The clergymen doubted the ideas of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. but in his candid letter, he explained that what the clergymen have heard is only a facet of this argument and that there is a legitimate reason which caused Dr. King and his people to begin protesting and boycotting. In the letter, “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, Dr. King explains the reasons that led him to support the peaceful, nonviolent protests. To be able to accomplish his goal of telling the clergymen the true story that had happened, Dr. King used three main methods. Out the three main methods, ethos, pathos, and logos, only one had truly succeeded, logos. Logos was the only technique which was not subtle; this strategy told the cause of the problem in a straightforward …show more content…
King was logos because he used logic to support him and with that logic he was able to contradict the clergymen's arguments. The logos used in Dr. King’s letter fulfilled their purpose by stopping the clergymen right in their tracks. “Having aided in this community need, we felt that our direct action could be delayed no longer” (09) Here he talks about how him and the other protesters are accused of not being patient but they actually had postponed the non-violent protests for quite a while, waiting for any new changes but everything was still the same. This helped Dr. King convince the clergymen to support him because it contradicts the claim that the clergymen had made which clearly stated that Dr. King and his supporting protesters were not patient enough to wait and see if there were any new changes. Logos had also succeeded in unmasking the truth behind the mayhem in Birmingham. “We merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive” (12). This portion of the letter had explained that African Americans are not causing the problems, they are only responsible for showing the people of Birmingham what the problems are. This helped Dr. King because using this evidence, he opposes the clergymen’s arguments which had stated that the African Americans are causing the chaos around the city. With the help of logic and truth shown with logos, Dr. King had proven the innocence of the hundreds of African Americans who had protested for what they believed
King uses many examples of ethos, pathos, and logos in his letter as a way to persuade the audience he is writing to. In the letter, King reveals his point of view, explains his actions, and must prove to the clergymen that
King's fundamental argument in the Birmingham letter is that racial injustice toward the black community in America is a result of ongoing support from the white community, notably from influential communities in politics and church. Dr. King uses Ethos most effectively, through the use of this statement where he says “I have the honor of serving as president of the southern christian leadership conference.” (King, 1963, Letter from Birmingham Jail) this is significant because he is attempting to show that he has the capabilities to run as a president and stop all the discrimination. This quote is extremely effective in persuasion in “Letter from a Birmingham Jail." Not only do we see an example of this here, we also see it when he says “the political leaders consistently refused to engage in good faith negotiation.
Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the most well-known leaders of the civil rights movement. He was an amazing man and inspired many people. His most popular speech is his "I have a Dream " speech. He also wrote a letter while inside the Birmingham Jail when he was arrested for his nonviolent protest against segregation. When reading "Letter from Birmingham Jail" one may notice that Martin Luther King Jr. used many instances of logos, ethos, pathos, and even kairos.
Logos is the use of facts and logic, often appealing to a person’s intellect and mind. King uses logos to sway the clergymen to his side of the argument surrounding racial injustice. For instance, King compares America to other nations to show how behind America is in the fight for equality: “The nations of Asia and Africa are moving with jetlike speed toward the goal of political independence, and we still creep at horse and buggy pace toward the gaining of a cup of coffee at a lunch counter” (King 582). This is a clear instance of King using logic and reasoning to persuade the clergymen. Another example of King using logos is when he notes that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.
Dr. King explains by helping the people of Birmingham, he is in essence is helping people everywhere because “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” (Pg. 564). During this time racial injustice was boldly demonstrated in Birmingham. In order to truly get his point across, Dr. King demonstrates his emotional appeal by illustrating vivid pictures in order to get the readers to feel something.
The “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was released on April 16th 1963 in response to 8 prominent clergymen in Alabama. These clergymen had criticized Doctor Martin Luther Jr. about being a radical extremist for the civil rights movement. Also, the clergymen tried to leverage the black community to disassociate themselves with the protest MLK was having. They claimed his protest were untimely and meant to incite violence amongst the patrons of Alabama and further polarize whites and blacks. In response, Dr. King devises a writing masterpiece with this letter from the Birmingham Jail by utilizing ethos, logos, and pathos to express his frustration with the white moderates.
