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Rhetorical Devices In Letter From Birmingham Jail

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The desire to change and inspire is a part of most people; sometimes it is because of our natural selfishness, and other times it is because we truly care for others and their ideas. The power of words is compelling; not because it forces you to do something, but because it forces you to think of something. Writing is the ultimate messenger, and it is a skill that some spend their lives perfecting. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was written from a solitary cell in Birmingham, Alabama. He had been arrested while participating in a peaceful anti-segregation march in 1963. King’s major “duty,” exposing and abolishing racism, is established through his use of rhetorical devices. His (often accidental) writing strategies …show more content…

Using the word “fellow” puts King on the white clergymen’s level or even above them, demonstrating that he is qualified and knows what he is talking about. The art of sounding polite and demanding seems to come naturally to King, and because of this he gains a large following of people. His strong diction establishes his tone and the reader is left knowing King is clever and …show more content…

In paragraph eleven, King uses an anaphora to list examples of oppression and convey a sense of urgency through the letter. The repetition of “when you” causes the reader to feel at fault, especially because King is describing some horrifying instances; this forces the audience to put themselves in the shoes of a black person living in America. The sympathy we feel is essentially King’s very effective use of pathos. By repeating “when you” ten times within one periodic sentence, (which is not completely grammatically correct) the final clause is enhanced. The suspense created through this anaphora accentuates his general statement at the end of the paragraph more effectively, and explains his main point being as well as the reason he is impatient for

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1060 Words | 5 Pages

In paragraphs 33 to 44 of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s response to “A Call for Unity,” a declaration by eight clergymen, “Letter from Birmingham Jail” (1963), he expresses that despite his love for the church, he is disappointed with its lack of action regarding the Civil Rights Movement. Through powerful, emotionally-loaded diction, syntax, and figurative language, King adopts a disheartened tone later shifts into a determined tone in order to express and reflect on his disappointment with the church’s inaction and his goals for the future. King begins this section by bluntly stating that he is “greatly disappointed” (33) with the church, though he “will remain true to it as long as the cord of life shall lengthen” (33). By appealing to ethos and informing the audience of his history with the church, he indicates that he is not criticizing the church for his own sake, but for the good of the church.

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190 Words | 1 Pages

Throughout the essay “ Letter From Birmingham Jail. ''King gives the message to the people to have a moral obligation to violate unfair laws and to take immediate action as opposed to perhaps waiting an eternity for justice and racism to be served. King is telling his fellow black community to stand up and face these unfair actions that are being set for his people and to address the racism that is taking place. King uses two rhetorical strategies to convey his message to his audience. The first strategy king uses is the mode of argument to convey his message to his audience, he also uses the second strategy he uses repetition and parallelism.

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1166 Words | 5 Pages

At the end of his letter he addresses the clergymen " I also hope that circumstances will soon make it possible for me to meet each of you, not as an integrationist or a civil rights leader, but as a fellow clergymen and a Christian brother" (paragraph 7). This statement makes a claim the king wants to meet these seven clergymen in person and speak about the issues he wrote in this letter. Another rhetorical tool king uses in his letter are similes. This rhetorical tool helps king compare two things and address the point as he sees it. " Over the last few years I have consistently preached that nonviolence demands that the means we use must be as pure as the ends we seek" (paragraph 3).

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507 Words | 3 Pages

In King’s letter from Birmingham, he concludes his 50 paragraph letter by using specific rhetorical strategies in order to connect himself to the clergymen to whom he writes by shifting his tone from the disturbed and excited writing in the rest of the letter to one that is calm and composed toward his current situation in jail, and also by using more positive imagery and language. His attitude immediately changes in these closing three paragraphs in an attempt to assure the clergymen that he is reasonable in all his assertions, even asking for forgiveness for any over- or understated claims, apologizing for ever straying from the path of truth and patience, and he also asks “God to forgive [him]” (para. 49). After this last sentence of paragraph

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492 Words | 2 Pages

Prejudice is a major issue that has dominated the society for years. Many have spoken up against this discrimination, making their voices heard over the views of numerous people. Martin Luther King Jr., a civil rights activist in the mid-1900s, spoke and acted strongly against injustice against African Americans. In his “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” he uses powerful and eloquent language to display an ardent desire to influence people’s judgments and to encourage others to join him in making the society one of equality and justice rather than one of bias and hatred. Martin Luther King Jr. uses rhetorical strategies, purposeful word arrangement, and other literary devices to passionately express criticism against injustice.

