Justin Batangan
10/14/11
English 100
Dr. D
The Goals of MLK
In his letter from Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. described his deep and emotional struggle to end segregation in America. He makes key points in what is Justice and injustice in our law summarizes why he is in this incarcerated complex. From the aspects that is portrayed from Mr. King, there is an understanding that he has high morals and is very sincere but if the great philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli where to analyze Mr. King’s letter and assess what kind of man he is, the outcome would be balanced as both that he is a kind hearted man but also must be able to be the exact opposite if necessary if Mr. king wants to be an approved social and political leader.
Firstly, Niccolo Machiavelli would point out that in order to be a person who others will fallow is to have a kind heart in whatever they do and do no harm to others. The saying “treat others the way you want to be treated” would fall in this category. He would need to be intelligent enough to understand situations and then be able to carry out plans of action. Mr. King’s plan of action was clearly kind-hearted and his demonstrations he conducted were non-violent. Another quality that would be needed is to be merciful in his actions. To be loved by his people and in return love them back. Many people adored him and praised his actions. When white supremacists would act out in violence, Mr. King would never act out of vengeance. Machiavelli would then say that a good leader should also hold on to integrity and be able to keep his word and not go back on it. These traits make a good leader but a good leader should also know that being kind-hearted all the time would be great; however in this reality, this will ultimately bring the destruction of one self. For martin Luther king Jr. this in the end may have been the death of him.
After pointing out the good that Mr. King is in his methods and mentality, Machiavelli would argue...