Jessica Christian
Professor Dieu
English 1113-108
March 8, 2010
The Hero of Segregation
In the “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Martin Luther King Jr. persuades his readers by using three types of persuasion, ethos, pathos, and logos. Pathos is the one that appeals the most to the reader. Dr. King’s ejective use of persuasive language enabled him to move his readers to open up their minds to see true racial injustice being presented by the clergymen. The letter Dr. King wrote was to the clergyman and to who ever read the paper when the letter got published. Nowadays, people would read the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” if they wanted to know information about Martin Luther King and segregation in Alabama. This letter is very powerful and has a lot of meaning to African Americans and now to everybody.
In 1963, segregation was prominent and very much a part of life. This time period was perhaps one of the high points for segregation resolution. In January of 1963, George Wallace gave his inaugural speech for the running of mayor of Birmingham, Alabama stating; “Segregation now, segregation forever,” and then later on he asked the people to forgive him. On April 12, 1963 a letter titled “The Call of Unity,” was published in an Alabama newspaper. This letter’s purpose was an appeal for racial problems in Alabama. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was imprisoned on April 12, 1963 for contempt of court and for parading without a permit. Martin Luther King Jr., wrote the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” on April 16, 1963 in response to a statement that eight white clergymen had made criticizing his presence and action. The clergymen said, “His present activities were unwise and untimely.” The law enforcement was against the African Americans, and horrible things would happen to any African Americans who would protest or showed any type of rebellious spirit. In his letter Dr. King said, “There have been more unsolved bombings of Negro homes and...