Patterns persuade. 1963, the United States of America was in turmoil. The tension was rising between black and white, bond and free, north and south. Turmoil was building up for the eventual Civil War, one of the most crucial events in the nation’s history. Martin Luther King, Jr., a pinnacle leader in the race for freedom of the Negro people and a key icon of the Civil War, had been arrested and imprisoned in Birmingham, Alabama for certain demonstrations. Local clergymen issued a statement towards King, denouncing his actions. In a crucial response, Martin Luther King, Jr., uses a powerful pattern of logos, ethos, and pathos, to persuade his readers to take action in his cause, and uses a specific order of topics to guide those actions. In his first response, King logically establishes the basis for why he is responding. Says King, “I came across your recent statement calling my present activities "unwise and untimely." Seldom do I pause to
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King understands that he will set the basis not only for the rest of his letter but also will be taking a stand against all those who oppose and oppress his ideals, starting first with one of the strongest societal influences, religion. Thus, he builds his ethos by giving an extensive history of his affiliations with Birmingham and clergical offices and even a hint of what could seem to be deemed as “religious success” through his
King understands that he will set the basis not only for the rest of his letter but also will be taking a stand against all those who oppose and oppress his ideals, starting first with one of the strongest societal influences, religion. Thus, he builds his ethos by giving an extensive history of his affiliations with Birmingham and clergical offices and even a hint of what could seem to be deemed as “religious success” through his