In terms of the former, the white moderate operates under an illusion that patience will be more effective towards ending segregation than tension will be. 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. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. But the judgment of God is upon the church as never before. Cedars, S.R.. McKeever, Christine ed. I am here because I have organizational ties here. Though this passage comes earlier than the explicit discussion of the white moderate, it is one of the clearest articulations of the accusation he makes against them. The letter from the Birmingham jail of Martin Luther King, Jr. When I was suddenly catapulted into the leadership of the bus protest in Montgomery, Alabama, a few years ago, I felt we would be supported by the white church. Yes, these questions are still in my mind. Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability; it comes through the tireless efforts of men willing to be co workers with God, and without this hard work, time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. 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. How does the Letter deal with the subject of race? 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. Moreover, I am cognizant of the interrelatedness of all communities and states. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. April 16, 1963 As the events of the Birmingham Campaign intensified on the city's streets, Martin Luther King, Jr., composed a letter from his prison cell in Birmingham in response to local religious leaders' criticisms of the campaign: "Never before have I written so long a letter. And now this approach is being termed extremist. Having aided in this community need, we felt that our direct action program could be delayed no longer. His organization has ties in Birmingham 4. But even if the church does not come to the aid of justice, I have no despair about the future. But be assured that my tears have been tears of love. In what ways do Dr. Kings repeated references to Socrates help to elucidate his overall approach? I have been so greatly disappointed with the white church and its leadership. ", "You express a great deal of anxiety over our willingness to break laws" to "I would openly advocate disobeying that country's antireligious laws. The other force is one of bitterness and hatred, and it comes perilously close to advocating violence. But despite these notable exceptions, I must honestly reiterate that I have been disappointed with the church. 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. Why is it important Dr. King make this distinction? I had hoped that each of you would understand. Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct action campaign that was well timed in the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss thenovel. Their witness has been the spiritual salt that has preserved the true meaning of the gospel in these troubled times. There's a little bit of everything in "Letter from Birmingham Jail": Dr. King makes an appeal to his readers' hearts and heads while alluding to the moral authority of the Christian tradition, American ideals, and the collective suffering of the African American community.Let's check out each one more closely.EthosAside from introducing himself And yet his harsh tone is much more universalist than simply the criticism of the clergymen would support. Every day I meet young people whose disappointment with the church has turned into outright disgust. To view the suffering of others but to remain silent facilitates a world where men are separate, which he equates with sinfulness. I'm not sure what you mean by "these people". Isnt this like condemning a robbed man because his possession of money precipitated the evil act of robbery? But your statement, I am sorry to say, fails to express a similar concern for the conditions that brought about the demonstrations. Clue & Answer Definitions. But, oh! After MLK was arrested for peaceful protest in response to a letter from an opposition "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" Pg 1 - Para. Birmingham was one of the most racially segregated and oppressive, to blacks, city in America. This is certainly a legitimate concern. "Letter From Birmingham Jail Quotes and Analysis". It was practiced superbly by the early Christians, who were willing to face hungry lions and the excruciating pain of chopping blocks rather than submit to certain unjust laws of the Roman Empire. It was evidenced sublimely in the refusal of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to obey the laws of Nebuchadnezzar, on the ground that a higher moral law was at stake. Because Dr. King establishes this philosophical groundwork so early on, he has unimpeachable justifications for those later claims. If today's church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century. First, it conforms to his ultimate purpose of justifying his cause as being in the name of justice. ", "But more basically, I am in Birmingham" through "live in monologue rather than dialogue. He establishes this by referring to the greatest indignity in black American history slavery and yet owning that period with optimism, as an indication that the black man will triumph over any adversity. You express a great deal of anxiety over our willingness to break laws. King is expressing his apology for the demonstrations themselves, but he is not apologizing for the reasons and purposes behind the demonstrations. A law is unjust if it is inflicted on a minority that, as a result of being denied the right to vote, had no part in enacting or devising the law. What are the four basic steps to a direct action non-violent campaign? The purpose of our direct action program is to create a situation so crisis packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation. The movie should analyze a sample piece, identify all the SOAPS parts in the piece, and create a sample introduction with a strong thesis to answer the question \"How does Martin Luther King Jr. use effective rhetoric to persuade his audience?.