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Martin Luther King Ethos In Letter From Birmingham Jail

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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was born on the 15th of January, 1929, and received the Nobel Peace prize in December 1964. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is known as the figurehead of the civil rights movement. In early April of 1963, Dr. King was arrested for participating in a march with no permit from the city officials in Birmingham, Alabama. Later, while he was in jail King wrote a letter in response to a letter in the local newspaper written by a couple of clergymen that had scorned his protests and marches because they believed that they were unwise and untimely. Within his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” he voices his reasons and ideas as to why he did what he did. In his letter he uses ethos, pathos and logos to portray his thoughts and ideas. …show more content…

In paragraph 2 he says “I have the honor of serving as president of Southern Christian Leadership conference…”(841). By mentioning this, he further strengthens his credibility and trustworthiness. Throughout the letter he references the bible and uses bible verses to show the audience that he is a christian and a holy man. And also, throughout the first ten paragraphs he uses history to show that he is smart and can reference the past. He mentions figures such as Abraham Lincoln, Socrates, Thomas Jefferson, and many more. When he does this he shows his wisdom and knowledge of the past. He mentions that Jefferson said “We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal . . ." and how his people have not received the same god-given rights that the white folk have. A big part of what King talks about is justice, and he uses past court cases in order to show people how he backs up his

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