This website uses cookies to provide you with a great user experience. Your email address will not be published. He evokes emotion on his audience by discussing the trials and injustice African Americans have endured. IvyMoose is the largest stock of essay samples on lots of topics and for any discipline. Thus, these essays are of lower quality than ones written by experts. Letter From Birmingham Jail and use of Parallel Structure and Anaphora Kirtan Patel Chapter 25 Chapter 24 Parallel Structure- repetition of the same pattern of words or phrases within a sentence or passage to show that two or more ideas have the same level of importance. This exigence is rhetorical because it can be improved if enough people are socially cognizant, whether that be in legislature or the streets of Birmingham, through creation and enforcement of equitable laws and social attitudes. "Letter from Birmingham Jail" Allusion Essay. Yet his most important method of reaching his audience, and conveying his enduring message of equality and freedom for the whole nation was his appeal to pathos. This letter serves as a purpose to apply the need for love and brotherhood towards one another and avoid all the unjust laws. King has explained this through many examples of racial situations, factual and logical reasoning, and . In the beginning of the speech, King goes back to the Constitution and Declaration of Independence stating that .all men, black or white, were to be granted the same rights (Declaration of Independence). Any subject. Martin Luther King Jr. was an important figure in gaining civil rights throughout the 1960s and hes very deserving of that title as seen in both his I Have a Dream speech and his Letter from Birmingham Jail letter. Letter from Birmingham Jail. The Martin Luther King, Jr., Research and Education Institute, 29 May 2019, https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/letter-birmingham-jail. Martin Luther King then goes on to make an analogy to the Bible, portraying Apostle Pauls proliferation of the gospel of Jesus Christ in parallel to his own efforts, stating, I too am compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond my particular hometown (1). Finally, King uses antithesis one more time at the end of his speech, when he writes when all of Gods children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands. The pairs he mentions are all the direct opposites of each other, yet he says that they will all join hands together and be friends. The Letter from Birmingham Jail addresses many problems, including the slow action occuring to stop racial discrimination. However, they each have different ideas about freedom, and about what they want their audience to do. The rhetorical choices referenced above are riddled with pathos, also known as language utilized to persuade the audience emotionally. Parallelism is a literary device in itself, but it is also a category under which other figures of speech fall, such as those mentioned previously. I am here because I have basic organizational ties here (King 1), after describing his involvement in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference as president. In short, Martin Luther King Jr. includes rhetorical devices in his writing. On the other hand, logical appeals helps to grasp the concept better and provides facts that prove it to be true. Dr. King brought people up and gave them hope that one day everything will be taken care of and we 'll all be happy, he said that one day we 'll have peace and love among each other. King gives a singular, eloquent voice to a massive, jumbled movement. and may encompass the audience, as seen while analysing Letter From Birmingham Jail. With this addressed, his audience was truly the population of the United States, especially Birmingham, with a focus on those who withheld and complied with the oppression of African American citizens, even if not intentionally. Constraints bring light to the obstacles this rhetoric may face, whether it be social, political, economical, etc. Both works utilizes the persuasive techniques of pathos in Dream and logos in Birmingham. Both of the works had a powerful message that brought faith to many. In this way, King juxtaposes the unscrupulous principles of the clergy with his righteous beliefs to highlight the threat of injustice, which he seeks to combat with hope. He said that one day we won 't have to worry about our skin color and segregation and that we 'll all come together as one. Lincoln states, We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. What he says means that the soldiers lost their lives to give us freedom. This audience is rhetorical as the social and political ideologies of the American people fuel democracy and are able to change the system around them through collective effort. Examples Of Juxtaposition In Letter From Birmingham Jail , 29 May 2019, https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/letter-birmingham-jail. The audience of Letter From Birmingham Jail was initially the eight clergymen of Birmingham, all white and in positions of religious leadership. Fred Shuttlesworth, defied an injunction against protesting on Good Friday in 1963. In parallel structure, a writer repeats the same pattern of words or/and pattern of grammatical structure. Here, King combines divergent interpretations of justice to demonstrate the gravity of the injustice that he confronted in Birmingham. 808 certified writers . He takes up for his cause in Birmingham, and his belief that nonviolent direct action is the best way to make changes happen. In paragraph 15 of his "Letter from Birmingham Jail", Martin Luther King uses. While in jail, King received a letter from eight Alabama clergyman explaining their concern and opposition to King and his non-violent actions. In response, King emphasized that justice is never timely, and the refusal to acknowledge equal rights was inhumane and regressive. Other than the speechs heartwarming and moving content, Kings effective structure along with the usage of all three rhetorical modes and certain rhetorical tropes and schemes has revealed the reason I Have a Dream as a masterpiece of rhetoric and it persuades hundreds of thousands of people support the blacks instead of treating them. Who was he truly writing for? His audience ranged between those who his message empowered, a radical positive force, and those who disagreed, made up of southern states, extremist groups, and the majority of American citizens stuck in their racial prejudices. Letter from Birmingham Jail Literary Devices Analysis - Storyboard That In. Divided there is little we can dofor we dare not meet a powerful challenge at odds and split asunder." - John F. Kennedy, "1961 First Inaugural Address" That sentence magnifies the fact that good people doing nothing is the same as bad people purposely hindering civil rights. Likewise, King creates logos as he employs another antithetical statement that demonstrates the timeliness of his argument: Never voluntarily given by the oppressor must be demanded by the oppressed; Jet-like speed horse-and-buggy pace (518). To achieve this, he used rhetorical strategies such as appeal to pathos and