\" Preview the introductory paragraph with me before filming. Rhetorical Triangle SOAPSo Speakero Occasiono Audience o Purposeo Subjecto Tone (brief overview, as group 6 will cover) Author's purpose Thesis Thus 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. what is the perspective of these people and why does it matter. Before the pilgrims landed at Plymouth, we were here. 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. His difficult arguments end up practically unimpeachable precisely because he has presented them through logos as well as through pathos. King wrote his response in the margins of the paper, in pieces, and they were smuggled back out to a fellow pastor . This guide is based on the revised version of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail," published as the fifth essay in Why We Can't Wait (1964).King's letter is a response to another open letter, "A Call for Unity," published in The Birmingham News and collectively authored by eight . Mindful of the difficulties involved, we decided to undertake a process of self purification. You speak of our activity in Birmingham as extreme. Opening through "I have organizational ties here. Copyright 1999 - 2023 GradeSaver LLC. When we discovered that the Commissioner of Public Safety, Eugene Bull Connor, had piled up enough votes to be in the run off, we decided again to postpone action until the day after the run off so that the demonstrations could not be used to cloud the issues. Now is the time to lift our national policy from the quicksand of racial injustice to the solid rock of human dignity. Summarize what led to the decision to start the protests in Birmingham? Any law that uplifts human personality is just. Summary and Analysis. Dr. King tells the clergymen that he was upset about their criticisms, and that he wishes to address their concerns. I have tried to make clear that it is wrong to use immoral means to attain moral ends. How could I do otherwise? This passage is a rather concise description of the call to arms that lies within the "Letter from Birmingham Jail.". These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Letter From Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr. Best summary PDF, themes, and quotes. I commend the Catholic leaders of this state for integrating Spring Hill College several years ago. He was invited there 2. You deplore the demonstrations taking place in Birmingham. But now I must affirm that it is just as wrong, or perhaps even more so, to use moral means to preserve immoral ends. Whites who arrested king for no reason. Segregation, to use the terminology of the Jewish philosopher Martin Buber, substitutes an I it relationship for an I thou relationship and ends up relegating persons to the status of things. LETTER (noun) Throughout his career, many critics of Dr. King argued that he was too deferential to the white authorities that facilitated segregation and other racist policies, but the tone here seems to serve several purposes. Isnt this like condemning Socrates because his unswerving commitment to truth and his philosophical inquiries precipitated the act by the misguided populace in which they made him drink hemlock? In Birmingham, Alabama, in the spring of 1963, King's campaign to end segregation at lunch counters and in hiring practices drew nationwide attention when police turned dogs and fire hoses on the demonstrators. It gives the segregator a false sense of superiority and the segregated a false sense of inferiority. Turnitin Technology to Improve Student Writing Archives Philly com May 4th, 2018 - Archives and past articles from the Philadelphia Inquirer Philadelphia Daily News and . For instance, I have been arrested on a charge of parading without a permit. The letter served as a tangible, reproducible account of the long road to freedom in a movement that was largely centered around actions and spoken words. Let me give another explanation. Frankly, I have yet to engage in a direct action campaign that was "well timed" in the view of those who have not suffered unduly from the disease of segregation. The Negro has many pent up resentments and latent frustrations, and he must release them. But he will not see this without pressure from devotees of civil rights. I had also hoped that the white moderate would reject the myth concerning time in relation to the struggle for freedom. More books than SparkNotes. To a degree, academic freedom is a reality today because Socrates practiced civil disobedience. We merely bring to the surface the hidden tension that is already alive. In at least 750 words, explain which of these modes of appeal you personally find to be the most effective in King's "Letter," and why. Then, last September, came the opportunity to talk with leaders of Birminghams economic community. Subject Purpose King explains his reasons for civil disobedience and urges the religious leaders to act on what they preach about. In Dr. Kings argument, moderation is a reflection of the moderates ignorant and unwitting sinfulness. Perhaps it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say, Wait. But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate filled policemen curse, kick and even kill your black brothers and sisters; when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society; when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six year old daughter why she cant 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, and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental sky, and see her beginning to distort her personality by developing an unconscious bitterness toward white people; when you have to concoct an answer for a five year old son who is asking: Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?; when you take a cross county drive and find it necessary to sleep night after night in the uncomfortable corners of your automobile because no motel will accept you; when you are humiliated day in and day out by nagging