Martin Luther King Jr., one of the greatest speakers for the Black

civil rights movement, had written many great works in his time. Two of his

pieces stand out as his greatest works, Letter from Birmingham City Jail; a

letter written from a jail in Birmingham where he was arrested for

demonstrating peacefully, to clergymen who didn't agree with his views, and

I Have a Dream; a speech given by King in front of the Washington Memorial

at a huge civil rights tea party. Both works convey the same message: the

time has come where Black Americans will not stand for civil injustices any

longer. The way in which the works are written, however, are different, for

one is a letter, to be read by a few, and the other is a speech, to be

A Letter from Birmingham City Jail is exactly that; it is a letter

King wrote to a group of clergy members who disapproved of his actions in

Birmingham City. The fact that this is a letter is blatantly apparent right

from the beginning, King's use of first person clearly defines it as him

talking to the clergy members, not a convention, or a rally, nothing

In his first paragraph, King establishes why h

years to knock it down. It all works even better taking into consideration

democratically elected?". The use of this statement as a rhetorical

Constitution and Declaration of Independence, they were

unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

After much explanation and re-iteration, King starts getting simple,

wounds must be just as wide; they feel pretty insulted. To make sure that

legitimate concern.". By saying so, he has express a concern that he really

to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and

are able to see the distinction I am trying to point out." He clearly wants

crippled . . . . One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely

opportunity to all of God's children.", not just time to reach racial

By the fifth paragraph, he has stopped trying to use rhetorical

of his audience, for they are, after all, clergymen, and he has justified

Some common words found in the essay are:
St Augustine, America Negro, Amongst Birmingham, Abraham Lincoln, Declaration Independence, Birmingham City, Address King, Emancipation Proclamation, City Jail, Paul Paul, birmingham city, civil rights, gettysburg address, unjust law, emancipation proclamation, parallel construction, birmingham city jail, letter birmingham city, city jail, letter birmingham, hundred negro, , civil rights movement, hundred life, hundred,
Approximate Word count = 1823
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)