repetition. Introduction. Letter to Birmingham Jail is a response to a group of Birmingham ministers who voiced negative comments and questioned the civil rights demonstrations Dr. King was leading in Birmingham. While his letter was only addressed to the clergymen, it is safe to assume that King had intent on the public eventually reading his letter, considering his position within the Civil Rights movement, use of persuasive rhetorical language, and hard-hitting debates on the justification of law. Therefore this makes people see racism in a whole new light; racism has not been justified because the United States have failed to uphold their promises. Through the masterful use of analogies and undeniable examples of injustice, Kings disgruntled response to the clergies proves the justification for direct action taking place to establish equality for African Americans., Martin Luther Kings letter from Birmingham Jail was written to respond to white religious leaders who criticized his organizations actions against racial prejudice and injustice among black society in Birmingham. While in solitary confinement for nearly 8 days, reverend and social justice activist, Martin Luther King Jr., wrote his famous Letter from Birmingham Jail in response to the criticism he received for his non-violent protests. We will write a custom Essay on King's Allusion in "Letter From Birmingham Jail" specifically for you. Original: Apr 16, 2013. PDF Letter from a Birmingham Jail: The Rhetorical Analysis We believe that King states in the first sentence himself that he does not usually comment upon the criticism of his work. Both lincolns Gettysburg Address and Martin Luther King's I have a dream speech are similar in that they both express the concept of freedom to achieve their purpose. In Kings speech he says, Its ugly record of police brutality is known in every section of this country (King Page 6). King does this in an effective and logical way. Copyright 2023 IPL.org All rights reserved. Note: All essays placed on IvyMoose.com are written by students who kindly donate their papers to us. Using emotional appeals captures an audience's attention and makes them think about what the narrator is saying. Although Dr. Kings exploits are revered today, he had opponents that disagreed with the tactics he employed. Greater importance is placed on his tone, choice of words, choice of argument, and credibility, for better or for worse, and he must carefully make rhetorical decisions, not only because of his race. These two techniques played a crucial role in furthering his purpose and in provoking a powerful response from the audience that made this speech memorable and awe-inspiring. The letter goes on to explain his choice to act directly and nonviolently, stating, For years now I have heard the word wait. It rings in the ear of every Negro with a piercing familiarity. Back then, people were ready to oppose unjust laws that were causing inequality and preventing progress. One of the challenges that he faced included being criticized because of what he believed in concerning the laws of segregation. King specifically wrote to the white clergymen who had earlier addressed a letter to him as to why he was apprehended, in which they argued that his actions were untimely and unconstitutional. Pathos, Logos, Ethos in Letter from Birmingham Jail - GradesFixer There isn't quite as much of that in "Letter From Birmingham Jail," but it still pops up a couple of times. Repetitions help the writer give structure to his arguments and highlight important aspects. This protest, his subsequent arrest, and the clergymens public statement ostensibly make up the rhetorical exigence, but it truly stems from a much larger and dangerous situation at hand: the overwhelming state of anti-black prejudice spread socially, systematically, and legislatively in America since the countrys implementation of slavery in Jamestown, 1619. Dr. Not only does he use pathos to humanize himself, but he also uses it to humanize his immediate audience, the eight clergymen. Identify the parallel structures in the following sentence from Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail," and explain their effect. But the strongest influential device King used was pathos. Martin Luther King, more than any other figure, shaped American life from the mid-"'"50s to the late "'"60s. Whether this be by newspaper, flyers, or restated by another in speech, the spread of information is slower and potentially more controllable. Letter from Birmingham Jail Summary & Analysis | LitCharts He approaches his argument with logic and appealing to the people of Birminghams emotions. The amount of original essays that we did for our clients, The amount of original essays that we did for our clients. Rhetorical devices in Letter from Birmingham Jail Consequently, King fabricates logos as he urges African-Americans to demand justice from their oppressors, an issue that directly affects everyone across the nation: not just those in specific areas. In Kings speech he. King uses tone, literal and figurative language to establish structure and language in his letter. King spins the constraining pressure to properly represent the movement on its head, using his rhetoric to uplift the underprivileged and leave no room in his language for criticism, proven by the continuous adoption of his messages by the public. His letter has become one of the most profound pieces of literature of the 20th century, as King uses vivid examples and eloquent rhetorical devices to counter all nine arguments. Not only was this a social division, but those who opposed King were reinforced by the respective legislature that sought to burden him. As example, King uses I have a dream that one day and Let freedom ring.. to open his points on how Americans should change against racial indifferences. The problem is that this kind of thinking can spread and infect other people to believe this is acceptable. "Letter From a Birmingham Jail," written by Martin Luther King Jr. in 1963, describes a protest against his arrest for non-violent resistance to racism. Repetition. It managed to inspire a generation of blacks to never give up and made thousands of white Americans bitterly ashamed of their actions, forging a new start for society. First, King writes that the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. This antithesis makes the audience realize that the Negroes have been left behind and ignored while the rest of modern society has charged forward into prosperity and fortune. Order can only be held for so long whilst injustice is around. In 1963, while Martin Luther King was in Birmingham Jail, King delivered a powerful letter to his Clergymen in order to take time and respond to the criticism he had received over his work in Birmingham. "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." - Martin Luther King Jr., "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" "United there is little we cannot do in a host of cooperative ventures. While the Civil Rights movement superseded the dismantling of Jim Crow, the social ideologies and lackadaisical legislature behind anti-black prejudice continued to rack the country far into the 1960s.