Rhetorical Analysis Of Letter From Birmingham Jail

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In Martin Luther King’s “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, he discusses the reasoning behind his movement to end segregation using non-violent strategies that were often questioned by those around him. These non-violent actions often took him to places all across the southern United States where discrimination and segregation was rampant. In this letter, King used many literary strategies that helped him convey his ideas.
Martin Luther King would use rhetorical terms throughout his letter to portray to readers why these non-violent actions are just and timely. The exigence of this letter is that King had gone down to the town f Birmingham to participate in non-violent actions. These actions ultimately sent him to prison where King

Often times in his letter, Martin Luther King would compare his actions to those from the bible. He would do this because many people in the south believe that the bible speaks of nothing but truth and justice. King is able to inform the readers that his actions today are no different than those that the reader supports from the bible. He states in his letter that, “Just as the Apostle Paul left his village of Tarsus and carried the Gospel of Jesus Christ to practically every hamlet and city of the Greco-Roman world, I too am compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my particular hometown”(1). Comparing himself to the apostle Paul is so critical in this letter because Paul had done many great things to help spread the faith of Christ throughout most of the Greco-Roman world. These religious leaders then would see that this act of discrimination correlates the catholic faith. Similar to the discrimination of blacks in the U.S., the Christian faith was oppressed by the Romans and often time’s people were persecuted because of this faith. King not only compared himself and his actions to ones from the bible, but also from important events throughout

Throughout the letter, Martin Luther King would use words that would make the reader feel close to King. King would go on saying, “But when you have seem viscous mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your brothers and sisters with impunity”(2). In this section and throughout the letter, Martin Luther King uses family words such as mother, father, brother, and sister. The reasoning behind this is because using these words makes the reader feel as if they are now a part of the discrimination. Using this strategy causes the reader to imagine what would I do if my family were being discriminated in this way. More often than not, people will go out to help their friends or family. When King uses these kinds of words it creates a feeling in the reader that they should support these non-violent actions. King used this to his advantage by tying in these feelings with very upsetting emotions.