Selma Movie Analysis Essay

Critique of Nonfiction Novel The civil rights movement was a revolutionary chapter in American history. Leading the movement was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whose legacy has been etched in history. Troy Jackson explores the roots of King’s legacy in Becoming King: Martin Luther King Jr. and The Making of a National Leader. Jackson analyzes how different influences in Montgomery, Alabama shaped Dr. King into the leader of the civil rights movement.

The jail becomes a symbolic representation of the lives of black people. Everywhere they go, they are being discriminated and judged for their skin color. They are being forced to live as if they were in the filthy cells of a jail. Despite being confined in prison, Dr. King uses a calm and friendly tone of the voice. He stays rational in his thoughts and is being diplomatic in his criticism towards the white community (“men of genuine good will…”).

This scene from Selma uses the despair of this woman to help create a platform for the rest of the movie. This scene was used to help introduce the historical events leading to the need for a march. Leading to the march many African-Americans were made martyrs simply because of their desire to utilize their civil rights. Before the march, many African-Americans felt that

Martin Luther King Jr. was a strong leader in the Civil Rights movement, the son and grandson of a minister, and one heck of a letter writer. As he sits in a cell of Birmingham Jail in 1963, he responds to criticism from eight white clergymen. Though this letter was intended for the judgemental and condescending men of high faith, his response touched the hearts and minds of the entire U.S. population, then, and for years to come. In his tear-jerking, mind-opening letter, King manages to completely discredit every claim made by the clergymen while keeping a polite and formal tone. Metaphors, allusions, and rhetorical questions are used in the most skillful way to support his argument and ultimately convince his audience of the credibility behind his emotional, yet factual, claims.

Just like Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr. was an American Civil Rights Activist. Because of his Christian beliefs he used nonviolent disobedience to advance his civil rights movements. Despite his many arrests, King never gave up on the rights movement. At the age of twelve he suffered from depression and blamed himself of his grandmother’s death and jumped from a two-story window but he survived. Sometimes painful situations, for example, the death of his grandmother, will make you a stronger person in life and it will motivate you to try to change the world for the better.

“...when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of “nobodiness”- then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait. There comes a time when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be plunged into the abyss of despair. I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience.” (MLK, 276). King uses this strong sense of appeal to emotion to engross his readers and let them know how hard it is for them.

The four basic steps in campaign nonviolence by Martin Luther King are negotiation, self-purification, direct action and perception of the facts to determine if injustice is alive. On the Selma movie it is beautiful, the injustice abuse of those times found in African races loss of their human rights family love!! But being a little more accurate this film from my analytical point presents the struggle for civil rights as a political game calculated to the millimeter. No lack of ideological and strategic discussions that enhance the speech of social change Martin Luther King, whose pragmatic dye is manifested not only in scenes discussion with his colleagues and opponents (the talks with President Lyndon Johnson are remarkable for the intelligence

On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr gave us one of one of the most rhetorically moving speeches ever given. Titled as the “I Have a Dream Speech,” he read this speech to the “March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom”. As a civil right mover he gave this great speech to all Americans (black and white) so that he could give off the idea of equality on the same level. Because of his crowd of mix races King made sure to make his speech imploring to all no matter what the race that they may be. He uses metaphorical imagery, powerful diction,and symbolism to create an impact on the audience.

He evokes emotion on his audience by discussing the trials and injustice African Americans have endured. In his letter he uses examples like “when you have seen hate-filled policeman curse, kick, and even kill your black brothers and sisters.” and “when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and gathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim” to make his audience envision and feel what many negroes felt while watching their families put up with this mistreatment. King provides imagery to make the audience see what it would be like to be an African American in the united

Most people in this world aren’t born into this world alone, King knows this and reminds the clergymen and the white moderate that these people have families too. Even though slavery was abolished in 1865 racism has continued to dehumanize Black people. King has given these people an identity which humanizes them. Lastly King appeals to logos or the logical side of an argument.

He places the strong authority of the declaration on his side to show how the American people are in contradiction to their own “sacred obligation” and the Negros have gotten a “bad check.” A metaphor representing the unfulfilled promise of human rights for the African Americans. King skillfully evokes an emotional response from all races with the use of religion: “Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.” By doing this he finds a common ground that brings black and whites closer with a common belief in God they share, as well as the mention of

Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the most influential leaders of his time and played a crucial role in the African-American Civil Rights movement. Luther was a charismatic leader who took a firm stand against the oppressive and racist regime of the United States (US), devoting much of his life towards uniting the segregated African-American community of the US. His efforts to consolidate and harmonise the US into one country for all is reflected in many of his writings and speeches spanning his career. As a leader of his people, King took the stand to take radical measures to overcome the false promises of the sovereign government that had been addressing the issues of racial segregation through unimplemented transparent laws that did nothing to change the grim realities of the society. Hence, King’s works always had the recurring theme of the unity and strength of combined willpower.

Martin Luther King, Jr., asserts that the injustices of the nation must be fought. King likes to compare the African American struggle for equality to the early Christian struggle for religious recognition.

King speaks of the attacks, “...unspeakable horrors of police brutality” the black community encountered for having a different skin tone. Since the white community did not see the Blacks as equals they did not think they were hurting a worthy human being. King addresses the “... negro’s basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one” as something the black community as a whole had to face on a regular basis. The black community was forced to receive social restraint on their lives. This is a real life illustration of the extreme segregation of the time.

Hearts of the oppressed will always cry out in desperation; waiting for anyone to swoop in and liberate them from their cruel reality. Few are capable of mustering up the gumption to throw their neck on the line in defense of the defenseless. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is one such man. Trading in his comfortable life for one of danger and ridicule, King was catapulted to the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement following the profound leadership he demonstrated during the Montgomery Bus Boycott. As a well-educated, African American pastor, he provided a unique perspective on the racial issues at hand.