I also hope that circumstances will soon make it possible for me to meet each of you, not as an integrationist or a civil-rights leader but as a fellow clergyman and a Christian brother. It gives the segregator a false sense of superiority and the segregated a false sense of inferiority. But your statement, I am sorry to say, fails to express a similar concern for the conditions that brought about the demonstrations. We will reach the goal of freedom in Birmingham and all over the nation, because the goal of America is freedom. An early example is his discussion and defense of tension. However, here he shows a much greater eagerness to accept a mantle, regardless of his audiences response. They were too God-intoxicated to be astronomically intimidated. By their effort and example they brought an end to such ancient evils as infanticide and gladiatorial contests. They have left their secure congregations and walked the streets of Albany, Georgia, with us. ", I must make two honest confessions. through now this approach is being termed extremist., But though I was initially disappointed through embodied in our echoing demands., Read the Study Guide for Letter From Birmingham Jail, Rhetorical Analysis of Letter From a Birmingham Jail, We Are in This Together: Comparing "Letter from Birmingham Jail" and "Sonny's Blues", Fighting Inequality with the Past: A Look into "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" and Related Historical Documents, A Question of Appeal: Rhetorical Analysis of Malcolm X and MLK, View our essays for Letter From Birmingham Jail, Introduction to Letter From Birmingham Jail, View the lesson plan for Letter From Birmingham Jail, View Wikipedia Entries for Letter From Birmingham Jail. In other words, they should join his cause not only for his sake, but for their own. Let me give another explanation. I am thankful, however, that some of our white brothers in the South have grasped the meaning of this social revolution and committed themselves to it. Paul Tillich has said that sin is separation. Keeping with the more confrontational tone of the letters second half, Dr. King launches into an attack on the complacency of the contemporary church. This "Wait" has almost always meant "Never." He is clearly addressing people who represent the power class, but assumes in several arguments that they support the ideals of justice, at least on the surface. King is expressing his apology for the demonstrations themselves, but he is not apologizing for the reasons and purposes behind the demonstrations. Through a variety of legally-structured arguments, Dr. King illustrates the fallacy of both these assumptions. ", "You express a great deal of anxiety over our willingness to break laws" to "I would openly advocate disobeying that country's antireligious laws. Rather than indicate what separates him from the other clergy, he calls them fellow clergymen, underlining one of the letters main themes: brotherhood. Instead, he embraces and justifies the importance of tension. "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Throughout the Letter, Dr. King is careful to measure his tone, to avoid validating any knee-jerk anxieties that his audience might feel. We have gone through all these steps in Birmingham. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. Finally, he uses occasional warnings, suggesting that oppressed people will inevitably fight for freedom, and so the clergymen are inviting violent revolution if they do not support Dr. Kings nonviolent crusade. This phrase, one of the letters most famous, serves several purposes. Further, he implicitly suggests that by continuing to facilitate the oppression of the black man through moderation, his audience is operating in sin and will ultimately be on the losing side. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote the "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" on April 16, 1963. Others have marched with us down nameless streets of the South. Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from the Birmingham Jail. But the latter consistently refused to engage in good faith negotiation. Some have asked: Why didnt you give the new city administration time to act? The only answer that I can give to this query is that the new Birmingham administration must be prodded about as much as the outgoing one, before it will act. He challenges his audience to disagree with the grounds on which he gladly calls himself an extremist and plans to remake the world for justice. I am sure that none of you would want to rest content with the superficial kind of social analysis that deals merely with effects and does not grapple with underlying causes. Considering it was written in a situation so infused with racial issues, the Letter from Birmingham Jail is often strangely divorced from explicitly racial issues. I'm not sure what you mean by "these people". Most of the Martin Luther statements were very rhetorical, whereby he employed Aristotle's kinds of persuasion to convince his audience. Where were their voices of support when bruised and weary Negro men and women decided to rise from the dark dungeons of complacency to the bright hills of creative protest?. Never again can we afford to live with the narrow, provincial outside agitator idea. Civil rights, political, and social activist, minister and spokesperson for nonviolent activism. The other, Jesus Christ, was an extremist for love, truth and goodness, and thereby rose above his environment. Actually, time itself is neutral; it can be used either destructively or constructively. Knowing that a strong economic-withdrawal program would be the by product of direct action, we felt that this would be the best time to bring pressure to bear on the merchants for the needed change. He stipulates through pathos that good men want a solid rock of human dignity, and then argues that direct action like that of the SCLC is the only way to reach such a transcendent state. He directly accuses moderates of disingenuousness when they preach patience, in effect calling them liars they say wait but mean never. Worse, he suggests that they lie without even realizing it. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Full text of "Letter from a Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King, Jr. 16 April 1963 My Dear Fellow Clergymen: 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. Every day I meet young people whose disappointment with the church has turned into outright disgust. Not affiliated with Harvard College. For more than two centuries our forebears labored in this country without wages; they made cotton king; they built the homes of their masters while suffering gross injustice and shameful humiliation -and yet out of a bottomless vitality they continued to thrive and develop. But be assured that my tears have been tears of love. Hence segregation is not only politically, economically and sociologically unsound, it is morally wrong and sinful. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. Though he makes other subsumed distinctions (like the way just and unjust laws either punish or include minorities), this general definition serves to illustrate his overarching point: that laws are not separate from morality, but instead ought to be reflections of it. By the end, he is no longer arguing, but telling his audience that change will come, and that they should join him not because he needs them, but because they need it so as to not avoid later regret over their cowardice and sinfulness. Arguing that time is "neutral," Dr. King illustrates the importance of individual action. Yes, these questions are still in my mind. I hope you are able to see the distinction I am trying to point out. I have beheld the impressive outlines of her massive religious education buildings. Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever. I doubt that you would so quickly commend the policemen if you were to observe their ugly and inhumane treatment of Negroes here in the city jail; if you were to watch them push and curse old Negro women and young Negro girls; if you were to see them slap and kick old Negro men and young boys; if you were to observe them, as they did on two occasions, refuse to give us food because we wanted to sing our grace together. In those days the church was not merely a thermometer that recorded the ideas and principles of popular opinion; it was a thermostat that transformed the mores of society. I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience. Now is the time to lift our national policy from the quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock of human dignity.. I have heard numerous southern religious leaders admonish their worshipers to comply with a desegregation decision because it is the law, but I have longed to hear white ministers declare: Follow this decree because integration is morally right and because the Negro is your brother. In the midst of blatant injustices inflicted upon the Negro, I have watched white churchmen stand on the sideline and mouth pious irrelevancies and sanctimonious trivialities. Who can say that the legislature of Alabama which set up that states segregation laws was democratically elected? He writes: All Christians know that the colored people will receive equal rights eventually, but it is possible that you are in too great a religious hurry. In our own nation, the Boston Tea Party represented a massive act of civil disobedience. But, oh! The purpose of our direct action program is to create a situation so crisis packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation. As T. S. Eliot has said: The last temptation is the greatest treason: To do the right deed for the wrong reason.. If I have said anything in this letter that overstates the truth and indicates an unreasonable impatience, I beg you to forgive me. The larger implication of this assertion is that moderation and patience must be replaced with action and impatience. The protests began with to pressure business leaders to cease discrimination for employment and end segregation in public facilities, restaurants, Why would King express his apology in this way? 1. So let him march; let him make prayer pilgrimages to the city hall; let him go on freedom rides -and try to understand why he must do so. 403 likes. I have just received a letter from a white brother in Texas. Then, last September, came the opportunity to talk with leaders of Birminghams economic community. You may well ask: Why direct action? Letter from Birmingham Jail Summary & Analysis Next Themes Themes and Colors Key Summary Analysis Martin Luther King, Jr. directs his letter to the eight white clergymen who publicly condemned his actions in Birmingham, Alabama. Arguably the most sophisticated section of the Letter is Dr. Kings distinction between just and unjust laws. And yet his harsh tone is much more universalist than simply the criticism of the clergymen would support. Whenever the early Christians entered a town, the people in power became disturbed and immediately sought to convict the Christians for being disturbers of the peace and outside agitators. But the Christians pressed on, in the conviction that they were a colony of heaven, called to obey God rather than man. Moreover, I am cognizant of the interrelatedness of all communities and states. In "Letter from Birmingham City Jail," Martin Luther King, Jr., uses logos, pathos, and ethosto support his arguments. Presupposing that his audience accepts the virtue of morality (and more specifically, of Judeo-Christian morality), Dr. King illustrates that unjust laws demean all men, the oppressed and oppressor both. In your statement you assert that our actions, even though peaceful, must be condemned because they precipitate violence. In spite of my shattered dreams, I came to Birmingham with the hope that the white religious leadership of this community would see the justice of our cause and, with deep moral concern, would serve as the channel through which our just grievances could reach the power structure. Something within has reminded him of his birthright of freedom, and something without has reminded him that it can be gained. For instance, I have been arrested on a charge of parading without a permit. We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people. It covers the rhetorical devices used by Martin Luther King, Jr. I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that the present tension in the South is a necessary phase of the transition from an obnoxious negative peace, in which the Negro passively accepted his unjust plight, to a substantive and positive peace, in which all men will respect the dignity and worth of human personality. ", "One of the basic points in your statement" through "I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience. The "Letter, from Birmingham Jail" is a smooth reaction to ''A Call for Unity.'' 866-206-0994. I wish you had commended the Negro sit inners and demonstrators of Birmingham for their sublime courage, their willingness to suffer and their amazing discipline in the midst of great provocation. