Preview

What Is King Thesis In Letter From Birmingham Jail

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1646 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Is King Thesis In Letter From Birmingham Jail
“Letter from a Birmingham Jail”

In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested and sent to jail for an “unwise and untimely” protest against how blacks were treated in Birmingham, Alabama. When in Jail he received a newspaper that had a “ Statement by Alabama Clergymen”, in the article, it stated how they need to handle the racial problems in a different manner. They never directly mentioned King’s name, but they strongly wrote how they felt about the protest. When King saw the statement, he decided to reply. His whole goal in the letter is to explain to the ministers the reasonings behind the actions that took place in Birmingham. King addresses the Clergymen in a polite and professional manner. In the beginning he sweattalkes them, he calls them “men of genuine good” and he says normally he wouldn't have time to answer their questions, but because they are good guys, King will put the time in to get back to them. He says all this to get their attention, and to get
…show more content…
King says, “Hence segregation is not only politically, economically and sociologically unsound, it is morally wrong and sinful”(13). King uses “God Law”(morals) to explain why segregations needs to stop. God always pushes you to do the moral choice, so why have all these church leaders chosen to head down the morally wrong path? The law itself it's okay because it is an unjust law, but it is morally wrong. But what is the difference between a just law and an unjust law? King explains that very well. The clergymen wants to know why they chose to follow some laws and disregard the rest. A just law is any law that makes you a better person, an unjust law does the opposite. That’s why king chose to follow only some laws; he was making the moral choice, and did what was right in his eyes. So when he was protesting, yes it was illegal for him to do, but in his heart it was the right

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Martin Luther King's "A letter from Birmingham jail" was written in response to a published statement by eight fellow clergymen from Alabama who seriously criticized King for organization and participation in the protest march against segregation in Birmingham. King's letter was an attempt to defend himself from these accusations and to criticize white heads and moderators of the church. In the begging parts of the letter, Martin Luther King tries to reject the accusation of being an outsider in Birmingham. He also goes against the accusations that the protests where “untimely” by stating several reasons why this was appropriate time for…

    • 281 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In his open letter "Letter From Birmingham Jail", civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. responds to a letter from white clergymen who criticize his "untimeliness" and "poor tactics". With the use of rhetorical strategies, such as elevated diction, anaphora, and an appeal to pathos, King effectively communicates the urgency for a nonviolent approach in order to eliminate…

    • 59 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Martin Luther King Jr. wrote this letter while being in Birmingham city jail, when he was aware that a statement was saying his activities were “unwise and untimely”. He stated that Birmingham unfortunate was the city of white power that left no alternatives towards the negro community for their actions. King indicated that he agreed why direct action, sit –ins marches or negotiation were a better path, but because he did not want any crisis. Due to not to having tension with the community, even though the community kept refused to negotiate. He stated that his community had built up resentment and frustration that they need a way to release their emotions. He said if they do not release their emotion in a non-violent way, they will seek a…

    • 177 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is written to the audience of clergymen. Martin Luther King Jr., wrote this letter to respond to clergymen who had questions for him. Paragraphs 12-14 are the most persuasive and thorough. King uses many rhetoric mechanism and appeals. Throughout those paragraphs, there is an excessive use of: pathos, logos, ethos, metaphors, symbolism, direct addressment and parallel structure.…

    • 68 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    King views emphasizes the points of all these great people. First, let’s take Plato for instance, Plato teaches people to doubt and ask questions in order to justify the claim. If there are no concrete evidence then there is a reason to doubt. Also if there is one reason to doubt a claim, then it can be doubted as a whole too. Therefore with that said, king at some point in the “Letter from Birmingham jail” says that he was disappointed when the leaders of the church said that freedom will definitely come at some point eventually. Meaning they really did not take their bible studies as they should, in the bible there is no type of racial segregation. Therefore no believing man or woman should be part of an injustice. However, the church members should be the ones that doubt the laws of the nation, if they are true believers. That is the disappointment King spoke about. The he said he hope that one day there will be true…

    • 1468 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Martin Luther King Jr.'s letter from Birmingham Jail was written on April 16, 1963 while he was incarcerated in the Birmingham City Jail. This letter addresses the criticism that a group of white men had thrown at him and his pro-black American organization about their non-violent actions against racial discrimination and injustice among black Americans in Birmingham. He notes that he doesn’t usually respond to letters of criticism but he thought that they were “good willed people and their criticism was sincerely set forth.” King writes this letter to defend his organization's actions. King's letter talks about…