signs reading white and colored; when your first name becomes nigger, your middle name becomes boy (however old you are) and your last name becomes John, and your wife and mother are never given the respected title Mrs.; when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of nobodinessthen you will understand why we find it difficult to wait. The yearning for freedom eventually manifests itself, and that is what has happened to the American Negro. Yes, they have gone to jail with us. The larger implication of this assertion is that moderation and patience must be replaced with action and impatience. I therefore concur with you in your call for negotiation. Letter from Birmingham Jail Audience SOAPStone Method King writes this in response to a letter sent from some religious authorities. But I must confess that I am not afraid of the word tension. I have earnestly opposed violent tension, but there is a type of constructive, nonviolent tension which is necessary for growth. SOAPSTone "Letter From a Birmingham Jail" - YouTube 0:00 / 6:59 Introduction SOAPSTone "Letter From a Birmingham Jail" Melanie Wilson 1 subscriber Subscribe Share 487 views 2. If I have said anything that understates the truth and indicates my having a patience that allows me to settle for anything less than brotherhood, I beg God to forgive me. Here, Dr. King describes what happens when one relies on a law that exempts itself from moral responsibility. Martin Luther King 's "Letter from Birmingham Jail" is the most important written document of the civil rights era. By speaking in their voice, he suggests a sense of deference even as he is dismantling his opponents arguments and revealing them as misguided, or worse, fools. In that dramatic scene on Calvarys hill three men were crucified. Two were extremists for immorality, and thus fell below their environment. Justice too long delayed is justice denied, We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed. Professor Jonathan Rieder argues that the Letter can be understood as having two sections: the Diplomat and Prophet sections. Abused and scorned though we may be, our destiny is tied up with Americas destiny. Its ugly record of brutality is widely known. I can assure you that it would have been much shorter if I had been writing from a comfortable desk, but what else can one do when he is alone in a narrow jail cell, other than write long letters, think long thoughts and pray long prayers? Actually, time itself is neutral; it can be used either destructively or constructively. They will be old, oppressed, battered Negro women, symbolized in a seventy two year old woman in Montgomery, Alabama, who rose up with a sense of dignity and with her people decided not to ride segregated buses, and who responded with ungrammatical profundity to one who inquired about her weariness: My feets is tired, but my soul is at rest. They will be the young high school and college students, the young ministers of the gospel and a host of their elders, courageously and nonviolently sitting in at lunch counters and willingly going to jail for conscience sake. How we have blemished and scarred that body through social neglect and through fear of being nonconformists. Frequently we share staff, educational and financial resources with our affiliates. 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 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. ", 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 truth, King is concocting a syllogism if Socrates is good, and Socrates was right to create tension so that the mind could grow, then tension is good for inspiring mankind to grow. But since I feel that you are men of genuine good will and that your criticisms are sincerely set forth, I want to try to answer your statement in what I hope will be patient and reasonable terms. His argument here is that allowing a law to reign supreme without assessing its moral quality produces a situation like that of Nazi Germany. Even so, I am sure that, had I lived in Germany at the time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers. My citing the creation of tension as part of the work of the nonviolent resister may sound rather shocking. Pick no more than two modes of appeal. We must come to see that, as the federal courts have consistently affirmed, it is wrong to urge an individual to cease his efforts to gain his basic constitutional rights because the quest may precipitate violence. So I have not said to my people: Get rid of your discontent. Rather, I have tried to say that this normal and healthy discontent can be channeled into the creative outlet of nonviolent direct action. Then it occurred to us that Birminghams mayoral election was coming up in March, and we speedily decided to postpone action until after election day. He argues that the clergymen, and his larger audience, should support his cause not because the victims are black but because it is the right thing to do. Anyone who lives inside the United States can never be considered an outsider anywhere within its bounds. His attack here on the clergy who seem to support law and order without considering the repressive segregation that comes with such order is not very subtle, comparing them to Nazis who persecuted Jews simply because their prejudices were protected by the law. This passage is a rather concise description of the call to arms that lies within the Letter from Birmingham Jail. Arguing that time is neutral, Dr. King illustrates the importance of individual action. I am in the rather unique position of being the son, the grandson and the great grandson of preachers. We should never forget that everything Adolf Hitler did in Germany was legal and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was illegal. It was illegal to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitlers Germany. Detail the distinction between just and unjust laws. In deep disappointment I have wept over the laxity of the church. I hope this letter finds you strong in the faith. Secondly, Dr. Kings use of multiple traditions for his allusions reinforces the unimpeachability of his argument. Actually, time itself is neutral; it can be used either destructively or constructively. 