Week 7 Blog: MLK arguments
Outline an argument that you see in the MLK letter, filling in these points according to the Toulmin model of argumentation, discussed in Ch. 3 of your textbook:
Claim (I have a right to be in Birmingham.)
Reason
Evidence
Warrant
Backing
In addition, plot the rhetorical situation of the Letter from Birmingham Jail.
Author/Argument/Audience?
Tone? Medium? Genre?
How is the argument arranged/organized?
Claim (I have a right to be in Birmingham.)
Reason
Evidence
Warrant
Backing
In addition, plot the rhetorical situation of the Letter from Birmingham Jail.
Author/Argument/Audience?
Tone? Medium? Genre?
How is the argument arranged/organized?
The claim is that MLK has a right to be in Birmingham, Alabama. The reason that he is there is that there is injustice that needs to be stopped. The evidence is a TV broadcast that showed the world that Bull Connor, The Commissioner of Public Safety, attacking activists for civil rights with fire hoses and police attack dogs. These attacks included children activists. The visit was warranted because the actions of Bull Connor horrified the country as a whole. The backing to this is the national broadcast that was shown on national television to the entire country.
ReplyDeleteIn the letter, MLK's claim is the he as a right to be in Birmingham. One of his reasons to be here is that there is racial injustice in Birmingham and he believes he must stop it. Evidence that injustice needs to be stopped is more of an abstract concept. When following genuine moral code (whether it be rooted in religion or philosophy), it is usually assumed that any injustice needs to be stopped. The warrant is also a direct affect of the evidence: to stop injustice, MLK needs to be present in Birmingham. The backing that MLK uses is historical events. For example, he states how the Apostle Paul had to travel to the Greco-Roman areas of the world in order to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ (which should thereby end injustices in the region).
ReplyDeleteI would say the tone in this letter is urgent. MLK is addressing all points of ridicule so he does not have to keep explaining his reasons for being in Birmingham. The medium is print and the genre is letter.
Claim-I have a right to be in Birmingham
ReplyDeleteReason-I was invited here
Evidence-The local affiliate in Birmingham of the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights invited MLK to engage in a nonviolent direct-action program and MLK recognized that there is injustice in Birmingham and he felt compelled to carry the gospel of freedom beyond his hometown
Warrant-An invitation is reason for showing up in Birmingham
Backing-The dictionary definition of an invitation, basic freedoms of American citizens to assemble
Rhetorical Situation:
Author-Martin Luther King Jr.
Argument-MLK has a right and a reason to be in Birmingham because he was invited
Audience-Eight white clergyman of the South who had made a public statement of caution and concern to MLK and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference for protesting in Birmingham
Tone-Serious, unapologetic, honest
Medium-An electronic file, but once a written letter on paper
Genre-Responsive Letter
The argument is arranged most likely unintentionally in the Toulmin Model of Argument. The claim is stated and then multiple reasons for the claim are immediately presented. MLK then makes an appeal to pathos, by providing an anecdote about his young daughter. He also makes several appeals to logos and ethos by comparing his actions to prominent leaders in the past.
Martin Luther King's 'Letter From Birmingham Jail' was about his belief on how his arrest was unfair for him and his people. King had been arrested while participating in a peaceful anti-segregation parade which he did not have a permit for. He felt his act was helping his community and he was changing the culture. What MLK is getting at in his speech is that the law is degrading human personality and that there needs to be changes. King demonstrates his intelligence, potential to be a great leader, and his will to make change. He states his role of President of SLCL which is a movement for the positive. This proves that he is credible to be the one leading African-Americans at this time. If you pay attention to his tone in this letter, you can tell that he is humble and patient. His audience is to the people of the civil rights movement. It is arranged by him coming out with gentle speech to show he does not want to create a violent or aggressive reaction, and later states his reasons as to why we need change.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteKing’s claim is that he has a right to be in Birmingham. A reason that supports this claim is that he was invited there and has organizational ties there. As evidence he says that several months ago local affiliates in Birmingham invited staff from the affiliate organizations to engage in a nonviolent direct-action program. When someone invites you somewhere, this warrants you showing up to an event. Invitation means the act of requesting the presence or participation of in a Kindly way, especially to request to come or go to some place
ReplyDeleteThe author is Martin Luther King Jr. His argument is that he has a right to be in Birmingham. The 8 white religious leaders of the South are his audience. The tone is serious, formal, and urgent. The medium is a letter (print) that was eventually published in the newspaper. The genre is nonfiction, historical, and persuasion. I think King uses a process arrangement as he arranges information sequentially moving from beginning to end.
Claim: I have a right to be in Birmingham
ReplyDeleteReason: He is the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
Evidence: Some sort of proof showing that he is the president
Warrant: Because of the injustice that he stated was there, it warranted an appearance from him in the city
Backing: It is important for him to be there because of the injustice.
Author: Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr
Argument: He should be allowed in Birmingham
Audience: Religious Leaders in the South
Tone: Declarative, as Dr King proved that he belonged in the south, specifically Birmingham or wherever there is injustice
Medium: Letter paper/computer screen
Genre: Letter
Claim: He (MLK) has the right to be in Birmingham.
ReplyDeleteReason: He was invited by the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights, specifically the Birmingham branch.
Evidence: An actual invitation. MLK says he was invited.
Warrant: since he was invited, he showed up.
Backing: the invitation he was given.
Author: Martin Luther King Jr.
Argument: He is in Birmingham to fight the social injustice because he was invited by the Alabama Christian Movement.
Audience: The men that wrote/asked him why he was in Birmingham.
Tone: It is factual. He is listing of the facts, but not being hostile. It is calm.
