Letter From Birmingham Jail Analysis

The feeling of rejection is something we have all felt or are at least familiar with. The feeling of rejection demoralizes the confidence and the happiness of any human. This forces us to beg the question why? If we know this feeling is so hurtful then Why did we make thousands of African Americans feel this way? In the piece “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” the author Martin Luther King Jr talks about how the Negro community has struggled and has been rejected for over 300 years. This is the overall message Martin Luther King Jr is trying to convey to his audience along with giving them a deeper understanding of what life as a Negro was like back then and in some instances still is like today.

Martin Luther King Jr.’s essay “Letter From Birmingham Jail” is a response and explanation to clergymen who challenged King’s methods of protest. The letter is laid out in a criticism-counter structure and was written while King was imprisoned for protesting without a permit. By appealing to the audience’s emotions, showing his credibility and persuading through reason, King successfully clarifies his stance on civil disobedience and the necessity of nonviolent campaigns.

The Letter from Birmingham Jail was written in August 1963 by Martin Luther King Jr., a Civil Rights leader. During this time he was held in Birmingham Jail for his involvement in peaceful protests against segregation. Due to the protest, eight religious leaders issued a public statement listing their concerns and cautions towards it. The letter was Dr. King’s response to it. In the letter, he states why segregation and racial injustice must end and that direct action must be taken. Throughout the letter, he convinces the reader to side with him and his cause through the use of figurative language and ethos and pathos.

In “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. resolutely responds to eight clergymen who question his methods of protest against segregation in Birmingham, Alabama. Specifically, in paragraphs 12-14, Dr. King explains why his protests are indeed being done in a timely manner to obtain the “constitutional and God-given rights” (A Portable Anthology, page 207) that Africans have been restricted of for over 340 years. Dr. King’s argument, combined with his strategic use of rhetorical devices to enhance it, helps create a palpable feeling of understanding that captivates the audience into seeing America through his vision.

The primary source chosen is the “Letter From a Birmingham Jail,”  written by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It was a letter sent to the clergyman of Birmingham, Alabama in 1963. The actual document was written inside the Birmingham city jail on articles of newspaper and scrapes that Dr. King had near by in his cell. Throughout the letter Dr. King addresses the comments made by the Birmingham clergymen about his civil rights demonstrations. He understands that someone will have to break the racial barrier. The question that may arise is that, “If Dr. King’s message went to most southern states and did not go to all including Alabama, would the action be centered toward equal opportunity or segregation with the idea that each race would be a product of their resources?”

The Letter from Birmingham Jail is an open letter that defends the strategy of nonviolent resistance to racism. It says that people have a moral responsibility to break unjust laws, and to take direct action rather than waiting potentially forever for justice to come through others or the government. Responding to the critisms of his nonviolent approaches and willingness to cause tension within the community he wrote "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." The crisis and tension causing methods Dr. Matin Luther King Jr. used were organized marches and sit-ins against racism and racial segregation.

One powerful example of King’s pull on the reader’s consciousness in his letter is on page three when he refutes the argument of the Clergymen saying that Colored people should just “wait”.  While many words truly stand out, King’s true effect was mastered by the appeal to the parents in the group, “When you have to concoct an answer for a five-year-old son who is asking: “Daddy, why white people treat colored people so mean” (“Letter from Birmingham Jail” 3)Then again, “humiliation day in and day out by nagging signs” (“Letter from Birmingham Jail 3) and even further, when “you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of “nobodiness” (“Letter from Birmingham Jail 3).  Another element that helps support King’s point in his letter is the fervent repetition of his blatant disappointment in more than simply the clergymen, but their Christian faith and the churches in service within Alabama during this time. King repeats how disappointed he was in the “common whites” also and their bystander reactions to racial issues. The fact that this man, a minister, “beneath” the said extremist white clergymen, and inhabiting a jail cell during that time, who was disappointed in people showed a true depth which hit the audience profoundly. (King)

King combines the use of ethos and pathos as he compares himself and the rights of men to religious backgrounds. His first comparison is with the Apostle Paul, where Paul had “carried the gospel of Jesus Christ,” as to Kings carrying of “the gospel of freedom.” King addresses this similarity to show why he felt committed to go to Birmingham, because like Paul, he needed to respond as an aid to his people. Towards the end of Kings letter; he exemplifies courageousness in the Negro demonstrations by relating them to the actions of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego when they refused to follow what they believed to be unjust laws. Saying that if they are supposed heroes by going against unjust laws, why shouldn't the people see Negro demonstrators the same way? They are also God's children and by those disobedience’s, they were really showing the grace of God. These connections to religion supports their fighting against unjust laws as a divine cause.

