Rhetorical Devices In Letter From Birmingham Jail

Dr. King was arrested in 1963 in the struggle for civil rights for African-Americans. “The Letter from Birmingham Jail”, written a few days after King’s arrest, defended Dr. King’s argument about the civil rights movement. He uses the pathos, ethos, and logos modes of persuasion and uses several rhetorical strategies such as metaphors, citing authority, parallelism, Rogerian strategy, and anaphora to defend his argument against racism and segregation.

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

What do you visualize when you think of a jail cell? Some might see restraints blocking them off from the rest of the world, feel cold metal or scratchy cloth against their skin, or experience the stench of sweat and despair. Martin Luther King Jr. saw a quiet place to write. After being arrested under the charge of “parading without a permit,” Dr. King used his eleven days in the Birmingham City Jail to respond to one specific instance of criticism through a letter geared to each of the many audiences that needed to learn about the desegregation campaign. Mr. King’s “Letter From Birmingham Jail” is absolutely effective at convincing the overall audience to join and

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

In Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s Letter from the Birmingham Jail, he argues that segregation is inhumane and is hurting the American society as a whole. All the time and energy that goes into segregation is slowing down the American society’s progress to succeed as a nation. He uses several rhetoric strategies that help adopt a tone that is both personal and logical. King was able to incorporate the rhetoric triangle into his letter and still managed to address his arguments. While using pathos, ethos, and logos, Martin Luther King Jr. was able use the clergymen’s accusations to successfully promote his own views and opinions instead.

Civil Rights Activist Martin Luther King Jr in his persuasive letter, “letter from Birmingham jail” argues against segregation by using rhetorical devices. Martin Luther King Jr’s purpose is to express his struggles through segregation, he adopts an aggressive tone to get his point across to people in power.

In paragraphs 10 through 19 of Martin Luther King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail, he argues for the urgency of changing segregation laws. King’s arguments in this letter are in response to a publication in the local newspaper by “Eight Alabama Clergymen.” These clergymen were white moderates who basically straddled the fence on the issue of segregation. Due to their neutral stance, King felt he could really convince these men that some laws needed to be changed. In paragraphs 10 and 11, King is refuting the clergymen’s statement that he should not be causing tension through demonstrations. In paragraphs 12, 13, and 14, King is responding to the clergymen's declaration that his demonstrations were “untimely.” In paragraphs 15 through 19, King provides a rebuttal to the clergymen’s statement that he is an extremist that breaks the law. In these paragraphs, King uses various rhetorical strategies or devices to make his argument.

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.

King’s salutation establishes his credibility by proving that he knows his audience and purpose, and it immediately reveals that his goal is to justify his position and not unleash a vicious attack on the clergymen. This simple salutation makes the audience more open to his thoughts, as they realize that the goal isn’t to vilify. His immediate audience is the Birmingham clergymen, and his broader audience is the group of white segregationists. In addition, one of his main points in the article is unity, and addressing the clergymen in this manner emphasizes that theme from the beginning.

“What else is there to do when you are alone for days in the dull monotony of a narrow jail cell other than write long letters, think strange thoughts, and pray long prayers?” This is a quote by Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin Luther King, Jr. effectively illuminates the clergymen of his appeal for civil rights through the use of tone, rhetorical appeals, and tools.

“A Letter From Birmingham Jail” by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was written during the peak of the civil rights movement. In the letter, Dr. King uses many rhetorical devices to discuss the racial discrimination that was sweeping the nation. Although Dr. King is presently seen as an American hero, during the Civil Rights Movement he was simply seen as another negro trying to break the social norm. In "Letter From Birmingham Jail," Martin Luther King uses many rhetorical devices to counter the arguments made by eight white clergymen.

In August of 1963 while confined in Birmingham Jail, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote to the religious leaders of Birmingham, who had voiced discontent regarding the recent demonstrations taking place in Birmingham. The letter written by Dr. King, not only gathered local attention, but also brought awareness nationwide to the growing civil rights movement. In this analysis, I will identify Dr. Kings intended purpose in writing this letter, its directed audience, and the techniques that made it effective.

One of the most famous documents in American history is the 1963 letter written by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from his jail cell in Birmingham, Alabama. Dr. King was considered the most prominent and persuasive man of The Civil Rights Movement. He was an ordained minister and had his doctorate degree in theology by the time he was twenty-five years old. In Montgomery, Alabama, King served as a pastor. He also served as a president or leader of several notable associations.

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.

Martin Luther King “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, was written in 1963, while African and Americans were fighting fblak and white. King wrote this letter in responses to a publish statement by eight fellows clergymen from Alabama. His argument against the belief that his actions in the Human Rights Movement. King’s purpose is trying to convince clergymens that him demonstrate because it was absolutely necessary in that time. King used logos, pathos, and ehos throughout his piece. He also use condemnatories and persuasives tones to try to influence of the reader to agree. By appealing to the masses, King is able to convey his argument effectively and powerfully and makes it difficult to disagree after reading such a moving and compelling piece of literature.