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Letter From Birmingham Jail Logos

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The Wait is Over Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most influential civil right activist, not only appeals to the logical side of his audience, but he is also reaching out to their emotional side. King wrote “Letter from Birmingham Jail” after being arrested for leading a peaceful demonstration against segregation. King responded back to the eight Alabama clergymen who did not agree with his actions. He makes it clear to the clergymen that they cannot keep telling African-Americans to “wait.” While rereading, I had the time to admire King's use of logos and pathos. King wrote back to the clergymen in disappointment because of the actions that were taking place in Birmingham. He knew that trying to negotiate with the government was pointless …show more content…

I agree with him that unjust laws are giving a false idea of superiority and just laws as something that will uplift other personalities, he states, “any law that degrades human personality is unjust. All segregation statutes are unjust because segregation distorts the soul and damages the personality” (King 3). This is important because he wants to informs his brothers and sisters that the government shouldn’t just focus only on themselves but think of the communities around them. For instance, King states “all sorts of devious methods are used to prevent negroes from becoming registered voters,” which in some countries African-Americans make up most of the populations yet their rights are taken away. Through the use of logos; the appeal to logic, King mentions, “I have been arrested on a charge of parading without a permit..” (King 4), which in the first amendment to the constitution, states anyone in the U.S has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and protest. King is not trying to change the laws, he just wants the government to be reasonable. Even with all of that he is facing, King provides the audience with Three Ways of Meeting

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King also points out the morality of such laws. He points out that they have waited for over 340 years for constitutional and God given rights. He continues giving his audience an insight when he mentions how countries like Africa and Asia are moving with “jet like speed toward political independence, but we still creep at horse-and buggy pace toward getting a cup of coffee at a lunch counter”(King, 1963, p.3, para.1). He continues to argue about unjust laws. Pointing out that laws were made for that exact justice.

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The right to fight Martin Luther King Jr. faced many difficulties when he visited Birmingham, but one he did not expect to face was the discrimination of his fellow clergymen, who stated that his decision to travel was unwise. King responded to their comment with the “Letter from Birmingham jail”. A well written piece which was eloquently written and geared to effectively prove to his peers that he deserves and has the right to be in Birmingham, having a profound effect on his audience due to his expert use of pathos, ethos, and logos. This provides a myriad of references and reasons to address the inhumanity of segregation, as well as his personal struggle to dissolve

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King uses multiple analogies throughout his letter such as when he compares his own demonstrations for justice to those of early Christians who were scorned by those who saw them as different. He stated “Whenever the early Christians entered a town, the people in power became disturbed and immediately sought to convict the Christians for being “disturbers of the peace” and “outside agitators.” But the Christians pressed on, in the conviction that they were a “colony of heaven,” called to obey God rather than man” (186). This analogy had a major impact because the letter was directed at leaders of the Christian church who were rejecting people just as the Christians were rejected. King was also very effective at using emotional proofs in his letter such as when he states “Birmingham is probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States.

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¨ I have a dream that my four little will one day live in on a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.¨ (King 263) Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote his ¨I Have a Dream¨ about the civil rights movement speech to read in front of hundreds of African American and white protesters at the Lincoln memorial in Washington. DC. He also wrote a letter in the Birmingham jail to 8 clergymen about an article they wrote in the newspaper. Dr. King uses logos and pathos in his¨I Have a Dream¨ speech and his ¨Letter From Birmingham Jail¨ to tell his readers and listeners what should happen in the civil rights movement.

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He then refers to his earlier statement about the apathy of the clergymen regarding the reason for the demonstrations, alluding to their anxiety over the protesters willingness to break the law. However, he brings up a dichotomy: the laxness and rigidity in which different laws are enforced. Namely, he sarcastically refers to the apprehensive enforcement of the 1954 Supreme Court decision outlawing segregation. Well, why are only some laws enforced? King answers this question by stating that there are two kinds of laws: just and unjust.

