Close reading "Letter from Birmingham Jail"
Xin Xiong, Jury
Sabine von Mering
Critical Reading,
July 26, 2014 Civil Disobedience
Martin Luther King writes “Letter from Birmingham Jail” in response to a letter from eight clergymen who argued against King’s acts of civil disobedience. In this letter, the author writes that “Actually time is neutral. It can be used either destructively or constructively” (724). This sentence indicates that time can be used to promote further development or cause more damages. So achieving goal of equality really depends on how people effectively use of time. Martin Luther King illustrates that time is neutral and proves that civil disobedience can be used to make an effective use of time, comparing to waiting and negotiation.
Negro people were sick of banking upon time to help them to gain justice. “men are no longer willing to be plunged into an abyss of injustice where they experience the bleakness of corroding despair”(722)King says. He uses the metaphor of “the abyss” and “bleakness” to express endurance of Negro’s people has already run over. They do not want be plagued with inner fears and outer resentments anymore. If their repressed emotions do not come out, their bitterness and hatred would advocate violence, like “Elijah Muhammad’s Muslim movement”(725). Moreover, history proves that “privileged groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily”(721), in this way, the endurance of people would not open the gate of serious negotiation. On the other hand, negotiations is not a effective path to solve racial prejudice. King states in the text that “As in so many experiences of the past we were confronted with blasted hopes, and the dark shadow of a deep disappointment settled upon us ”(719) This description uses metaphor of “the dark shadow” (719) to show the ineffectual results African Americans experienced after they tried to negotiate for their equality. For example, those political leaders consistently refused to
Sabine von Mering
Critical Reading,
July 26, 2014 Civil Disobedience
Martin Luther King writes “Letter from Birmingham Jail” in response to a letter from eight clergymen who argued against King’s acts of civil disobedience. In this letter, the author writes that “Actually time is neutral. It can be used either destructively or constructively” (724). This sentence indicates that time can be used to promote further development or cause more damages. So achieving goal of equality really depends on how people effectively use of time. Martin Luther King illustrates that time is neutral and proves that civil disobedience can be used to make an effective use of time, comparing to waiting and negotiation.
Negro people were sick of banking upon time to help them to gain justice. “men are no longer willing to be plunged into an abyss of injustice where they experience the bleakness of corroding despair”(722)King says. He uses the metaphor of “the abyss” and “bleakness” to express endurance of Negro’s people has already run over. They do not want be plagued with inner fears and outer resentments anymore. If their repressed emotions do not come out, their bitterness and hatred would advocate violence, like “Elijah Muhammad’s Muslim movement”(725). Moreover, history proves that “privileged groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily”(721), in this way, the endurance of people would not open the gate of serious negotiation. On the other hand, negotiations is not a effective path to solve racial prejudice. King states in the text that “As in so many experiences of the past we were confronted with blasted hopes, and the dark shadow of a deep disappointment settled upon us ”(719) This description uses metaphor of “the dark shadow” (719) to show the ineffectual results African Americans experienced after they tried to negotiate for their equality. For example, those political leaders consistently refused to