A Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King Jr

A Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King Jr A Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King Jr. was written in the margins of a letter posted by the clergymen of Alabama at this time that sparked his interest and while he inhabited the jail cell for parading around without a permit. This time allowed him the ability to respond wholeheartedly to this cynical oppressing. Kings letter addresses specific points presented in the Clergymens and this direct response distinguishes Kings strong points through his powerful writing. Unethical and immoral mentions came to the attention of the Minister through the letter, and he expressed his differing views and defended his ideals and actions through Aristotles three rhetorical devices, ethos, logos, and pathos. First and foremost, King establishes his credibility to spark off his strong defense. Introducing himself as The President of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, an organization operating in every southern state, with headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. , [with] eighty-five affiliated organizations across the South, and one of them is the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights (Letter from Birmingham Jail 2). This credential not only puts King into a position of power but also proves that he has seen enough of the south and the problems within it to create a strong argument against his opposition. Another point that establishes this is on page seven of Letter From Birmingham Jail where King states that hes traveled through the length and breadth of Alabama, Mississippi, and all the other southern states. On sweltering summer days and crisp autumn mornings. This quote defends his credibility further because not only did King travel once through these states but multiple t imes in different seasons, and even deeper- in different trials that may have been presented. Moreover, throughout the letter, King references the Bible, presidents, and writers to establish not only his educated mind, but also his passion for righteousness and his stance as a minister. The flawless flow of his passionate response to the Clergymen also presents support for his intellect and knowledge due to keeping a reasonable head and developed grammar while inhabiting a jail cell. Many of the Kings rhetoric used that convinced his credibility to the audience also demonstrated the logic in his counterargument. In a simple paragraph, he effectively proves his point that extremism for a proper cause isnt something to discredit and should not be looked upon as a negative thing, Was not Jesus an extremist for Love,Was not Amos and Extremist of justice, was not Paul an extremist for the Christian gospel, and Abraham Lincoln,and Thomas Jefferson,The Question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be (A Letter from Birmingham Jail 6). After thoroughly tying in many influential figures in history, King then goes on to question the argument of the Clergymen stating that the demonstrations are at fault in Birmingham and not the social situation already simmering. Throughout Alabama all sorts of devious methods are used to prevent Negroes from becoming registered voters, and there are some counties in which,not a single Negro is register ed (Letter from Birmingham Jail 4) This direct attack on the truth of Alabama in this time brings a harsher light to what happens and what is overlooked to many. King then continues to state that it was his parading without a permit (4), that landed him in the jail and while it is completely fine to have such an ordinance,it becomes unjust when it is used to maintain segregation and to deny citizens the First Amendment privilege of peaceful assembly and protest (Letter from Birmingham Jail 4). This direct reference to the constitution of the United States and just and unjust laws and ordinances proves a strong point for Kings Rebuttal, which helps to defend the equal rights movement even further. Throughout the passage, after King addresses his credentials and furthers I through his knowledgeable and strong rebuttals of logic, his argument plays further into the conscious of his audience through well put references and emotional instances. One powerful example of Kings pull on the readers consciousness in his letter is on page three when he refutes the argument of the Clergymen saying that Colored people should just wait. While many words truly stand out, Kings true effect was mastered by the appeal to the parents in the group, When you have to concoct an answer for a five-year-old son who is asking: Daddy, why white people treat colored people so mean (Letter from Birmingham Jail 3)? Then again, humiliation day in and day out by nagging signs (Letter from Birmingham Jail 3) and even further, when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of nobodiness (Letter from Birmingham Jail 3). Another element that helps support Kings point in his letter is the fervent repetition o f his blatant disappointment in more than simply the clergymen, but their Christian faith and the churches in service within Alabama during this time. King repeats how disappointed he was in the common whites also and their bystander reactions to racial issues. The fact that this man, a minister, beneath the said extremist white clergymen, and inhabiting a jail cell during that time, who was disappointed in people showed a true depth which hit the audience profoundly. (King) These three elements to Martin Luther Kings letter aid it to be the most effective argument against the Clergymens rash and irrational spark of a letter. Because he sought to the demands and claims so logically, and rebutted with passion and clarity, Kings message was put across and he demonstrated what he needed to put his point across and defend his actions and ideals. The strength of this letter allowed a clear voice to hopefully change mindsets and common misconceptions within Birmingham, Alabama and did not allow the irregularities of the Clergymen to cloud minds with incorrect thoughts. Works Cited: King, Martin Luther, Jr. Letter from Birmingham Jail. The Norton Anthology of African American Literature. Ed. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and Nellie Y. McKay. New York: Norton, 1997. 1854-66.

