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Rhetorical Strategies In Martin Luther King's Letter From Birmingham Jail

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During the late 1960’s, Birmingham was the most segregated city in the United States. Riddled with high racial tension throughout the city, it gained its name of “Bombingham.” This was due to the fact that there were 60 unsolved bombings. With the city of Birmingham in ruins Martin Luther king was quoted in his Letter from Birmingham Jail, “I cannot sit idly by in Atlanta and not be concerned about what happens in Birmingham.” Martin Luther king used the misfortune in birmingham in order bring out reform and revamp the civil rights movement. In his famous text “ Letter from A Birmingham Jail,” Martin Luther King Jr makes use of rhetorical strategies, especially in the fourteenth paragraph. In order to help illustrate the frustration that …show more content…

One being pathos, which acts upon an individual's emotions and tends to evoke a sense of pity. Pathos was evident when Martin uttered “but more basically, I am in Birmingham because injustice is here.” This demonstrates that Martin Luther King not only sympathized with them but is also going to do something about the situation at hand. In addition to pathos is usage of logos this rhetorical device was displayed when Martin Luther King presented a intricate explanation …show more content…

The reason being is due to the fact that it has a great extent of rhetorical devices used in that section. However the rhetorical devices that stood out in this paragraph was syntax, the usage of syntax is very uncommonly used rhetorical devices due to its difficulties. Syntax makes an appearance in the first sentence when it is Dr.King States “ perhaps it is easy for those who have felt the stinging dart of segregation to say, “wait.” The sentence actually goes on to end at the later part of the paragraph which state “then you will know will understand why we find it difficult to wait.” Martin Luther King wrote in this style to in order to make readers wait for him to finish the concept, just like how Dr. KIng and his people had to wait for

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