This quote is an example of logos, because it compares the African American people’s experience to cashing a bad check, which is a logical comparison. In addition,"We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote”(King page 263 paragraph 13). This is another example of logos, because he uses facts to appeal to the reader and to convince them to join the Civil Right Movement. His usage of logos in these quotes are written to rally the reader and let them know of their
King has to respond to the clergymen but instead of using logos he uses pathos/ethos to appeal through their emotions. For example in paragraph (39) he has to respond through the statements. “I have heard numerous southern religious leaders admonish their worshipers to comply with a desegregation decision because it is the law, (39)?” Regarding to this statement Dr.King responds with: ‘in deep disappointment I have wept over the laxity of the church. But be assured that my tears have been tears of love.
In “A Letter From A Birmingham Jail” Martin Luther King Jr defends his use of nonviolent protest in order to accomplish racial equality. In the letter, Dr. King uses ethos, diction, and allusions when defending nonviolent protest which makes his argument really strong. His goal is to make the clergymen help him fight racial equality. He uses ethos to build up credibility.
Upon being imprisoned for marching Dr Martin Luther King wrote a letter to the fellow clergymen of Birmingham, addressing his reasons as to why he committed his “crime”, This letter was widely known as “The Letter of Birmingham”. This letter was very influential and paramount to the cause of civil rights as it spurred up future events that would play essential roles in ending racial segregation in America. Throughout his whole letter, King used Ethos, logos, and pathos to firmly get his message across while adding rhetorical devices such as repetition, metaphors, and biblical references.
King’s presentation of Logos is amazing, he shows his fellow clergymen two opposite sides to the community, one that is pure satisfaction and the other that is full of hate. King is telling his audience that he could have stayed neutral in the situation and allowed the Black Nationalist groups to take charge, but he didn’t. Logos isn’t just present in King’s letter, it is expected since King is writing a letter justifying his
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a minister, spokesperson, activist, and civil rights leader, wrote “Letter From Birmingham Jail” specifically to the eight clergymen who addressed his unlawful acts, but the message is also intended for Christians and the people of the whole nation. Martin Luther King’s Letter From Birmingham Jail uses parallelism to emphasize the extent that discriminatory actions happened in Birmingham and in the U.S, allusion to justify his actions, and antithesis to contrast two ideas and eventually persuade the clergymen and all others that nonviolent protest will help end racial segregation. He also uses the rhetoric to defend his actions. Dr. King uses a list of rhetorical devices in his letter. One device that stood
The 1950s was an era of great conflict. A group of Americans protested against inequality and injustice during this time. African Americans had been fighting against racial discrimination for years. When imprisoned for “parading without a permit,” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. writes a letter in response to eight clergymen using ethos, pathos, and logos to defend the strategy of nonviolent resistance to racism. Dr. King starts by using ethos to reinforce his views in the letter.
The Civil Rights Movement was a big thing for the United states and we as Americans will always remember Martin Luther King Jr. for helping lead the people and inspire change and bring hope. The speech “ I Have a Dream” by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was an important gathering of people at the Lincoln Memorial. A huge crowd gathered to listen to his powerful speech which helped to inspire change. Martin Luther King also wrote a letter to eight white clergymen named “Letter From Birmingham Jail” the letter was written in in his jail cell which he was in for marching and protests. In both of these texts Dr. King used pathos and logos to inspire change and reach out to the people during the civil rights movements.
Dr. Kings “I Have a Dream” speech shows powerful examples of logos and pathos. His effectiveness relies heavily on his usage of these two ways to explain the pain and suffering of segregation. By him capturing his true life’s reality through pity and credible sources allows him to become successful in attempting to end the racism crisis. King states that, “when our republic was writing the Declaration of Independence, they were making a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the ‘unalienable rights’ of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Logos is the prime example of King using this event of writing the Declaration of Independence.