Immanuel Kants Theory of Judgment Essay example -- Immanuel Kant, 201

What are, and what are the differences between, judgments of perception and judgments of experience for Kant? Understanding how the mind works has been a major goal throughout philosophy, and an important piece of this deals with how humans come to experience the world. Many philosophers have attempted to investigate this issue, and Hume successfully proposed a framework by which human understanding could be understood. This writing, however, spurred Kant’s philosophical mind, awaking him from his â€Å"dogmatic slumber† and leading him to develop his own framework to define thought. As Kant strongly disagreed with Hume’s stance that â€Å"it was entirely impossible for reason to think a priori,† he set to correct Hume’s misguided view of custom in regards to objective and subjective reality. ¹ The outside world, as defined by Kant, is referred to as nature, and â€Å"nature considered materialiter is the totality of all objects of experience† (Kant, 36). Human interaction with nature leads to judgments of experience, and these are empirical by def inition (p. 38). Empirical judgments are not limited to judgments of experience, however. Judgments of perception and judgments of experience constitute all empirical judgments, and there are significant differences between the two (p. 38). In order to properly define judgments of perception and judgments of experience, one must first examine the general framework for thought that precedes them. Kant begins by breaking cognition into two distinct parts: analytic and synthetic judgments (p. 9). Analytic judgments are simply statements about the status of some object, and essentially serve as definitions. Analytic judgments are true by virtue, as they â€Å"express nothing in the predicate but what has... ... when looking at pure understanding. Because these concepts exist a priori, it is interesting that they are used in the understanding of experience. Kant is careful in his application of his framework, however, as a goal in his writing was to outline boundaries of metaphysics as a science, and to determine if â€Å"such a thing as metaphysics be at all possible† (p. 1). Unfortunately for Kant, it is impossible for all things to be described with objective reality, as seen in his case of the soul (p. 86). While â€Å"determinable bounds [to reason] cannot be thought,† Kant successfully established a framework to examine thought and experience (p. 87). This framework exists in itself as subjective, however, and truly shows how pervasive metaphysics is. Works Cited Kant, Immanuel. Prolegomena to Any Future Metaphysics. New York: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., 1950.

Discuss personal therapist variables

The literature on therapist effectiveness had found support for the importance of the personal experience and background of the therapist. This would imply that counseling effectiveness does not rely only on the theoretical orientation and academic training, but also on the values, principles, emotional stability, self-awareness, and optimism of the therapist (Seligman, 2006).As a student of the counseling process, I am fairly certain that being optimistic, open-minded and emotionally mature are what I consider my strengths and which will help me become a more effective therapist. Counseling is a helping profession and I believe that we could not give to others what we do not have. As a therapist, one must be able to reserve judgment, to accept clients unconditionally and have the willingness to help.Emotional maturity is said to be borne from experience and age (Sperry, Carlson & Kjos, 2003), and although I am not advanced in age, I know that I am emotionally mature because I have a lready experienced a number of difficult situations in my childhood which also gives me an insight into the feelings and thoughts of my clients, I am in a better position to understand them, because I have experienced what they are going through.However, this advantage may also have its own flaw since transference can easily occur in this situation. I have a good grasp of who I am as a person, but I think that I still need to work on my inner self-awareness as well as determining what values are predominant in my life and how I can deal with how my values might influence my relationships with my clients. Nevertheless, I am confident that through this course and in the coming terms, I would be able to deal effectively with the said limitations.I had always been a firm believer of man’s capacity for growth, and I have to say that my counseling approach would be evocative or client-directed (Seligman, 2006). I think that when people are given the opportunity to think and confron t their own issues and problems, they would be able to realize the solutions to their problems. As a therapist, it is my responsibility to help clients become more self-aware, define their identities, become independent and confident. Thus, I am more inclined to use listening skills, empathy, and genuineness in my counseling sessions.

The Life of Olaudah Equiano essays

The Life of Olaudah Equiano essays Olaudah Equiano was a figure in history that made a large impact on many people during his time and still on ours. He created an uprising for many anti-slavery advocates. He brought out many things that were not visible to the people that did not know how slaves were brought to the different countries and how badly they were treated. It showed people how poorly other men were treated just because the color of their skin and the country they lived at. He struggled through many tough times, but he survived all the trials of life he was put through. This man is a strong man with much honor and pride, and a great advocate against slavery. Olaudah suffered through many trials and tribulations on his way over to the West Indies. He was reunited with his sister but only for a short while until she was separated from him and brought to a different slave master. One of the most troubling parts for him was probably for him to be separated from his family. He was in love and was very close to his mother, and then he couldnt even speak when he was reunited with his sister for awhile after they were reunited. This is such a big reason anybody could see why slavery can be viewed as such a horrible thing because family is such an important thing to everybody. To be separated from them so forcefully would be such a big thing especially at such a young age. While on the ride over on the ship he had a confrontation with his slave master over his name. His master wanted his name to be Gustavus Vassa and Olaudah did not like it so he decided to refuse to answer to his new name. So due to his bravery in going against his slave master he was cuffed. Eventually he decided to stick with this name and was known by that name for the rest of his life. Olaudah Equiano would not even eat for an extensive period of time unless he was forced by the slave owners to eat. The thought of not knowing what was really ...

