Analysis of “I Have a Dream” and “Letter to Birmingham Jail” In the “Letter to Birmingham Jail” Martin Luther King addresses the criticisms and objections that the white clergymen had made towards his and his affiliated organization’s efforts in trying to end segregation and achieve his and his people’s birth right: the right to be free through nonviolent means. Through the “I Have a Dream Speech” King speaks to his supporters and as well as to the entire nation to make them be fully aware of the injustices they are facing and through this make them stand up to those injustices. Both “Letter to Birmingham Jail” and “I Have a Dream Speech” have the same underlying meaning however. That way too long have the black community been treated wrongly. That way too long have the black nation been “judged by the color of their skin rather than the content of their character (King 815)” and therefore it is time for them to rise and stand up for their rights.
Toulmin Analysis In the “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, King he responds to a letter written by eight, white Alabama Clergymen to the editor of a newspaper in Birmingham. He wants the audience to believe that the clergymen fail to discuss the circumstances that brought about the demonstrations in Birmingham. In September 1962, King had the opportunity to talk with the leaders of Birmingham economic community. The merchants made many promise such as how they would remove the stores’ racial signs. Upon these agreements, Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth, the leader of the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights, (including Martin Luther King) had agreed to delay the peaceful demonstrations.
Martin Luther King Jr. wrote "Letter from Birmingham Jail" on April 16, 1963 to express his views against unjust laws, which discriminated against him others. In the beginning King explains that he is in jail and is taking in the things he has been criticized for. At the time King was extremely aggravated by the way the church, especially the white clergy who was not in support of the religious civil rights movement. He wrote this letter as a response to the church’s separation of holy and worldly matters concerning his cause. The letter then talks about why King was in Birmingham.
Letter from Birmingham Jail Rhetorical Analysis “Justice too long delayed is justice denied.” This quote sums up the main purpose of paragraph 13 and 14 in Martin Luther King’s awe inspiring “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, in the letter MLK no longer wants to wait to negotiate with the whites because they've kept him and African Americans waiting for hundreds of years. In order to express his purpose, MLK uses pathos, repetition and creative metaphors to prove why he doesn’t want to wait for someone to give him freedom anymore. The use of pathos in paragraph 14 is illustrated by the powerful examples MLK has given. MLK appeals to his audience’s emotions by using his children as an example for why he cannot wait, “to see tears welling up in her eyes when she’s told funtown is closed to colored children.” (p.13). MLK using kids as an example in the unjustness of slavery evokes a response in the audience, that might not be found if he instead used an adult as an example.
Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was written in Birmingham Jail in 1963 as a response to the Clergymen to explain his actions and also to answer their questions on why he did not call off the demonstrations. King was a civil rights activist who organized a campaign against segregation in Birmingham, Alabama in 1963. In his letter, King uses anaphora and allusions frequently. He also appeals to ethos, logos, and pathos to make his letter a paradigm of effective rhetoric. King uses allusions frequently throughout his letter.
Subject: The subject of this letter is to state the reason he is in Birmingham for trying to change segregation as social justice and his use of civil disobedience as an instrument of freedom. Occasion: Dr. King is writing this letter from inside Birmingham Jail for being accused of misuse of the law by performing in acts of civil disobedience to show his disappointment at the leadership of the clergy and laws that he and others of the black community deem as unjust. Audience: Although this letter was initially mailed to the eight white clergymen who publicly asked the black community to restrict their Birmingham demonstrations, King meant for his message to reach a much larger audience such as U.S. citizens. King used this letter as
MLK Responces 1. Injustice anywhere is always a threat to justice everywhere because there is still that fear of oppression that people are dealing with. Injustice is this situation is trying to be kept hidden because the white moderate and church just feel that they do not need to get involved. There will never be complete Justice until all of the Injustice is removed so all people have the equal rights and oppression will not be something that people would have to go against. I agree with King because it is just a powerful meaning that was so true at that time.
The MIA(Montgomery Improvement Association) was formed with Martin Luther King as president. Leaflets were passed around the black community urging them to stop using the bus services. The effect was immense, with countless buses in Montgomery empty. An MIA meeting of 7000 was held in Holt Street Baptist Church, where it was decided that the boycott would continue. At that meeting Martin Luther King gave an inspiring speech that spread the boycott further among blacks.
He chose to be vocal about his dissatisfaction with his people’s racial predicament. King spoke as though he was speaking on behalf of his entire race. He was a man of his people and represented their needs and desire to gain equality. King spoke directly against authority, not in a malicious way, but more in a way where he offered criticism and ways in which society needed to reform itself. During the 1963 March on Washington, King delivered perhaps his most famous speech called “I Have a Dream.” This speech called for an end to racism and desegregation in America that was still very prevalent at the time.
By citing references of protest such as Jesus Christ, St. Paul, Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln, he justifies his current actions for the Negro community and states that he is willing to face the consequences when it comes to protesting for equal rights amongst all Americans. This was the first time that I have read Dr. King’s letter from the Birmingham jail and I have to admit that it was a very moving and inspirational letter to the people of the Civil Rights Movement at the time. I think that this letter showed how he was always protesting through love and peace and never violence, even though he had been classified as an extremist by the white community. By showing this type of leadership he proved to be such a courageous and intelligent figure in the Negro community and his words of wisdom made such a huge impact on the history of the movement. I believe that without letters such as these to his fellow brothers, most protests would not have been “peaceful” and the entire pursuit of equality could have been in jeopardy.