Ashley Myers Letter from a Birmingham Jail Dr.

Martin Luther King was a strong, educated and well respected man. While he did practice non-violence, he was not a pushover and always made sure to get his point across. He was eloquent with his words, showing passion, concern, and pronounced intellect. He understood each aspect of rhetoric writing (ethos, logos, pathos) and exemplified this in his letter from the jail cell in Birmingham, Alabama. He knew that the best way to get into the minds and hearts of the white clergymen were to first establish his credibility as a black man (as well as being clergyman himself), to offer facts about what it is like to be Black in America, and appeal to their softer, more sensitive side. I have the honor of serving as president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization operating in every southern state, with headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. We have some eighty five affiliated organizations across the South, and one of them is the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights. With this Dr. King answers two important questions. He first establishes his credibility as a well-respected clergyman, as well as addresses a reason for his interest in being in Birmingham. He makes it clear that the plight for equal rights in Birmingham, Alabama falls under his presidency of the SCLC but also says that his is genuinely concerned about the injustice being displayed there. To display his understanding of pathos, Dr. King uses the one thing sure to pull on the heartstrings of anyone; children. When you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six year old daughter why she can't go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Funtown is closed to colored children. Generally, everyone has a soft spot for children, especially little girls, and to explain that you have to hurt your child because of segregation, Dr. King touches the hearts of the white clergymen. Dr. King also uses Bible stories and teachings as a way to appeal to the logic of his readers. His intended audience was a group of clergymen and he used their common language to attempt to help them understand his actions. He spoke of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who were three men in the Bible who refused to follow the immoral laws of the land. He compared himself and his black colleagues to these men and explained the similarities of the circumstances. This was a great way to get the men to believe him because he used something that they were familiar with and they believed in.