Alcohol1 essays

Alcohol1 essays There are some 14 million people in the United States and 1 out of every 13 adults are considered alcoholics or at least experience drinking problems to some degree. Most people just dont understand the consequences of drinking. Alcoholism is a disease and unless something is done, more and more will be affected by this dangerous drug. A bad withdraw from this drug can lead to death, not even heroin results in death as The majority of people see alcohol as a social outlet and does not consider it to be as dangerous as it may really be. Alcoholism is an often-progressive disease with symptoms that include a strong need to drink despite negative consequences, such as serious job and health problems. The thing about alcohol is that a person does not need to be an alcoholic to experience problems with alcohol. Just a couple of drinks for anyone can result in irresponsible behavior, clumsiness, slurred speech, loss of balance, If you are diagnosed as an alcoholic you can not just try to cut down on drinking and think that this will help. Studies show that nearly all alcoholics who try to merely cut down on drinking are unable to do so indefinitely. Instead, cutting out alcohol is nearly necessary for successful recovery. Alcohol has direct toxic as well as sedative effects on the body, and failure to take care of nutritional and other physical needs during prolonged periods of excessive drinking may further complicate matters. Some cases even require hospitalization. The effects on major organ systems can be dramatic. A wide rang of digestive-systems can be affected, such as ulcers, inflammation of the pancreas, and cirrhosis of the liver. The central and peripheral nervous systems can be permanently damaged. In advanced cases, abstinence from alcohol may result in a ...

Leadership and Ethics Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Leadership and Ethics - Coursework Example 23-30). However, ethics and good leadership are subjective topics and are commonly a reflection of the civilization. Therefore, the perceptions change depending on the context and time of argument. In my view, an ethical leader demonstrates normatively appropriate conduct based on personal attributes and interpersonal relationships. Such leaders coordinate followers through a structured two-way communication, reinforcement, and decision-making. In line with the theme of focus, ethical leadership framework manifests through strategic planning, cultural transformation, and leadership development. My concept of ethical leadership entails distinctive principles. First, an ethical leader guides the organization to deliver services beyond legal obligations. Frequently, the principle involves doing more than the minimum requirement of following the established federal laws and regulations (Fluker, 2009, p. 34-30). Corporations that apply this principle benefit from lower employee turnover, greater customer loyalty, and maximum profits. For example, giving more may entail environmental stewardship, better remunerations and management of the product chain. Second, ethical leadership principle elaborates the importance of business honesty. Therefore, ethical leaders promise what they are capable of deliver, engage in honest advertising, and inform employees about issues that might affect job security and practices fair competition. In common, business honesty also translates into maximized income and success. Similarly, leadership strategy that lacks ethical clarity results to economic and moral bankruptcy. In line with the highlighted principles, unethical leadership structures contribute to business failures. The approach typically creates mistrust among employees, suppliers and customers. An unethical practice also exposes the company to unnecessary legal dilemmas and attracts several fines or bans. Achievement of the

Bearing Capacity of Soils Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Bearing Capacity of Soils - Lab Report Example If this is not properly done, then the structures are likely to collapse, resulting in massive catastrophes. Sound engineering principles should be employed in the design of such structures in order to avoid potential loses in human life and property (William Powrie 53).   There are two major types of foundations; shallow and deep. While shallow foundations are located just below the structures they support, deep foundations extend deep into the earth’s crust. Shallow foundations are thus also called footings or mats, whereas deep foundations can also be called piles, or drilled shafts (Braja M. Das 123). The type of foundation used depends on two factors; the size of the structure to be built, and the category of soil on which the structure is to be built. Big structures require bigger foundations than smaller structures. On the other hand, organic soils also require bigger foundations compared to cohesive soils.Problem Description1.  Calculate the required size for a bui lding column footing under a given load.2.  Determine the effect of varying water contents on the compressive strength of the soil.Procedure  The lab was conducted following the following procedure:1.  A test specimen with known percentage of water was selected. The group used soil with 15% water content. This specimen was created by mixing 22.5 grams of water with 127.5 grams of dry clay.2.  The next step involved filling the mold with the soil-water mixture in three equal layers using the tamping device. The top of the first and second layers.