Birmingham Jail Rhetorical Strategies

In the beginning of paragraph 14 from King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail he states, “We have waited for more than 340 years for our constitutional and God-given rights. “The nations of Asia and Africa are moving with jet like speed toward gaining political independence. First of all, King is meaning that other countries are already on the move to make freedoms and rights

King uses connotations, sensory and descriptive language throughout his letter along with other rhetorical devices. For example he states, “had seen its dogs sinking their teeth into unarmed, nonviolent Negroes... ugly and inhumane treatment of Negroes here in the city jail; if you were to watch them push and curse old Negro women and young Negro girls;...slap and kick old Negro men and young boys;...refuse to give us food because we wanted to sing our grace” this connotation helps get kings message across by evoking a emotion from within the clergymen. He wants them to understand the mistakes they have made and to understand what they go through and how unfair it is. I know this is pathos because he uses phrases like, ‘slap and kick, dogs sinking their teeth, push and curse at, and refuse to give food’ using these phrases helps us actually see what’s happening, he is using sensory language. Another example would be, “ Let us all hope that the dark clouds of racial prejudice will soon pass away and the deep fog of misunderstanding will be lifted from our fear-drenched communities, and in some not too distant tomorrow the radiant stars of love and brotherhood will shine over our great nation with all their scintillating beauty.” this quote is pathos because again he uses sensory language like, ‘deep fog of misunderstanding, fear-drenched communities, scintillating beauty’ these phrases give us an image and elicit emotion from ourselves and our morals. This quote gets his message across by telling us he wants our world to be prejudice free and that he believes it will

In the midst of his speech Dr. King explains why segregation should come to an end and why everyone in America should believe this too. In Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech he utilizes a multitude of rhetorical devices, including: charged language, analogy, parallelism, and repetition. Dr. King exercises these rhetorical devices to persuade his audience to fight for Civil Rights by using emotional appeals. Emotional Appeals help persuade by showing more emotions than normal writing would do.

Martin Luther King Jr. was one of the highest regarded civil rights activists in the mid-1900s. His two texts, “I Have a Dream” and “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, were greatly influential on the fight for African American rights. The way that King was able to persuade his audience, and preserve his their attention, was through using logos and pathos. Logos use a clear line of reasoning supported by evidence, and pathos use charged language in order to prod at the listener’s emotions. In his two pieces mentioned above, King uses these appeals in different areas and to different extremes.

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is considered one of the most utterly effective pieces of rhetoric in all written literature. Doctor King was an adept scholar fighting for civil rights. Martin Luther King, Jr. used the different rhetorical appeals to respond to eight white clergymen that had publicly criticized him for his actions. Reverend King was so persuasive with his letter that he influenced not only other African Americans to join his fight for equality, but also the White community. As Osborn tells us in his piece “Rhetorical Distance In ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail,’” that Mr. King’s “Letter” went on to cause problems for these eight men (32). He was very effective in portraying his undesirable situation from the point of view of someone that held authority. Along with portraying his circumstances, he provides logical arguments to contradict the white clergymen's statements. In addition to a logical approach, he uses his emotions and passion to make his readers feel sympathy for forsaken situation place upon the segregated community. Reverend King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” provides a vivid insight into the civil rights movement along with rhetorical appeals that persuade his audience to join his fight for justice by establishing authority, reasoning with logic, and engaging our emotions.

Martin Luther King Jr.’s written works serve as a bridge that joins past and present day America, allowing citizens today to better understand the full magnitude of the civil rights movement. American citizens today are able to look back on his written works and feel the same raw connection, sorrow, and fire as thousands of citizens in the 1960s. Not only do his works unite two distinguishable time periods, but they are used in education systems as well. King expertly utilizes numerous rhetorical devices within his literary works that effectively communicate his message and create an emotional connection with his audience. From the “I have a dream” speech to his letter from Birmingham City Jail, students study and analyze his allusions, imperative statements, metaphors, and anaphoras, to better

The use of pathos in “I Have a Dream” makes the audience picture a happier future: “I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood” (18). This passage shows the use of pathos in a successful manner by employing words that evoke feelings of a more peaceful future, where people treat each other equally, no matter the other’s background. Martin Luther King Jr. uses pathos and logos to appeal to the clergymen who criticized him while in the Birmingham city jail. The logos used show how Dr. King is aware of the issues compared to “I Have a Dream” and “Letter from Birmingham Jail” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. effectively uses logos and pathos in his “I Have a Dream” speech and “Letter from Birmingham Jail” to persuade the specific audience for each occasion. Dr. King appeals to the civil rights activists during the March on Washington in his “I Have a Dream” speech by using logos in the beginning and pathos towards the