Medium: paper
Genre: argumentative
Arrangement: He opens with an acknowledgment of the question. He then proceeds with reasons and evidence for each reason as to why he is in Birmingham.
Claim: Martin Luther King Jr. has the right to be in Birmingham
ReplyDeleteReason: He was invited here
Evidence 1: He is the President of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
and Birmingham invited his conference to engage in a nonviolent direct-action program. They readily consented, and lived up to their promises. So he is here, along with several members of my staff, because they were invited.
Warrant 1: Because of the injustice in Birmingham, he showed up and answered his invitation
Evidence 2:He is here because he has basic organizational ties here
Warrant 2: His Southern Christian Leadership Conference was invited to engage in a program, so because he is apart of that group, he came.
Claim - MLK has a right to be there
ReplyDeleteReasons - Injustice is in Birmingham
Evidence - Racial tensions in the area
Warrant - Leader of the SCLC and he was invited
Backing - There are 85 of these groups and they are all promoting human rights, he has organizational ties there
The tone of this letter is MLK giving his explanation on why he is doing what he is when it comes to human rights. He is responding to the public statement of concern from eight white religious leaders in the south. The argument is arranged in an organized way. It starts out by stating why he is doing what he is doing and then it proceeds to his views and his stance on civil rights. He goes into detail about the civil rights movement and gives his point of view. The medium is the letter he is writing.
ReplyDeleteThe claim that MLK makes is that he has a right to be in Birmingham.
The reason he says that he should be in Birmingham is that he says he was invited here by the SCLC. He also claims that Birmingham is facing injustice and unrest so he feels he needs to help out.
The evidence of the invitation is that he believes where there is injustice, he should be there to "carry the gospel of freedom". He is also here because the SCLC sends representatives to places that need some organization.
Warrant- He is there because the invitation came up and he felt the need to be there to spread his message
Backing- he showed up in response to the injustice in Birmingham
Author- Martin Luther King Jr.
Argument- he had a right to be in Birmingham
Audience- the people criticizing him for being in Birmingham
Tone- he is not being aggressive, but just stating the reasons why he should be there
Medium- handwritten letter on paper
Genre- argumentative
He first stated his claim and gave the reasons and justified why he is there. He talks about his views and what is happening and why there is injustice.
Claim: MLK has the right to be in Birmingham
ReplyDeleteReason: He is the leader of the SCLC which has an affiliate organization in Birmingham
Evidence: He was invited by a local affiliate to come to come to Birmingham to engage in a nonviolent direct-action program.
Warrant: He was invited here and since there is injustice in Birmingham it is his duty to come help protest
Backing: A leader is someone who leads movements so as a leader MLK has the right to go lead this protest
Author: MLK
Argument: He has just as much a right as anyone else to be in Birmingham
Audience: The clergy men who didn't believe MLK should be protesting in Birmingham
Tone: Straight forward and explanatory/factual
Medium: originally a written letter, now electronic
Genre: argumentative
Arrangement: Starts by saying why he is in Birmingham and has the right to be there. After presenting the facts he presents his opinion about the problems with these clergy men and why they are wrong.
claim: MLK has the right to be in Birmingham
ReplyDeletereason: he is the leader of the SCLC and was invited there
evidence: the Alabama christian movement invited him because of the injustices
warrant: an invitation warrants him to come and he felt he needed to help them from the radical injustices
backing: It is important for him to be there to spread his message because of the injustices
author: Martin Luther King jr.
audience: the people who criticized him for being in Birmingham
argument: MLK had the right to be in Birmingham
tone: declarative and factual
medium: paper
genre: argumentative
arrangement: he begins by saying he has the right to be Birmingham and the reasons why. then talks about what is going on in Birmingham
claim: MLK has a right to be in Birmingham
ReplyDeletereason: he was invited by the SCLC and feels that he has a duty to help against the social injustice
evidence: he was invited by a local group to fight the racial injustices
warrant: an invite from the SCLC warrants him to come and his own desire to fight racism as well
backing: it is important for him to be there because of his status as a leader
author: Martin Luther King Jr.
argument: MLK has a right to be in Birmingham
audience: anyone who had an issue with him being in Birmingham
tone: explanatory and factual
medium: hand written letter
genre: argumentative
arrangement: he states his claim about his right to be there and then goes on to talk about his opinions of the injustice
The reason for his being in Birmingham is the injustice of figures like Bull Connor. His brutal methods symbolized the horror of American segregation, and led to a need for outside intervention. The evidence of this injustice was the media coverage of Bull Connor using extreme violence. This was broadcast across the nation by television. The warrant was from the reactions of individuals seeing the violent actions done upon other individuals. The methods of violence warrant the use of peaceful demonstrations, which was MLK's specialty. Backing was received from the SCLC, an organization directly involved with the violence. Backing was also received from people across the country who saw the injustice. MLK writes this letter with an urgent tone to leaders of the church in the south. He arranges the argument based on biblical teachings, starting with the biblical lesson and describing how this related to the situation at hand. This made the people he writes more likely to understand his outrage.
ReplyDeleteClaim- He has the right to be in Birmingham
ReplyDeleteReason- He was the leader of the SCLC which has a branch in the city.
Evidence- He recieved an invitation to the city
Warrant- People typically go to places they are invited to, especially MLK because he is the face of the entire group.
Backing- It is crucial that he travels there because they need someone to spread the message and vouch for change.
Author- MLK
Argument- His appearance to the city is justified
Audience- The religious leaders that his letter is intended for.
Tone- Calm and peaceful
Genre- Persuasive/Imformative
He begins with his reasons for writing the letter, then proceeds to discuss the current state in Birmingham and why it is justified that he goes there.