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. Of course, there are some notable exceptions. 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. What gives them such exceptional power is that they operate with the protection of both the secular (the sacred heritage of our nation) and the divine (the eternal will of God.) Echoing his earlier arguments that the law and morality cannot be considered as independent concepts, he insists that he will triumph because he believes in justice, and implicitly warns those who do not join him that they are cowardly, promoting injustice instead. However, he for the most part suggests that all men are responsible for all others, an idea that would not be as effective if the tone of the argument was too fiery and confrontational. 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. If todays church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century. By suggesting that he would have broken Nazi laws because they were unjust, he challenges his audience to do the same with segregation laws. Lamentably, it is an historical fact that privileged groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily. 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. Throughout the Letter, Dr. King is careful to measure his tone, to avoid validating any knee-jerk anxieties that his audience might feel. But the judgment of God is upon the church as never before. One of the basic points in your statement is that the action that I and my associates have taken in Birmingham is untimely. Knowing that their fears and anxieties will predispose them to doubt his call to action, he presents the call through a variety of rational arguments and personal pathos. I have just received a letter from a white brother in Texas. In any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: collection of the facts to determine whether injustices exist; negotiation; self purification; and direct action. Policemen curse, kick, and even kill your black brothers and sisters. Something within has reminded him of his birthright of freedom, and something without has reminded him that it can be gained. The other, Jesus Christ, was an extremist for love, truth and goodness, and thereby rose above his environment. They are still all too few in quantity, but they are big in quality. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Birmingham was one of the most racially segregated and oppressive, to blacks, city in America. In the midst of a mighty struggle to rid our nation of racial and economic injustice, I have heard many ministers say: Those are social issues, with which the gospel has no real concern. And I have watched many churches commit themselves to a completely other worldly religion which makes a strange, un-Biblical distinction between body and soul, between the sacred and the secular. How does the discussion of group immorality relate to the letters overall purpose? Considering the context he was in solitary confinement when he learned that Birmingham clergymen had together issued a statement criticizing him and praising the citys bigoted police force he had every reason to make his letter a rant. As the weeks and months went by, we realized that we were the victims of a broken promise. 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. Like Paul, I must constantly respond to the Macedonian call for aid. He does not wish to validate his audiences deep-seeded fears - that the black movement is an extremist set that will engender violence. It is also a well-known defence of the notion of civil disobedience, or refusing to obey laws which are immoral or unjust, often through peaceful protest and collective action. Perhaps the South, the nation and the world are in dire need of creative extremists. However, because he stipulates that his audience is ostensibly interested in the virtue of justice, he argues that moderation allows them license to live in a sinfulness of inaction. 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. Indeed, this is the very purpose of direct action. 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. Of course, there is no shortage of passive aggressive attacks and criticism throughout the letter, but the tone remains polite, deferential, at times almost apologetic, creating a friendly and ironic tone. Thus, the clergymen and the white moderate society that the represent should not only celebrate Dr. Kings attempt to bring about justice, but join in the crusade. 1 - Line 1 Audience The reader (s) to whom this is directed. It rings in the ear of every Negro with piercing familiarity. 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. Through a variety of legally-structured arguments, Dr. King illustrates the fallacy of both these assumptions. 7.7K views 9 years ago This video will SOAPSTone "Letter from Birmingham Jail" by Martin Luther King Jr.. I have no fear about the outcome of our struggle in Birmingham, even if our motives are at present misunderstood. Overall, the discussion of group immorality supports his purpose of encouraging individual action in the face of injustice, and criticizing those who do not support such individual action for fear of upsetting the status quo. It will cover the parts of the SOAPSTone method, offer examples, and give a sample. But again I am thankful to God that some noble souls from the ranks of organized religion have broken loose from the paralyzing chains of conformity and joined us as active partners in the struggle for freedom. resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss thenovel. Several months ago the affiliate here in Birmingham asked us to be on call to engage in a nonviolent direct action program if such were deemed necessary. This marvelous collection of attributes is present from these very first words. 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