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Martin Luther King Junior was a prominent social activist during the Civil Rights Movement in the United States from the 1950s up until he was assassinated on April 4, 1968. MLK played a major role in ending segregation in the South and other areas of the nation, as well as the creation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. During his years as an activist, MLK was arrested numerous times and from one of these arrests, came the Letter from Birmingham Jail. In this letter, MLK Letter From Birmingham was addressed to several clergymen who criticised King’s actions during the Southern Christian Leadership Conference’s protests in Birmingham. Dr. King starts the letter off by letting the clergymen know that he does

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“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy” (King, Jr.). Martin Luther King Jr. exceeded this “measure of a man” during his civil rights acts as a strong soldier in a very volatile time. During this time of “challenge and controversy” King made himself heard in his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. In some of his civil rights acts that occurred in Birmingham, resulted in him ending up in jail. During his time in jail, he wrote his also famous “Letter From Birmingham Jail.”

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King’s main idea was to respond to the clergymen who had recently - in that time – made article entailing that his movements and actions were “unwise and untimely”. He unwittingly portrayed his position in these movements and adding points in religious texts that his actions were done before. In Letter from a Birmingham Jail, King apologizes to those who see civil disobedience as an act of defiance towards the nation. He elaborates on his actions explaining that laws are meant to be broken if unjust actions are taken place. Kings responds to the remarks of those who oppose him by adding a statement of his daughter where he has to explain why she is not allow into the amusement park.

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“We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped and robbed of their dignity…”(King 263). The speech, “I have a dream” by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was given on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to non-violent protesters for equal rights for African Americans. Counter to the speech, he also wrote the “Letter From Birmingham Jail” to respond to clergymen that had criticized him in the Newspaper.

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In the very first line, King states “while confined here in the Birmingham city jail” (King 1) to set an emotional tone by showing that his imprisonment was not warranted. King later explains that the demonstration was justified with another emotional play by claiming the African Americans in the community “were victims of a broken promise” and that their “hopes had been blasted” (King 2). King explains this was because they previously met with the Birmingham economic community in September to negotiate certain conditions to help resolve the racial issues. King asserts the promises of those conditions were not kept. Though King’s use of emotional appeals are abundant, King’s most potent example may come at the end of his letter when

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Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a letter in response to a published statement by eight clergymen while incarcerated in a Birmingham jail. In the statement, the clergymen defined King’s “present activities ‘unwise and untimely.’” (King 806) King wrote the response to correct the misconceptions held by the clergymen and to justify his nonviolent campaigns. He felt that the white power structure left the black community with no option but to persuade the community to face the issue directly. King targeted his “fellow clergyman”, the community, and churchgoers.he responded to the clergymen’s criticisms with patience.

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He was their voice. Throughout the “letter” Dr. King demonstrated pathos by engaging his readers of the struggle of being an African American descent. Dr. King starts off by letting his readers know that he was confined during the time of the letter was written and he was addressing the eight clergymen who called his action of a peaceful protest “untimely and unwise”. (King Jr., p. 645) However, he continues to explain his reason for being in Birmingham by saying that injustice was present and he could not just sit in another state and watch it;” Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

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Martin Luther King Jr. was a strong leader in the Civil Rights movement, the son and grandson of a minister, and one heck of a letter writer. As he sits in a cell of Birmingham Jail in 1963, he responds to criticism from eight white clergymen. Though this letter was intended for the judgemental and condescending men of high faith, his response touched the hearts and minds of the entire U.S. population, then, and for years to come. In his tear-jerking, mind-opening letter, King manages to completely discredit every claim made by the clergymen while keeping a polite and formal tone. Metaphors, allusions, and rhetorical questions are used in the most skillful way to support his argument and ultimately convince his audience of the credibility behind his emotional, yet factual, claims.

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Civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr, in his Letter from Birmingham City Jail, argues against criticism from eight Alabama clergymen, and addresses their concerns. He defends his position, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), against accusations of disturbing the peace in Birmingham, as well as explaining his values and opinions. Throughout the letter, King adopts a strong logical and credible tone, and reinforces his position through the use of strong emotional justifications, in order to appeal to the clergymen and defend his public image. Martin Luther King opens up his Letter from Birmingham City Jail by appealing to the clergymen's emotions, and assuring his peaceful response, which he describes in "patient and

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