Interpretation of Martin Luther King's Letter from Jail - Essay Example

?Sur Lecturer A letter from Birmingham jail Introduction Martin Luther King’s "A letter from Birmingham jail" was a response to the statement published by fellow eight clergymen from Alabama who criticized Martin Luther for participation and organization of the protest against Birmingham segregation. Martin Luther King’s letter was actually an effort to criticize the church and the white moderators, and to defend himself from such accusations. With this regard, this paper seeks to analyze the way King uses various appeals in his letter: appeals to reason (logos), appeals to emotion (pathos), and appeals based on his character (ethos), and the significance of using these appeals in preaching love and justice which are the central elements of Martin Luther King’s letter. The central ideas of the letter: love and justice, can be seen from the first lines of Martin Luther King’s letter. He tries to disapprove accusation of not being a Birmingham insider. Martin Luther King claims that he had an invitation to Birmingham and had managerial ties as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference’s president. In addition, he did not consider himself as Birmingham outsider because of the fact that everyone who live within the territorial boundaries of the United States of America could not be referred to as outsiders. This justifies the justice and love idea of Martin Luther King’s letter. Martin Luther King’s letter focuses on nonviolent resistant defense to racism; Martin Luther King argues in the letter that people have a moral responsibility to resist unjust laws. This shows the commitment of Martin Luther King to advocate love and justice to the people of America. The letter though experienced an early setback; it enjoyed a broad publication and was considered the major text for the civil rights movement in the United States in the early 1960s. Martin Luther King responded through his letter to the call for unity and acted as a declaration to fight racial inequality. This again supports the thesis of this paper: the significance of love and justice in using appeals to logic, emotion and ethics. The "Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King literary puts into terms his life thesis statement. Martin Luther King illustrated meticulously his reasoning through the use of appeals to emotion, logic, and ethics. A logical appeal is that which utilizes facts, reason and documented evidence to drive a point. Martin Luther King makes in his letter a logical appeal where he responds to being referred to as an extremist. King does this by asserting that majority of historical figures that are today considered heroes were perceived as extremist in their time. Martin Luther King mentions people like Thomas Jefferson, Apostle Paul, Jesus Christ and Abraham Lincoln (549). In this particular aspect, King uses facts and reason to put across a logical appeal to the reader: if he is considered an extremist because of campaigning for freedom, then all the other people are extremists as well. Martin Luther King cites an illustration of this by pointing out the manner in which the police at Birmingham mistreated the protesters (522). Although he does not in particular cite a source, the event was publicized widely. Martin Luther King uses evidence to invalidate the accusations by the clergymen. He also uses firsthand accounts in illustrating his points. King talks about the way he expected the white religious leaders to provide aid, but found opposition and reluctance instead (550). Martin Luther King states his arguments through providing firsthand account of his real experience. This however relies on the perception of the writer in order to be useful. Credibility is needed for this reason. In order to obtain credibility, explanations as to why things are done in a particular way must be given. Martin Luther King begins his letter by informing readers that he is writing the letter (540-541). Informing readers the reason for particular writings gives the readers insight to the real meaning of the work of the author. Through informing readers, Martin Luther King is developing his credibility as he also makes appeal to the emotions of the readers. When King develops his credibility, it appears to be a type of ethical appeal. Ethical appeals backs the argument of the author through ascertaining that the author is truly knowledgeable on the subject, and builds the moral character of the author as well. Another illustration of Martin Luther King making an ethical appeal is when he said he actually had the honor to serve as the Southern Christian Leadership Conference president. He builds his credibility through informing readers that he has served in an administrative role as a president. That he has power and authority. Martin Luther King compares himself to Apostle Paul in the beginning of the letter. Through doing this comparison to an historical figure, he displays an ethical appeal. As mentioned earlier, ethical appeal helps build the character of the author. This particular comparison builds the character of Martin Luther King to the readers through comparing someone considered largely as a hero to himself. Again, the use of events and heroes in making points and arguments may have an impact on the readers’ emotions. Early in his letter, Martin Luther King appeals to the readers’ emotions. Just to refer back to his comparison with Apostle Paul, Martin Luther King states that he must "carry the gospel of freedom beyond my own home town" (541). An emotional appeal is an appeal that stirs up our emotions and lingers deeply held values in our minds. The words of Martin Luther King intend to have the emotions of the readers drawn out, through the use of an historical event in illustrating his purpose. The description of the historical event reverberates with the reader. Martin Luther King makes another emotional appeal in the middle of the letter. He explains the way he has perceived the southern well crafted churches, and conjectured the way people who worshiped at the churches viewed discrimination against others by numerous leaders. Martin Luther King uses his vocabulary to describe his love and disappointment for the church. Through the use of phrases like "sweltering summer days and crisp autumn mornings", and "lofty spires pointing heavenward" (550), Martin Luther King captures the readers’ imagination. Whenever an author captures the imagination of a reader through the use of imagery in describing a point, it is a type of emotional appeal. Martin Luther King shows another emotional appeal to the readers through the use of strong vocabulary phrases and words like "the judgment of God" and "forfeit" (551) in order to make the reader feel a sense of seriousness and urgency concerning the situation. Emotional appeal is dependent on the usage of eloquent, strong vocabulary words. Martin Luther King masters this well and uses it to his own advantage. The emotional appeal of the letter led to his best achievement. Conclusion In summary, Martin Luther King uses the three augmented appeals sufficiently, he however do not use such hard evidence in his logical appeals. He was incarcerated, so this is understandable. Martin Luther King never had access to sources that he could offer as evidence, which could have given him more credibility. Martin Luther King’s letter is an ethical piece largely. This is because the letter is particularly a response to criticisms that were directed towards him, without any regard to particulars that resulted into this letter, the letter’s cultural implications are massive. Martin Luther King used this letter to declare his motives, reasoning, and overall goals. This paper once again has analyzed the way King uses various appeals in his letter: appeals to reason (logos), appeals to emotion (pathos), and appeals based on his character (ethos). Works Cited Martin Luther King’s Letter From Birmingham Jail Read More