In Martin Luther King Junior’s Letter From Birmingham Jail King uses many rhetorical tools to convince the reader of the legitimacy and the truth of his cause. We see King making appeals to emotion as he paints the picture of the father having to explain to his daughter why she couldn’t go to the new park, or to the son who asks why the white men are so mean. This same appeal is shown dabbled throughout the letter, both in Kings exhortations and expressed disappointment of the church and in his representations of the abuse that many experience in their non-violent protests. King also uses an appeal to logic when he quotes St. Thomas Aquinas, speaking of the difference between just and unjust laws. He uses this same appeal and couples it with an allusion to Adolf Hitler to create a logical appeal with slight appeals to emotion. Logical appeal is also used to express the lawfulness and the appropriate use of non-violent protests and in his explanation as to why tension is a necessary and helpful entity that is unavoidable in order to make a successful change. King also uses an appeal to ethos, or his own credibility as he states his presidency over the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which he makes sure to add has numerous affiliated organizations, and during his emotional/moral appeal we see him stating that he has come from many generations of preachers, thus establishing his credibility as a man of morals and good faith.
Another great post Ronnie. I think we have a good hold on rhetorical analysis. While I was reading this piece, I was amazed at how often King referred to other scholars. I also noted his ability to still sound humble in his writing despite the many appeals to ethos. Sometimes I feel like authors may overuse ethos in an effort to disguise their own uncertainty with another's findings. However, this is not the case with Dr. King. He knows his stuff :)
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that he used a very good appeal to emotion in this speech. The way he paints a picture and then backs them up with personal stories is a very effective way, in my opinion to hook your audience. I also think that Kings credibility is well established in this piece by being a man of good worth and moral value. I enjoyed reading this piece this is one piece of history I find very interesting.
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