Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Inquiry 2: "Letters from Birmingham Jail"
Alright, so first and foremost I wanted to comment that no matter which side you stand on, no one can doubt that Martin Luther King Jr. was a intelligent man. Not only was his letter very well written, but he quoted SO MANY different famous philosophers and the bible etc... That being said, the audience for MLK's letter was clearly meant for the clergy who had written the previous letters in the newspaper--and he was addressing the concept of social justice, or how he worded it "Just and unjust laws". I thought he made a good point in the way he distinguished the difference: "A just law is a man-made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law." He also continued to describe these differences with words like personality, natural and eternal laws, and the human soul. I also thought that he made a good point in when he was addressing the terms "wait", "extreme", and "non-violent" using references that would most appeal to a clergyman who follows Jesus Christ. I definitely think that MLK did a great job with catching the attention of everyone and having something that imposes thought instead of emotion. So, was MLK right by his actions and by his words? I think yes.
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I agree with Stephanie's thoughts on King's Letter.
Like Martin Luther King's speech Douglass' Fourth of July speech and "Ain't I a Woman?" grab your attention. They also make you feel ashamed that our country practiced slavery. All three authors had the guts to question the rules and call-out America's hypocrisy on the issues of equality and liberty.
All three authors question American's application of the most basic principles of morality, which are basically the same ones that this country was founded upon.
I wonder who/what Douglass and the author of "Ain't I a Woman" based their arguments/speeches on? I wonder if they got their words from talking to other people, or if the words and ideas just came to them. I think it was probably a combination of both.
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