The use of strong words and imagery in the letter not only stir the emotion of the reader, but also appeal to their moral believes of right and wrong. King also uses pathos to make clergymen feel religion guilt for not helping people in need. King justifies the reason for not waiting and considering direct action because “when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brother at whim; when you have seen hate filled policemen curse, kick, brutalize and even kill your black brothers and sisters with impunity; when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of affluent society” (3). King argues that black people have waiting for more than 340 years now it is very difficult to wait. The choice of words and examples King uses are very forceful to make readers fell the pain and emotions of the black people.

On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. spoke at the Lincoln Memorial concerning the Civil Rights movement. His speech resonated throughout the nation as his passionate and commanding voice resounded over the fields that lay before the Lincoln Memorial. Many consider this speech the “epitome of modern Rhetoric.” In his speech, King utilizes the three disciplines of Rhetoric, ethos, pathos, and logos, with finesse and skill.

In Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech, King makes use of an innumerable amount of rhetorical devices that augment the overall understanding and flow of the speech. King makes the audience feel an immense amount of emotion due to the outstanding use of pathos in his speech. King also generates a vast use of rhetorical devices including allusion, anaphora, and antithesis. The way that King conducted his speech adds to the comprehension and gives the effect that he wants to rise above the injustices of racism and segregation that so many people are subjected to on a daily basis.

While Martin Luther King Jr. was locked up in a jail he received a letter from eight clergymen. They reached out to King in a letter that is called “A Call for Unity.” In this letter, they are telling king that people needed to stand up and try to make a change by peaceful protesting to get their point across (“A Call for Unity”). King then replies to their letter with a letter of his own which is known as “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.” King states that he gets a lot of letters and doesn’t reply to them but he thought that the clergymen meant good so he would try to answer their questions to the best of his ability (King). Also in the letter, he focuses on what is going on in Birmingham at the time and tells about himself and how he oversaw a lot of planning comities (King). In the “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” King uses three main ways to connect with the audience of the letter and those are ethos, pathos, and logos.

During the mid-20th century, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. excited America with his notable ‘I Have a Dream’ speech. King’s speech was directed towards the mistreated African Americans to stand up for their rights, because racism was a huge issue during that period. King’s main purpose was to persuade African Americans to fight for justice, which was granted to all according to the Constitution. To clearly persuade his audience, King uses rhetorical devices such as ethos, pathos and logos in his speech. Additionally, King uses figurative language such as repetition, and techniques such as parallel phrases, organization, and choice of words, specifically in the title.

On August 28, 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. presented his historical, “I Have a Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. His main goal for presenting this speech was to make the American people realize that a major change was needed. He stood up and inspired a nation into action with his words. He wanted to convince his audience to stand up against racial injustice and segregation for the African Americans. He believed that African Americans deserved to have the same respect and privileges as Caucasians. To make sure that his goal was fulfilled, he used the rhetorical devices: pathos, ethos, and logos. He also used figurative language like repetition when he constantly says, “I Have a Dream” throughout his entire speech. For African Americans, the speech was intended to delivered a message of hope with the promise of freedom and equality. While for whites, it helped them understand that their freedom was different than the freedom of African-Americans. The genre of this speech is argumentative since it conveys the personal thoughts of the author. Furthermore, the tone of the speech is descriptive, argumentative and informative.

From the steps of the Lincoln Memorial more than two score years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King electrified America with his momentous "I Have a Dream" speech. Aimed at the entire nation, King’s main purpose in this speech was to convince his audience to demand racial justice towards the mistreated African Americans and to stand up together for the rights afforded to all under the Constitution. To further convey this purpose more effectively, King cleverly makes use of the rhetorical devices — ethos, pathos and logos — using figurative language such as metaphors and repetition as well as various other techniques e.g. organization, parallel construction and choice of title.

When informing Americans across the nation of his dream, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. proposed an unforgettable speech that would one day change The United States of America forever. In analyzing “I Have a Dream”, there are a few rhetorical purposes that are reflected throughout. These purposes are repeatedly focusing in on a particular audience in which King speaks to. Using different types of appeals and literary elements, his speech produced a meaningful purpose that the audience could relate to.