). Dr. King appeals to logos when he explains that even though the new mayor is a more generous person, he is still a segregationist, and

The strategies that King Jr. elucidates within this document to achieve these objectives are manifold. On the one hand he calls for peaceful, non-violent tactics most noticeably in the form of civic demonstrations in which he and his adherents readily accept any violence their actions might produce without resorting to violence themselves. Violence is one of the five forms of social oppression

Dr. King understands that the clergymen value negotiation over protest, but he insists that negotiations cannot happen without protest, which creates a “crisis” and “tension” that forces unwilling parties (in this case, the white business owners) to negotiate in good faith. He admits that words like “tension” frighten white moderates, but embraces the concepts as “constructive and nonviolent.” He provides examples that suggest tension is necessary for humans to grow, and repeats that the tension created by direct action is necessary in this case if segregation is to end.

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.

Another instance when Martin Luther King Jr. utilizes the tactic of directly addressing his audience to present his rebuttal is evident in the part of his letter beginning, "You may well ask: 'Why direct action? ... isn't negotiation a better path?' You are quite right in calling, for negotiation." In this example, he also uses appeal to logic as the main backbone of his argument but occasionally intertwines pathos and clever word choice along with the logos. As with the previous example, Martin Luther King Jr. first identifies a portion of his opponent's argument and slowly picks it apart. He accomplishes this by focusing on the word "tension." Through a comparison of violent tension, which is undesired, and nonviolent tension, which is constructive, he gradually establishes the concept that the "constructive, nonviolent tension" will "help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood." King uses exceptional word choice, such as "dark depths" and "majestic heights," to accurately present his point of view. He then follows it up with "Too long has our beloved Southland been bogged down in a tragic effort to live in monologue rather than dialogue." His statement not only uses logical reasoning to identify the necessity for negotiation, but

In King’s essay, “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, King brilliantly employs the use of several rhetorical strategies that are pivotal in successfully influencing critics of his philosophical views on civil disobedience. King’s eloquent appeal to the logical, emotional, and most notably, moral and spiritual side of his audience, serves to make “Letter From Birmingham Jail” one of the most moving and persuasive literary pieces of the 20th century.

“Letter from Birmingham Jail,” by Martin Luther King, Jr., is a letter in which King is writing to his “fellow clergymen” in a response to their recent criticism of the actions he was leading in Birmingham at the time. The letter was written in April of 1963, a time when segregation was essentially at a peak in the south. Birmingham, in particular, is described by King as “probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States” (King 7). King goes on to inform the clergymen of the reality of the situation where he is and how waiting isn’t an option anymore. In the letter, King uses a variety of rhetorical

King demonstrates how his peaceful, non-violent protests do not advocate violence, which is exactly what the clergymen feared from Malcolm. Kings intensity and magnitude of his statements show that he believes both paths he mentions are wrong, as he states, “I have tried to stand between these two forces.” King attempts to stay between the extremes and remind people that he is the middle ground. King emphasizes that he is not an extremist, rather, he is a moderate attempting to find the most favorable solution to both his and the clergymen’s problems. In conclusion, King juxtaposes these two extremist views in order to demonstrate how his practical and non-violent protests should be encouraged.

In the beginning paragraphs, King states the main goals of his letter. He then goes on to set up the main points of his argument by stating, “You deplore the demonstrations taking

King believes direct actions are better than just waiting for changes to happen. In his letter, he says to the clergyman “why direct action? Why sit-ins, marches and so forth? Isn’t negotiation a better plan?”. He then says, negotiation is usually a better choice but, If nobody is willing to listen to him other actions become necessary. He continues by saying that nonviolent direct actions seek to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has consistently refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. King’s views is that actions speak

King organized one of the most know boycotts in the U.S history. The Montgomery bus boycott goes down in the books for resulting in desegregated buses in Alabama. “We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” is stated by King, explaining how we must come together as one, or we will be shot down. Today, we still see Defacto in the U.S, however now we are coming together as one and fighting against those negative stereotypes. King’s displays of non-violent protest that actually got the change he wanted, is influencing how protesters are protesting. Now, there is more peaceful protest being used in the U.S more than there ever was. Nevertheless, we still have figures in authority saying peaceful protest should be a crime, that we should punish those who are fighting for what they believe in. Despite the people having the right to peaceably assemble, meaning the president is attempting to deny us of our constitutional rights, being unconstitutional