Rhetorical Analysis of Letters from Birmingham Jail
African Americans were not known for violently fighting for their God given rights. The black community felt they had waited long enough for those rights to be established. The clergymen questioned their actions and whether they were effective or not. They also believed non-violent acts would eventually lead to violent acts because the African Americans would get tired of waiting for things to start turning in a positive direction. Martin Luther King Jr. uses his authority to ethically help the clergymen understand the reasoning behind nonviolent protests. Additionally, King addresses the clergymen by using allusions, and imagery to argue not only why non-violent protests exist, but why they have become necessary. He establishes his credibility as a black man, a civil rights leader, and as an American leader, to appeal to different people and groups in his audience. King alludes to Christianity and historically important documents to ethically infer knowledge of non-violent protests. He compares himself to early Christian figures and leaders, as well as Christian groups. King alludes to “Apostle Paul” by stating he felt inspired to “aid” the people who needed his help (King, 4). This allusion gives him a sense of authority and leadership over the people of the nonviolent protests. It also establishes his credibility as a black Christian man. This helps the clergymen understand his position better, by comparing it to something they share in common, which is their knowledge of …show more content…
He uses ethical persuasion to support the importance and impact of the nonviolent protests. His position as a civil rights leader, and an American leader, is the strong ethical evidence that helps the clergymen see the relevance of the protests, from the black community's point of
African Americans were not known for violently fighting for their God given rights. The black community felt they had waited long enough for those rights to be established. The clergymen questioned their actions and whether they were effective or not. They also believed non-violent acts would eventually lead to violent acts because the African Americans would get tired of waiting for things to start turning in a positive direction. Martin Luther King Jr. uses his authority to ethically help the clergymen understand the reasoning behind nonviolent protests. Additionally, King addresses the clergymen by using allusions, and imagery to argue not only why non-violent protests exist, but why they have become necessary. He establishes his credibility as a black man, a civil rights leader, and as an American leader, to appeal to different people and groups in his audience. King alludes to Christianity and historically important documents to ethically infer knowledge of non-violent protests. He compares himself to early Christian figures and leaders, as well as Christian groups. King alludes to “Apostle Paul” by stating he felt inspired to “aid” the people who needed his help (King, 4). This allusion gives him a sense of authority and leadership over the people of the nonviolent protests. It also establishes his credibility as a black Christian man. This helps the clergymen understand his position better, by comparing it to something they share in common, which is their knowledge of …show more content…
He uses ethical persuasion to support the importance and impact of the nonviolent protests. His position as a civil rights leader, and an American leader, is the strong ethical evidence that helps the clergymen see the relevance of the protests, from the black community's point of