Rhetorical Analysis Of Letter From Birmingham Jail

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr once said, “Any law that degrades human personality is unjust.” These words came from a letter written by Dr. King to defend himself from the accusations put against him. In a newspaper article directed towards Dr. King eight clergymen accused him of being unwise and untimely after being arrested for a peaceful protest he had in Birmingham. Dr. King did an incredible job using rhetorical strategies to prove to the clergymen that he was not unwise or untimely and to convince them that they should support him rather than to criticize him.

To begin with, King made an exceptional use of ethos to build credibility. To be specific, King shows himself to be reasonable and unbiased by the tone of his diction and how he is

6). By doing this, he is trying to prove to the clergymen that there was planning and reasoning behind the peaceful protest he conducted. In terms of timing, King explains “that "justice to long delayed is justice denied."” (par.13). By doing this, he is trying to say that if they were to wait and not take action the same cycle would keep happening over and over again. King also takes great length t0 distinguish between just and unjust laws. He describes “ Any law that degrades human personality is unjust. All segregation statutes are unjust because segregation distorts the soul and damages the personality ” (par. 16). He shares all this in hopes that the clergymen and others will understand that it is morally incorrect for segregation to be practiced because everyone should be treated equally. Finally, King tells them “I had also hoped that the white moderate would reject the myth concerning time in relation to the struggle for freedom” (par. 26). Additionally, King proves he isn't an outsider to the clergymen when he says “I am here because I have organizational ties here” (par.2) he says this because it's to show the clergymen he has acquaintances in Birmingham who invited him out to support the

He does a good job at making them feel shameful for commending the police. King specifically says “ I doubt that you would have so warmly commended the police force if you had seen its dogs sinking their teeth into unarmed, nonviolent Negroes” (par.45). He does this so that the clergymen will feel bad for saying the protesters were in the wrong and not the policemen. He also speaks out about his disappointment in the church saying that they have remained “silent behind the anesthetizing security of stained-glass windows.” (par.35) to try and persuade the church into making a change to support the cause rather than to ignore it like it wasn't happening. Equally important, King brings upon feelings of sympathy and compassion to convince the clergymen what they're going through is what no one should ever have to go through. To be specific, King states “when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim” and “when you … explain to your six-year-old daughter why she can't go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised… and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children”. These examples make the clergymen imagine the struggles and pain they are put through just because they don't have the same color of skin as others. His goal