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526 Words | 3 Pages

King starts off by stating, “ My Dear Fellow Clergymen.” By King stating that it proves to me that he is qualifying himself to be at the same level as the clergymen, and that he is not saying he is better or worse than them as despite himself being in jail. King also states that, “So I, along with several members of my staff, am here because I was invited here. I am here because I have organizational ties here. But more basically, I am in Birmingham because injustice is here.”

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187 Words | 1 Pages

The first several sentences of paragraph 38 are vivid description. King uses many adjectives to write these sentences. He mentions how beautiful the church is and some other minor details. Such vivid description indicates King’s love to the church. And the love is exactly the reason makes King even more disappointed when the church did nothing to help the blacks.

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788 Words | 4 Pages

In the year 1963 of August, Martin Luther King wrote his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” as a response of a letter published in a local newspaper. This letter, written by the Clergymen of Birmingham at this time, caught his attention while he was confined in jail for parading without a permit. This time allowed him to respond passionately to the injustice in Birmingham. King’s letter addresses specific points presented in the Clergymen’s, and his direct approach separates King’s strong points through his powerful writing. King is able to defend these differing views and actions through rhetorical devices such as ethos, logos, and pathos.

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573 Words | 3 Pages

In Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1963 “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was this line, “We must use time creatively, and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right.” King was the leader of the African-American Civil Rights Movement as well as an activist for humanitarian causes. King wrote this influential letter after hearing that his fellow clergymen thought his actions were, “unwise and untimely” and while sitting in a jail cell. The letter reflects on all the reasons why these men of faith should realize the injustice of racism.

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496 Words | 2 Pages

This essay reminds me of the history of my own country, Rwanda, where many people lived abroad as refugees for many years due to the ethnicity segregation, fortunately some courageous men among them decided to fight for freedom, many of them died but their good cause has been achieved. The letter is primarily addressed to clergymen as a response to their previous criticisms, but it seems that King writes to the public audience too, especially the white authorities. He starts his letter in a polite way to appeal to his audience, where he states that he can only take time to answer criticisms from genuine people. His purpose is to convince the audience

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740 Words | 3 Pages

While in solitary confinement for nearly 8 days, reverend and social justice activist, Martin Luther King Jr., wrote his famous Letter from Birmingham Jail in response to the criticism he received for his non-violent protests. Several clergy who negatively critiqued King’s approach of seeking justice, wrote A Call for Unity, arguing that his protests were senseless and improper. Within the article, the clergymen provide nine different critiques that asserted how King’s protest are invalid, uneffective, and simply unintelligent in the fight for obtaining justice and equity for individuals of color. His letter has become one of the most profound pieces of literature of the 20th century, as King uses vivid examples and eloquent rhetorical devices to counter all nine arguments.

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1408 Words | 6 Pages

In “Letter from Birmingham Jail” it can easily be argued that King used many rhetorical devices such as anaphora and tone in order to further persuade his audience to take action on behalf of the Civil Rights movement. Through copious examples, the reader is presented with King’s effort to use repetition in order to drive his point as well as being presented with the changing tone of his writing which allows the reader to experience a shift in emotions and urgency throughout the

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907 Words | 4 Pages

Because of his skill in creating such pieces of writing, as well as his influential role within the Civil Rights Movement, and the reminder that Letter from Birmingham Jail provides of these trying times, his letter should continue to be included within A World of Ideas. Persuasion within writing is an important tool to be utilized in order to garner support for one’s position. During the 1960s, equality between different races was a very controversial issue which required a certain finesse when being discussed. Martin Luther King demonstrated precisely this sort of finesse when writing about the racial injustices faced by black Americans, as well as when refuting the criticisms he faced from white clergymen.

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721 Words | 3 Pages

The use of these elements is highlighted in the sentence, “Now it is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice.” The use of emotive language is observed with the incorporation of the words “dark” and “desolate” when describing segregation. This reminds his audience of the present time where African Americans and White Americans are divided and this causes his target audience to remember the times when they are treated unfairly because of their skin color and they will be urged to look for a positive change. As for the use of glittering generalities, this is observed when King uses the words “sunlit” and "justice” when describing the future he desires for African Americans. This use of positive words causes his audience to yearn for it more as they will want a positive change from their wretched present filled with racial inequalities.

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709 Words | 3 Pages

Dr. King makes his audience feel as if they should be doing more as they are intended to do. He uses the word “president” which shows his position which helps him be looked up to. Clergymen fall their pastors and in a certain way Dr.King is acting as a pastor and preaching to them that they should go out and help as he (Dr. King) is. Diction is very important as it makes the audience connect in the way the author intends them to do

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