“Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.” Up to this day, Marthin Luther King still plays a signigicant role in equality between different races. When he was imprisoned in a Birmingham jail for no apparent reason in 1963, eight white Alabama clergymen wrote a letter to African-Americans and urged them to stop protesting in the streets. A few days later King responded by writing “A Letter From a Birmingham Jail” claiming that African-Americans will never receive the rights they deserve if they stop protesting. King wonderfully used the three rhetorical appeals to help get his point across to his audience.
King’s first rhetorical appeal was to established credibility. He started with an introduction of himself as the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and he answered the clergymen’s letter out of that “I feel that you are men of genuine good will and your criticisms are sincerely set forth”. In this way, King’s demeanor not only clearly maintained opposing views, but also showed a kind of respect. This respect not only established King’s ethos as a respectful speaker, but his kindness also infused the letter with an emotional appeal.
Along with ethos, King vividly …show more content…
Therefore it was a tremendous advance that King and his group were determined to carry the gospel of freedom to every coner of United States. They faced countless difficulties and persecutions, and devoted themselves to this sacred cause, even at the sacrifice of lives. This open letter phenomenally painted a portrait of the cold, hard truth about what the African American race went through during that time. King vividly used the three rhetorical appeals to arose the audience’s feeling and appeal to their intelligence. In this way we can see how strong King was during such a difficult struggle and the action that he and his followers took to try and make everything
King’s first rhetorical appeal was to established credibility. He started with an introduction of himself as the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and he answered the clergymen’s letter out of that “I feel that you are men of genuine good will and your criticisms are sincerely set forth”. In this way, King’s demeanor not only clearly maintained opposing views, but also showed a kind of respect. This respect not only established King’s ethos as a respectful speaker, but his kindness also infused the letter with an emotional appeal.
Along with ethos, King vividly …show more content…
Therefore it was a tremendous advance that King and his group were determined to carry the gospel of freedom to every coner of United States. They faced countless difficulties and persecutions, and devoted themselves to this sacred cause, even at the sacrifice of lives. This open letter phenomenally painted a portrait of the cold, hard truth about what the African American race went through during that time. King vividly used the three rhetorical appeals to arose the audience’s feeling and appeal to their intelligence. In this way we can see how strong King was during such a difficult struggle and the action that he and his followers took to try and make everything