The “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is the letter written by Martin Luther King Jr. to the clergymen of Birmingham, in which he speaks up against the nonviolence demonstration criticisms by white modernists. In it King suggests that Socrates is civilly disobedient, despite Socrates’ assertions of breaking the law in the Crito, the prison conversation between Socrates and his friend Crito days before his death. Socrates repeatedly states that it would be morally wrong for him to escape prison and go against the laws, however, King believes that he is civilly disobedient. I, too, believe that Socrates was in some form rebellious to the law, and that he was misunderstood and rejected by society. The Apology and Crito are two dialogues that discuss the intent of Socrates’ “crimes;” and the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” goes along the reasoning behind King’s claim against Socrates.

Thesis Statement: This Letter, designed as a response to the clergymen that opposed the way in which Dr King was protesting, Dr King’s letter actually addresses two audiences simultaneously; the limited and defined group of clergymen and a broader and less exactly defined group of intelligent and religious white moderates. In this letter, Martin Luther King addresses these clergymen on their own terms. He uses the very cultural, biblical, and classical foundations of Anglo society to point out the inherent hypocrisy in what they claim to hold dear and once he accomplishes this, the argument for the protest broadens and his tone shifts and begins to include the larger aspect of prejudice across the land, and

Writing is an art, and like all art, it can transcend time to speak to different generations. Pieces of art that are truly great can be appreciated by anyone, regardless of who it was meant for. Literature is used for evoking emotions and connecting with people, for communicating events and discoveries across the world, for bringing people together. When used properly, literature can do all this and more. Those who have the skill to wield the tools of the art can create amazing creations. One letter that fits this description is the “Letter From Birmingham Jail”. This letter cries out for justice, a cry that can be heard far and wide throughout the ages. It uses the tools of literature to impact everyone. Martin Luther King Jr uses diction

Conventional wisdom has it that extremism is a bad thing. However "extremism" is simply deemed as whatever society considers unacceptable at the time. For example, almost 200 years ago, the idea of freeing all the slaves and banning slavery in America would have been thought of as "extremist." Additionally, back in the era of Nazi Germany, the notion that the Holocaust was wrong and should be stopped would have been thought of as "extremist." More importantly than whether something is "extreme" it is all a matter of right or wrong.

The source that I found most helpful for this project is “The Letter from Birmingham Jail.” I think it is the best source because it is a primary source. Also because it explains what it was like to be a civil rights activist. Lastly, the message that MLK was writing was very detailed and easy to visualize. Everything in this passage was true and from an activist perspective.

Filled with passion and an urgency for change, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote, “... freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.” This quote comes from one of King’s most famous works, “Letter From Birmingham Jail,” as he addresses the topics of racism, segregation, social activism, and most importantly, change in the social economy of America. King was looked to as a leader for the black community, and was expected to deliver a change in the thinking of the United States; he took this responsibility in stride, and was able to write, speak, and deliver moral truths applicable for ages to come. As the previous quote suggests, social change- in this case, freedom- will not be given unless the oppressed are willing to go out and act for their own cause.

Birmingham, Alabama during the 1960’s was experiencing a time of high racial tension and injustice for African Americans. Blacks were only allowed to sit in specific areas in buses and restaurants, and they had separate water fountains, churches, schools, and other public gathering areas. In 1963, the African American demonstrators began “sitting in” at lunch counters that had not served blacks before and picketed stores that did not allow blacks to shop in them. Soon after, African Americans began getting arrested for trespassing. The civil rights leaders applied for permits to picket and parade but were denied, and this sparked the thought that the law prohibiting African Americans to picket and parade was unjust and they decided to disobey it. This led to certain opinions about the Civil Rights Movement to arise and become public. Eight Alabama white clergymen, who represented various churches, wrote “A Call for Unity: A Letter from Eight White Clergymen” in response to the protests that had broken out across Birmingham (“Unity”). Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested and sent to jail in 1963 because he and others were protesting the treatment of African Americans. He went on to write “A Letter from Birmingham Jail” as he waited, hunched over, in his jail cell (“Birmingham”). Both the clergymen and Dr. King used the art of argument to try to persuade people to believe their views on the issue. “Unity” and “Birmingham” are fitting examples of how writers with very different