two very different times‚ there is a great deal of similarities between Henry David Thoreau’s “Resistance to Civil Government” and Martin Luther King‚ Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.” The style‚ technique‚ and reason that each author used were intentional towards their cause. During the middle of the 1840’s‚ abolitionist Henry Thoreau was placed in jail for refusing to pay a poll tax. He wouldn’t agree to a tax that he believed supported slavery and spent his evening in prison writing the famous
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Rights advocate‚ Martin Luther King Jr.‚ in his ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail’‚ discusses the cruelty and unjust consequences black people endure while acknowledging the inequity of their undying patience in chapter fourteen. King’s purpose is to address the atrocious situations that African Americans undergo in order to establish a strong argument while defending the importance of civil rights. King creates a different perspective for the clergymen. In addition‚ King adopts a skeptical and serious
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"Martin Luther King Jr.’s letter from Birmingham Jail‚ which was written in April 16‚ 1963‚ is a passionate letter that addresses and responds to the issue and criticism that a group of white clergymen had thrown at him and his pro- black American organization about his and his organization’s non- violent demonstrative actions against racial prejudice and injustice among black Americans in Birmingham. King writes the letter to defend his organization’s actions and the letter is also an appeal to
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own should let those indivuduals follow there callings no matter how difficult or obserd it may seem. An embodyment of this quote is the piece of literature known as "Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King Jr. In literary work of his‚ Martin Luther king expresses how important his calling is. For example in his letter he states:Just as the eighth century prophets left their little villages and carried their thus saith the Lord’ far beyond the boundaries of their home towns; and just
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1102 MWF/11-11:50 March 25‚ 2013 Martin Luther King’s Philosophy of Justice Martin Luther King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was written in response to a public statement of concern and caution issued by eight white religious leaders of the south. His inspiration for writing the letter was the clergymen’s unjust proposals and the letter allowed him to present his rebuttal. In this letter‚ King explains his philosophy‚ which includes his views of “just laws” and “unjust laws.” He also explains
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The general argument made by King in his letter titled “ Letter from Birmingham Jail” is that in order for Blacks to get their rights they must use non-violent resistance. More specifically‚ King argues that they must demand that they get their rights and he states that with time‚ the non-violent resistance will make situations which will force whites to negotiate. There are two distinct sides to this very complicated issue‚ and while King argues that non-violent resistance is the key to acquiring
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First Martin Luther King effectively makes use of logos throughout his letter. He clarifies all of the reasons for his arguments and supports them well. His arguments are also logical in their appeal. For example‚ in the beginning of his letter he gives a response to the clergymen’s claim that the demonstrations were unwise and untimely. He states that the Negro community had no alternative except to prepare for direct action. He supports this claim by saying that the Negro leaders sought to negotiate
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accepted by many whites. In 1963‚ while Martin Luther King was arrested in the Birmingham jail because he supported a protest in Birmingham‚ eight Alabama clergymen published a statement accusing the non-violence protest for disturbing order‚ showing untimely impatience and inciting violence. Since the clergymen believed desegregation should be achieved through the deliberation of time and with conventional processes‚ Martin Luther King wrote a letter to convince them that blacks should not wait passively
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Luther King’s language choice‚ tone‚ and style in Letter from Birmingham Jail reflect his political viewpoint and personal character; just like his political actions‚ they are unapologetic‚ direct‚ respectful‚ and instruct others to act morally. King eloquently conveys the urgency of the Birmingham situation and guides the reader to understand the unjust circumstances and all the “broken promise[s]” that oppress black people. King’s open letter evidences his gift of purposeful and elegant language
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Martin Luther King’s famous “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was written to respond to a public statement “Call for Unity” by a group of white religious leaders of the South. The logic appeals of King’s article which is supported by fact and examples are less than the ethos and pathos appeals. King did a good job to use his personality as ethos appeal to evoke the readers’ emotion which is pathos appeal. King made use of examples‚ facts‚ and personal experiences as logos appeal to logically support
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