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. Pick no more than two modes of appeal. It will cover the parts of the SOAPSTone method, offer examples, and give a sample introductory paragraph to an analysis essay, including a thesis, using the template described in the analysis packet. And yet little by little, it becomes clear that Dr. King intends this statement for a much larger audience. We merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive. It has taken Christianity almost two thousand years to accomplish what it has. On the basis of these conditions, Negro leaders sought to negotiate with the city fathers. Martin Luther Kings' Use of Pathos and Logos Now is the time to lift our national policy from the quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock of human dignity. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. Before closing I feel impelled to mention one other point in your statement that has troubled me profoundly. Any law that uplifts human personality is just. resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss thenovel. Instead, some have been outright opponents, refusing to understand the freedom movement and misrepresenting its leaders; all too many others have been more cautious than courageous and have remained silent behind the anesthetizing security of stained glass windows. If this philosophy had not emerged, by now many streets of the South would, I am convinced, be flowing with blood. Subject Purpose King explains his reasons for civil disobedience and urges the religious leaders to act on what they preach about. And yet as the arguments progress, Dr. Kings attacks become less passive aggressive and more direct, moving him into a sort of prophet who no longer argues that he needs the support of his audience. To a degree, academic freedom is a reality today because Socrates practiced civil disobedience. Isnt this like condemning Jesus because his unique God consciousness and never ceasing devotion to Gods will precipitated the evil act of crucifixion? I have hope that Mr. Boutwell will be reasonable enough to see the futility of massive resistance to desegregation. Negroes have experienced grossly unjust treatment in the courts. I have tried to make clear that it is wrong to use immoral means to attain moral ends. The multiple traditions from which Dr. King draws his allusions reflects this belief, showing his deference for and trust in a variety of approaches, including: secular theory; Jewish theology; Christian thinkers; political figures; and historical persons. First, it conforms to his ultimate purpose of justifying his cause as being in the name of justice. Even so, I am sure that, had I lived in Germany at the time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers. And I am further convinced that if our white brothers dismiss as rabble rousers and outside agitators those of us who employ nonviolent direct action, and if they refuse to support our nonviolent efforts, millions of Negroes will, out of frustration and despair, seek solace and security in black nationalist ideologiesa development that would inevitably lead to a frightening racial nightmare. Yes, I love the church. The allusion to Socrates is important, since Western civilization treats the Greek thinker as an archetype of wisdom. These are the hard, brutal facts of the case. There can be no gainsaying the fact that racial injustice engulfs this community. 1. collection of facts 2. negotiation 3. self-purification We will win our freedom because the sacred heritage of our nation and the eternal will of God are embodied in our echoing demands.. King is expressing his apology for the demonstrations themselves, but he is not apologizing for the reasons and purposes behind the demonstrations. Some -such as Ralph McGill, Lillian Smith, Harry Golden, James McBride Dabbs, Ann Braden and Sarah Patton Boylehave written about our struggle in eloquent and prophetic terms. GradeSaver, 30 July 2014 Web. What does this mean, and how do these sections differ? So I, along with several members of my staff, am here because I was invited here. Search for crossword clues found in the Daily Celebrity, NY Times, Daily Mirror, Telegraph and major publications. I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. The extension is that if their most-hated concept extremism is not necessarily bad, then they ought to reexamine their various attitudes and perceptions. In no sense do I advocate evading or defying the law, as would the rabid segregationist. Yes, they have gone to jail with us. In what ways does the Letter attack the clergymen even when being outwardly deferential towards them? Just as Socrates felt that it was necessary to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise from the bondage of myths and half truths to the unfettered realm of creative analysis and objective appraisal, so must we see the need for nonviolent gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood. Preceding this passage, he explains his disappointment, arguing that the church merely validates an unjust status quo, rather than being a force for social change and human betterment, an active part of the struggle for mans dignity in a cruel world. If today I lived in a Communist country where certain principles dear to the Christian faith are suppressed, I would openly advocate disobeying that country's antireligious laws.. Perhaps the South, the nation and the world are in dire need of creative extremists. One may well ask: How can you advocate breaking some laws and obeying others? The answer lies in the fact that there are two types of laws: just and unjust. It gives the segregator a false sense of superiority and the segregated a false sense of inferiorityThus it is that I can urge men to obey the 1954 decision of the Supreme Court, for it is morally right; and I can urge them to disobey segregation ordinances, for they are morally wrong., Dr. King has an impressive ability to veer between logos (appeal to logic) and pathos (appeal to emotion), sometimes within the same argument. Having aided in this community need, we felt that our direct action program could be delayed no longer. I have no fear about the outcome of our struggle in Birmingham, even if our motives are at present misunderstood. Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds. A just law is a man made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. Discuss Dr. Kings use of restraint in the Letter. What does it reveal about his purpose, and what is its effect? 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