Martin Luther King Life Book Report

King’s Life “The Autobiography of Martin Luther King, Jr.” was edited by Clayborne Carson. Carson went to his first civil rights demonstration and he saw King for the first time at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963. Two decades later, Carson was requested by Mrs. Coretta Scott King to become the director of the King Papers Project. He accepted the offer and became enveloped in King’s writings. The book is compiled of the autobiographical writings King published and edited the works (vii-i). The book begins with the early years of King’s life. He was born at home in Atlanta, Georgia, on January 15, 1929. This was close to the start of the Great Depression (1). He was born on the same street as his family’s church …show more content…
His professors wanted the students to found a solution to racial issues in society. King read Henry David Thoreau’s On Civil Disobedience. This essay was the first time he came to the idea of the use of nonviolence for social reform. While attending Morehouse, he became skeptical of the Bible due to science. When he took a course in Biblical studies with Dr. Mays and Dr. George Kelsey, he saw them as prime examples of what the ideal minister should be. Both were greatly educated and deeply religious. In his senior year in college, he decided to join the ministry and finished college at nineteen (15-6). In 1948, King entered Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Pennsylvania. During his time at Crozer, he read a great deal from various philosophers such as Walter Rauschenbusch, Karl Marx, and more. He also attended many lectures and he eventually listened to Dr. Mordecai Johnson. Dr. Johnson returned from his trip in India and spoke of the life of Mahatma Gandhi and his use of nonviolence to achieve social justice. King brought a half-dozen books on Gandhi and began to believe the philosophy of “turning the other check” was not only applied in individual relationships but to bring social change (17-9; 22-24). King later went to Boston University’s School of Theology on September 13,1951. The school was under Dean Walter Muelder and Professor Allan Knight Chalmers and both greatly …show more content…
degree. He received multiple job offerings from two churches and from three colleges. King was incredibly conflicted on which position to take up. He decided to preach a sermon at Dexter Avenue Baptist of Montgomery during his visit at his father’s home in Atlanta for the Christmas holiday. On January 24, 1954, King peached his sermon at Dexter Avenue Baptist entitled “The Three Dimensions of a Complete Life.” He returned to Boston and he acquired a letter from the church. The members unanimously voted to have King as the new pastor. King did not immediately accepted and thought of the other job options given to him. He knew accepting the call to pastorate the church in the South, he and his wife would have to return to segregation. Ultimately, King and Coretta both agreed to go to Montgomery considering they could do greater service in the South. This critical decision would lead King to become one of the most famous individuals in the Civil Rights Movement. While being the pastor of the church, King took an active role in social problems and wanted his congregation to become registered voters. He worked with the local chapter of the NAACP and the Alabama Council on Human Relations to promote education about integration