How Did Martin Luther King Use Ethos Pathos Logos

King’s emotionally charged words of “lynch” and “brothers” showed sorrow in their lives that create the image of the clergymen to be monsters because of the word choice he used which also would lead to a sense of doubt. These emotions felt by the clergymen allowed room for improvement within society because they started to doubt themselves. King was very skillful with the use of Pathos but he only got his society in lock with the help of other Aristotelian methods.

Another appeal for pathos is King’s repetition and his reference to how African American people have no rights,

King's “I Have a Dream” speech is arguably one of the most famous speeches in American history. It’s popularity and influence would mostly be attributed to Kings excellent use of pathos throughout the speech. Although both logos and pathos can be found in “I Have a Dream”, the lines containing pathos are much more poignant. For example, possibly the most famous line from Dr. King's speech says, "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they

King uses logos in paragraph seventeen, when King is defining an unjust law. He describes an unjust law as “a code that a numerical or power majority group compels a minority group to obey but does not make binding on itself. This is difference made legal.” In defining the term “unjust law”, King is appealing to one’s logic because definitions are a sound idea. Another example of logos is in paragraph twenty five, in which King is defending his position that he should not be arrested on charges of violence when his direct action plan is the opposite of violent. He compares this to another situation, stating, “Isn’t this like condemning a robbed man because his possession of money precipitated the evil act of robbery?” This is an excellent example of logos because no just person would say that it makes sense to arrest the robbed, not the robber. These examples help develop the purpose of the letter because they show how illogical it is that the African Americans are treated this way.

In the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” Martin Luther King uses pathos, logos, and ethos to really convey his message. Though he uses all three very effectively, King most effectively uses pathos and logos by giving illustrations of what African Americans faced every day, examples in history in which the law was not right, and the make-up of a just or unjust law.

King use of pathos was to say that he and his people were organizing gatherings due to the fact that white people were not listening to the black people outcry. He utilizes pathos to describe the occurrences he was receiving. “I would not hesitate to say that it is unfortunate that so-called demonstrations are taking place in Birmingham at this time, but I would say in more emphatic terms that it is even more unfortunate that the white power structure of this city left the Negro community with no other alternative” (King p5). This quote made the structure of white power rethink their actions that made the African American community retaliate. He also includes detail to explain his emotion to emphasize n the racial hierarchy structure. Dr. King revealed his disappointment within his racial community through the treatment blacks undergo. His use of pathos in this letter was to signify that the treatment he received in Birmingham was a insight view of the treatment of African Americans in the

In 1963, minister and rights activist, Martin Luther King, Jr. gave a speech in front of Lincoln memorial to bring awareness to the unfairness of injustice for black people. King's speech was an effort to try and mandate the coming together of the black and white race and finally have the equality between us all be put into force for a free nation. As the speech left King’s mouth and entered 250,000 citizens ears, it left them to think about what point he was trying to make because he uses pathos, logos, and ethos.

Martin Luther King, Jr., a man who seldom cared what other people thought about him, lived in the moment. In doing so, He became furious over the amount of injustice. This essay shows King’s fury over injustice through the use of rhetorical appeals through ethos, logos, and pathos.

On August 28, 1963 more than 250,000 civil-rights supporters attended the March on Washington. Addressing the protesters from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. Profoundly, he proclaimed for a free nation of equality where all race would join together in the effort to achieve common ground. King stated his yearning for all colors to unite and be judged by character, not by race. African Americans would not be satisfied until their desire for freedom from persecution, bitterness, and hatred prevailed. Not only were the points in his speech powerful, but also the delivery he gave was so persuading and real

King creates an enforced emotional appeal to the audience by using pathos, and he makes the audience feel empathy for the way that whites have treated non-whites for over a century.

For example, in lines 69-76, King answers the critics questioning of his use of direct action and marches to protest against segregation. He states that “nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored” (71-73). This explanation is so broken down and easy to understand that it would not make sense to disregard it and agree with the critics. Another instance in which King uses logos is when, as mentioned above, he references the Holocaust and Hitler’s mistreatment of Jews in lines 181 to 185. He discusses how the definitions of “illegal” and “legal” were skewed during that horrific time period. King connects how the definitions in Germany during the Holocaust are similar to the definitions during the Civil Rights Movement about segregation. This appeals to the critics and readers logos because it forces them to think about how terrible the Holocaust was and the treatment of Jews, and realize that the Jews and the African-Americans were being treated in a similar sense. The way King uses logos, is very effective because he makes his ideas and points have sound reasoning while politely diminishing the reasoning of the

At the beginning of Martin Luther King’s speech, he says, “But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free, one hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination…” (Martin Luther King speech, 1963, para. 3). King keeps saying “one hundred years later”, to show that no matter how much time passes, African Americans will never be equal to the whites. Even after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed. Logos is shown all throughout his “I have a dream” speech. He is letting the audience know that they have not been given equal opportunities, like the whites have been given.

Logos means reason. Martin Luther King Jr. uses logos to show why he is delivering this speech and why he wants things to change. He is delivering this speech to show how many blacks and other races, that weren’t being treated equally, really didn’t have freedom like they should. “It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment and to underestimate the determination of the Negro.” (King, M. L. Jr. (1963, Aug.28) Para 6) “Instead of honoring the sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check which has come back marked ‘insufficient funds.’” (King, M. L. Jr. (1963, Aug.28) Para 5) These quotes are just a couple of the logos quotes Martin Luther King said in his speech.

Martin Luther King’s use of Pathos and Logos in “I have a Dream” showcases how he uses the devices to inspire others, compared to how he uses these rhetorical devices in “Letter From Birmingham Jail” to persuade the Clergymen. Martin Luther King, also referred to MLK, uses both Pathos and Logos to fit the audiences and occasions for each text. His uses of Pathos and Logos in these two texts are examples of how words can inspire change.

Martin Luther King Jr., viewed as one of the most important and predominate man in the 1960 civil rights movement, has written many powerful and inspiring piece of literature, including but not limited too “I Have A Dream” and “Letter From Birmingham Jail”. A common literary technique, Pathos and Logos, are quite predominate in the works of his, but what role do these simple ideas play in the bigger picture of the piece. With a multitude of diverse and equally superb works it's easy to break down a few and see this in action, for this essay the works chosen have been I Have A Dream and Letter From Birmingham Jail.