    • 323 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” was written in April 1963, during the African Americans fight for equality. Martin Luther King Jr.’s claim was not just to reply to the eight clergyman who had called his demonstrations “untimely and unwise”, but also aim his justifications at a bigger audience of religious and secular beliefs. An audience that is black and white; therefore King is able to justify his reasons and tactics of beginning immediate action using nonviolent protest to everyone. Throughout his letter Martin Luther King Jr. demonstrates the use of ethos, pathos, and logos to help support his claim while also consistently referring…

    • 1006 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Martin Luther King Jr. concludes his letter with opposition to the commendation towards the police, his disappointment with the white church leaders, and the optimistic view of African American history throughout the United States. Dr. Kings letters primary purpose was to refute and discuss the accusations made against the SCLC and himself to justify his actions to the clergymen. The use of words such as “you” and “hope” are stated over and over throughout the letter, giving the reader a sense that he’s one of the people that’s going through the struggle of injustice and segregation among…

    • 608 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    While confined here in the Birmingham city jail, I came across your recent statement calling my present activities "unwise and untimely." Seldom do I pause to answer criticism of my work and ideas. If I sought to answer all the criticisms that cross my desk, my secretaries would have little time for anything other than such correspondence in the course of the day, and I would have no time for constructive work. But since I feel that you are men of genuine good will and that your criticisms are sincerely set forth, I want to try to answer your statement in what I hope will be patient and reasonable terms.…

    • 6921 Words
    • 18 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1963, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote a letter to the eight Alabama clergymen under the confines of a jail cell in a Birmingham, Alabama prison. The letter stated his thoughts and opinions on the racial tension between the white and the black communities of Alabama. Martin Luther King’s letter was written as a rebuttal to the letter he received from the Alabama clergymen that stated the demonstrations, protests, and acts of civil disobedience of the Negro community were unlawful and should be put to a stop immediately. Martin Luther King replied by indicating that the blacks had a right to peaceful protests; they were simply trying to educate the community about the prejudices present in Alabama and to motivate a change. King incorporated the tree rhetorical strategies of ethos, logos, and pathos throughout his letter. In Martin Luther…

    • 1146 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Dr. King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” he shows that nonviolence is the way to get the positive attention that his plight deserved. He believed that to use violence was negative on a couple of points. First, violence always gets negative attention. Second, violence was the way the Klu Klux Klan went about their business. He wanted to expose unjust laws and do it in a fashion that conveyed his beliefs without causing other problems. In Dr. King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” he is trying to convince his “fellow clergymen” (566) that his fight for the civil liberties is a just one, and that the march was a nonviolent one and one that was surely needed. Dr. King stated, “we are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny” (566). King is saying that it’s something that can no longer be ignored, that he can no longer sit on the sideline and be an idle observer. The black man has to take it to the streets. In this letter, Dr. King showed that nonviolence, direct action, and the ability to stand by one’s convictions are the right path.…

    • 668 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The letter you have received from Mr. King well informs you of his views and position on the subject of segregation. Seeing as Birmingham Alabama is by far one of the most segregated cities in the United States it only makes sense that Mr. King and his followers would stage a demonstration here. Mr. King, in his letter to you, compares the…

    • 817 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In a “Letter from Birmingham Jail”, Martin Luther King, Jr. said “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” This means that if we let injustice happen, then this injustice will grow and start to affect good people. We cannot afford to ignore something bad happening in one place. If injustice occurs and no action is taken against this injustice, then people who hear about what happened might think this injustice is acceptable, and continue being unfair.…

    • 330 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Martin Luther King was a well-known American Baptist minister and activist of the 20th century. In 1963, King was captured and imprisoned for demonstrating without permit in Birmingham. In the jail cell, he wrote the “Letter from Birmingham”, which would later become one of the most influential pieces of writing, to send a message not only to the eight clergymen but also the Americans about the cruel reality of segregation. In the letter, King used many biblical references, historical references, and his own logic to make a persuasive argument against the criticisms from the clergymen as well as the society favoring segregation.…

    • 937 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Most people know of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from his famous “ I have a dream” speech, but what about his letter from Birmingham jail? In the city of Birmingham, many civil rights activists organized sit ins, marches, and protests against racism. These nonviolent demonstrations were coordinated by Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights and Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which King was the president of. Therefore, as an active participant and leader of these nonviolent validations, MLK Jr. was harshly imprisoned in the Birmingham jail. From this jail, he hand wrote a letter as a response to a newspaper article written by eight white clergymen…

    • 1182 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays