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Martin Luther King's Ethos In Letter From Birmingham Jail

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Birmingham Jail Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the most iconic people of the 20th century. One of the reasons Martin Luther King Jr. was such a great and influential revolutionary in the context of civil rights is because of his mastery of ethos, pathos, and logos. Even today when mentioning King’s name in a conversation commands respect which shows just how great of a character he was, which demonstrates ethos. King also had the ability to connect emotionally with people of all different races and could easily be seen as an embodiment of the civil rights movement. Last, but not least King demonstrated logos through his words, he was a very well educated man who articulated himself well and could appeal to logic with ease. King’s “Letter …show more content…

Most people in this world aren’t born into this world alone, King knows this and reminds the clergymen and the white moderate that these people have families too. Even though slavery was abolished in 1865 racism has continued to dehumanize Black people. King has given these people an identity which humanizes them. Lastly King appeals to logos or the logical side of an argument. Similar to the other persuasive tool, King uses logos extremely effectively. King knowing his audience was clergymen and the white moderate, uses something that they cannot argue against, the Bible. King uses countless references to the Bible throughout “Letter from Birmingham Jail” and even wrote it in a format that is accustomed to the clergymen. King thought of everything when drafting this letter, which could be attributed to the fact that he was in jail and had countless hours to think. Just using one of these persuasive tools however was not enough to win over his audiences. King had to utilize each of them to get his point across. Each of King’s statements could not be boiled down to one single persuasive tool, therefore a lot of comorbidity exists within “Letter from Birmingham Jail”. Such as the difference between order and justice appeals to logos and

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In the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” by Martin Luther King, Jr., he explains to the eight clergy men, whom had previously criticized him, and to the rest of America about why he is in Birmingham. King wrote this letter to persuade and answer the criticism of why his present activities were NOT “unwise and untimely.” While writing this, King uses the three Aristotelian Appeals: ethos, pathos, and logos to fully explain his points. Throughout the second paragraph, Martin Luther King began to build his credibility.

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JoAnna Guzman AP English Period 4 Mrs. Solis 5 February 2018 Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr. letter “ Letter from Birmingham Jail” was a response to eight Alabama clergymen of 1963. The clergymen had accused King of being an “outsider” and interfering with the racial issues of the community of Birmingham. When writing in response to the eight clergymen from Alabama Martin Luther King Jr. uses the rhetorical device of historical and biblical allusions.

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Martin Luther King uses allusion in “Letter from Birmingham Jail” to add greater meaning to the cause he is defending. Dr. King includes many biblical references in his writing to compare the similarities between actions in the bible and his. For instance, Martin Luther King says “like Paul, I must constantly respond to the Macedonian call for aid.” Since Martin Luther King King is writing his letter to clergymen, his religious allusions are used to appeal to them; specifically, Dr. King brings up the point that certain tension is caused by people who have been subjected to grievances and believe “...that the white man is an incurable ‘devil.’” In saying this, Martin Luther King tells the clergymen that their sanctimonious acts and racial

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In these texts, King effectively persuades his audiences using pathos and logos. In Martin Luther King Jr. – “Letter from Birmingham Jail” he captures both pathos and logos. Dr. King

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They try to convince their audience that they are doing the right thing by using the three appeals; however, they both approach their arguments differently. King and Thoreau both use ethos to make their arguments seem credible. At the beginning of “Letter From a Birmingham Jail,” King announces he is “president of the Southern

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In 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. was sent to jail because of a peaceful protest, protesting treatments of blacks in Birmingham. Before the protest a court ordered that protests couldn’t be held in Birmingham. While being held in Birmingham, King wrote what came to be known as the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” Not even King himself could predict how much of an impact this letter would have on the Civil Rights Movement. In the letter kind defended Kings beliefs on Nonviolent Protests, King also counters the accusations of him breaking laws by categorizing segregation laws into just and unjust laws. King uses this principle to help persuade others to join him in his acts of civil disobedience.

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King was able to employ a number of persuasive devices when writing Letter from Birmingham Jail which only added to his own

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Though he comes off as respecting of the other clergymen, he essentially traps them into a corner of either betraying their faith and defying who they claim to be, Christian priests, or join him on the fight to racial and civil equality, appealing to the either/or fallacy. King asks his audience “the question is not whether we will be extremist, but… will we be extremist for hate or… for love?” The clergymen are compelled by guilt to be an advocate of love, rather than hate, otherwise they will be deceiving their church. King also appeals to guilt and an element of fear by mentioning specific examples of how the inequality is affecting both the People of Color but also those who are privileged, saying “ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in [the girl’s] little mental sky… developing an unconscious bitterness toward white people.” By including this powerful, intimate experience of a “colored child”, the clergymen cannot help but feel guilty and culpable for the distorted childhood that would eventually spiral into self-resentment and hatred towards the majority racial group.

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