“Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!”(King 264) These are important words Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote in the speech “I Have a Dream.” He presented this speech to a large crowd in front of the Lincoln Memorial. He also wrote “Letter From Birmingham Jail” while being incarcerated. This letter was in response to his critics which were eight white clergymen. In both of these pieces of work from 1963 King uses pathos (emotional appeal)and logos (logical appeal) to show the harsh reality of the African American lives. In Dr.King's speech “I have a dream” he uses logos to show logical evidence to appeal to his audience In this quote you can see Dr.King’s use of logic “This note was a promise that all
Have you ever read or listened to The Letter From Birmingham and the speech I Have a Dream by MLK and if you have have you ever noticed that he used a lot of logos and pathos? I Have a Dream a speech by Martin Luther King Jr. talks to all the protesters at Lincoln Memorial about segregation. MLK also wrote the Letter From Birmingham Jail and he was responding to eight white clergymen about the criticism in the newspaper that they wrote. In MLK’s Letter From Birmingham and his I Have a Dream speech use the appeals logos and pathos. MLK used logos in his I Have a Dream speech and his Letter From Birmingham Jail.
Dr. King appeals more to the heart, although he appeals to logic he appeals to the heart more in his messages. In his big speech “I Have A Dream,” he used the what the black people went through to get to their hearts, he used terms they have been called such as dirty niggers, that hit there heart. In his other famous message “Letter From Birmingham Jail,” he uses terms of slavery, what the blacks went through to appeal to them, Chains of Discrimination… (King 282 paragraph 32). King often uses emotion to appeal to people. Such as in his letter “Letter From Birmingham Jail,” he refers to the term “dirty nigger lovers,” (King, 282 paragraph 32).
The following passage is from the Letter from Birmingham Jail written by Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. is as follows This passage impresses me through the choice of words and how they make one think. When Doctor King explains that this was not a random act but an act of change due the lack of effort on the city. There are no wasted or trivial words each word has purpose in this passage if you close your eyes you may hear Socrates. The other impressive feat is not once did you ever feel a since of anger even though this is a difficult time for Doctor King.
Amidst the intense Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested and put in solitary confinement for peacefully protesting racial discrimination and injustice in Birmingham, Alabama. It was during this time that Dr. King, refusing to sit idly by, wrote his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” one of the most inspiring documents in history. With his respectful nature, humility, compassion, optimism, and determination, King responded to a group of white Alabama clergymen who had condemned the civil rights protests as extreme in their open letter, “A Call for Unity.” Although his letter was directed towards a small group of eight men, his words eventually reached the minds and hearts of the entire country. Throughout the letter, Dr. King does a tremendous job of supporting his argument with the three elements of Aristotle’s rhetorical appeal.
Martin Luther King Jr makes large statements in his writing between what is logical and what is emotional he uses these ideas to make it more pleasurable to the audience’s perception. He uses logic and emotion in a way to make the audience captivated by what is said. But he also contrasts the ideas of logic and emotion in both “I Have a Dream” and “Letter from Birmingham Jail” where “I Have a Dream” is more emotional and “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is more logical he shows this through what he says in both of them. In “I Have a Dream” Dr. King puts a song called “Song of the Slaves” to create a more emotional feel to it. Also in “Letter from Birmingham Jail” Dr. King puts very logical reasoning in paragraph 14 says ‘When you have to concoct an answer for a five-year-old son who is asking: ‘Daddy, why are white people treat colored people so mean?’”
He wrote “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” and wrote his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. He was an American Baptist minister and activist who became the biggest visible spokesperson and leader in the civil rights movement. This man was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In both of his writings, he used pathos and logos to appeal to the audience and fit the occasion.
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.
I believe that the “I Have a Dream” speech has more pathos and the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” has more logos. The speech is made to be more appealing to the emotions than appealing to logic. However, the speech still has logical explanations as well. The letter is the opposite. It has more logical appeal than emotional appeal because the letter is a response to fellow clergymen.
Martin Luther King Jr. was an important figure in gaining civil rights throughout the 1960’s and he’s very deserving of that title as seen in both his “I Have a Dream” speech and his “Letter from Birmingham Jail” letter. In both of these writings Dr. King uses logos - logical persuasion - and pathos - emotional appeal - to change the opinions of people who were for segregation and against civil rights. Although King was arrested for a nonviolent protest, he still found a way to justify his actions with the use of logos and pathos. MLK uses both ways to gain the attention and agreement of the audience but, he uses pathos not just more, but in a more relatable way in order to appeal to his audience.
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.
To begin with Dr. King used logos in his speech to educate the people and give them evidence and logic. Dr. King used both logos and pathos in his speech here is an example of logos used in his speech. “ Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, Signed the Emancipation Proclamation. ”(King 261) is the quote that Dr. King wrote in his speech. He is telling them that the African Americans have been free for five hundred years and that was a great point in history but the African Americans aren’t treated equally or fairly.
Civil rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr, in his Letter from Birmingham City Jail, argues against criticism from eight Alabama clergymen, and addresses their concerns. He defends his position, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), against accusations of disturbing the peace in Birmingham, as well as explaining his values and opinions. Throughout the letter, King adopts a strong logical and credible tone, and reinforces his position through the use of strong emotional justifications, in order to appeal to the clergymen and defend his public image. Martin Luther King opens up his Letter from Birmingham City Jail by appealing to the clergymen's emotions, and assuring his peaceful response, which he describes in "patient and
In these texts, King effectively persuades his audiences using pathos and logos. In Martin Luther King Jr. – “Letter from Birmingham Jail” he captures both pathos and logos. Dr. King
In 1963, Martin Luther King J.R. wrote a letter in the margins of a newspaper from within the bars of his jail cell in Birmingham. This letter, known as “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, was written as a response to criticism received from eight clergymen regarding the protest that King was arrested for. In that same year, King gave a powerful speech to a large crowd gathered in Washington D.C., at the Lincoln Memorial. This speech, easily recognized as the “I Have a Dream” speech, addressed the cruelty of segregation and unfair ways of which most people were treated, and influenced hope within his audience. In these two writings, examples of both logos and pathos can be found, and although the writings are comparable, they are not completely the same.
Martin Luther uses logos effectively throughout his speech. Dr. King says,“ But one hundred years later, the Negro is not free” ( Luther). The fact is that one hundred year has past still no improvement on the situation. Another example is the analogy “ America has given the Negro people a bad check a check which has not come back marked insufficient funds”( King).He reasons that most people are understanding lack of money. King’s speech was effectively because of how he formatted his speech.