A letter from eight white clergymen The clergymen’s letter suggests that the racial problem in Birmingham, Alabama, needs to be resolved in court peacefully. The exigency of his argument is to try to solve the racial issue with an innovative and constructive approach. The letter was written to the editor of a Birmingham’s newspaper. Based on that, the audience of this letter was the newspaper’s readers, all the city’s citizens.
The fact that the writer of this letter is a religious person, and he also represents a group of religious, the constraints are the following: based on his religious beliefs and background, he is opposed to the usage of violence in order to resolve the community’s racial problems; and another aspect, is the fact that he is white, and this also influence how he views the racial issue. The issue of this letter is to resolve the racial problems in court, and, in the meantime, the laws should be obeyed in peacefully manners.
Therefore, the author of this letter is using the newspaper medium to convince the local citizens for the necessity to do not follow the outsider’s leader suggestions, which is King’s suggestions. He criticizes the fact that a foreigner leadership is influencing in part the local Negros’ approach to solve this problem. The position of his argument is to solve Birmingham’s racial problems peacefully. In addition to that, the resolution can be done locally through usage of negotiations done between local whites and Negros.
He and the other religious, who he represents, are against the outsiders’ influence. He suggests in several parts of the letter how important is for the community to solve its own problems, without external help. The author supports his claim by providing explanation of the importance to solve the racial issue peacefully. He uses emotional aspects, specific supports, such as when he mentions that he understands the “natural impatience” of the ones who are dealing directly with the problem (¶ Clergymen 5). The appeal for people’s emotions is a warrant that he uses to persuade his readers.
A warrant can be found when the author states “hatred and violence have no sanction in our religious and political traditions” is an approach to back-up his warrant (¶ Clergymen 5). A fallacy in the author’s argumentation is the fact that he does not provide data or supportive arguments to the aspect that Negros are receiving and being influenced by outsiders. He mentions more than once that locals have more knowledge than outsiders. The rebuttal for this argument is that outsiders may have more experience with racial issues, than the locals, which may bring more solutions to help the local Negros.
Clergymen’s letter uses an ethical approach throughout his argument. He demonstrates to understand the issue and how it is affecting people’s lives. He does try to convince the readers of the necessity to solve the racial problems by following the principles of law, order, and common sense. Despite the fact that, it was clear to verify his belief that the outsider leadership is making the issue worst, he failures to provide any major approach to manipulate the audience opinions.
Letter from Birmingham Jail In response to the clergymen’s letter, Matin Luter King writes a letter to reply what it was said about “unwise and untimely” activities, and “outside agitor”. He also demonstrated his believes of just and unjust laws; and his disappointment with the white moderates, white churches, and its leadership. The exigence of this argument is based on the demonstrations of segregation against black people. The audience of this letter is the clergymen and Birmingham’s population.
The author of this letter is constrained by the discrimination, and other demonstrations of segregation against Negros. He is also constrained by the clergymen’s opinion against his nonviolent camping in defense of the Negros rights. The issue of this letter is in defense of Negros, and against several facts that have contributed to social tension between whites and Negros, specifically in Birmingham. Unjust treatment in court, brutality against Negros’ lives, and unsolved bombings of Negros’ homes are some examples of what has contributed to this social tension and segregation.
While the clergymen’s letter defends the resolution of these social tensions “peacefully” and without the interruption of “outsiders”, King’s letter argues the necessity of a peaceful campaign where the mistreated people can scream in the streets in their own defense, and in defense of their rights. The claim of King’s argument is the “superficial kind of social analysis that deals merely with effects and does not grapple with underlying causes” (¶ King 5) of segregation demonstration of the city’s white power structure. King provides several aspects to support his claim.
For example, he talks about the brutal facts that are constantly happing against Negros, such as the following: how rude and hate-filled the policemen act against them by cursing, kicking, and even killing. In fact, King’s letter has sub claims, where he not just talks about the severity of how Negros are being mistreated, but he also mentions about just and unjust laws, the country’s antireligious laws, his disappointment with white churches and its leadership, and cruelties of slavery. He also provides several warrants all throughout his letter.
One example of a warrant can be found, when he appeals to human motives, in regards to Negros’ children incomprehension about mistreatment. The following expresses this incomprehension: “when you have to concoct an answer of a five-year-old son who is asking, ‘Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean? ’” (¶ King 14). Examples of backing also can be found all throughout King’s letter. For example, when he discusses about just and unjust laws, he explains the difference between them, as well as he supports his definitions with examples of philosophers’ descriptions.
King uses rebuttal against the clergymen’s arguments in several parts of his letter. For instance, a rebuttal can be found when he mentions that he is not an outsider agitator. He states that everyone who lives within the country’s bounds can never be considered an outsider, and since he lives in the United States he is not an outsider. King’s letter use an ethical approach to try to convenience its readers that he is not trying to foster a violent resolution for the segregation crisis in Birmingham.
Instead, he is trying to convince the readers of the necessity to promote a peaceful “war” by comparing Socrates with his necessary non-violent tension in order to create a creative analysis of the segregation problem. When comparing these two letters, one can verify that King’s letter uses several approaches, examples, and theories to demonstrate the necessity of the segregation resolution. Clergymen’s letter is more focus on the repetition of information. It mentions more than one time about the necessity to keep “outsiders” off the city’s social conflicts in order to observe the principals of law, order, and common sense.
