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Fortin 1 Article written by: Wayne Fortin Letter from the King Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was perhaps the most influential civil rights activists of all time. Non-Violence and excellent communication through rhetorical speech and writing were the keys to Dr. King’s success towards changing the world. It was November 1961 when King presented his piece titled Love, Law, and Civil Disobedience in front of the “Fellowship of the Concerned” which known as a “biracial, nondenominational organization for church women leaders that seek to promote social and racial justice in the south” (King, p.26). King demonstrates his incredible ability to sway and gather supporters for a moral and just cause by use of claims, credibility, and rhetorical strategies such as ethos, pathos, logos and repetitiveness. In Love, Law and Civil Disobedience King begins to explain the different meanings of the word “love,” then he fully describes how laws are unjustly made as well as finally giving reasons why Civil Disobedience in a moral sense is what is necessary for just cause in the south. King points out the moral obligations that need to be fulfilled in order to achieve equality. King states that “once oppressed people rise up against oppression, there is no stopping point short of full freedom” (King, p.27).The central claim in Love, Law, and Civil Disobedience is that full freedom must be achieved through peaceful demonstration and king describes the steps to get there by describing the key words within the title. Doctor King defines peaceful demonstration and explains why it is necessary, he explains that no matter what the protester must remain non-violent at all costs when engaged in a struggle. For example if a protester is hit the protester should not hit back and if the protester is cussed or insulted those actions must not be returned. All of the non violent talk brings us to the first word “love.” Dr. King uses rhetoric strategy when he talks about three different versions of love and

Fortin 2 refers to the Greek words Eros, Philia and Agape. Eros refers to the “beautiful type of love” (King, p.28) or aesthetic type of love. Philia refers to a friendship type of love between personal peers. But the form of love that King refers to about peaceful demonstrations is “Agape,” which Dr. King refers to as “understanding, creative, redemptive, good will to all men” (King, p.28). Dr. King describes that the type of love that comes from Agape expects nothing in return and is the basic good will in a human’s heart. Thus Agape is the type of love that they need to employ to get them through their non violent struggle for equality. Ethos or credibility is established when Dr. King defines such claims as his love example. When Dr. King’s moral examples are justified as a means towards an end, his credibility holds a steady foundation through virtue ethic. When we think of laws we may also questions ourselves whether the law holds morally right and ethical value. Immoral laws are unjust while moral laws tend to be just, Dr. King states a rhetorical question towards his audience by basically asking what qualities makes a law a just law or an unjust law. With just and unjust in mind we must make the connection between law and common ethics. With a little bit of pathos Dr. King describes an immoral and unjust law as “a code which the majority inflicts upon the minority, which that minority had no part in enacting or creating, because that minority had no right to vote in many instances so that the legislative bodies that made these laws were not democratically elected” (King, p.30). King employs the use of repetitiveness for rhetorical strategy. King states “who could ever say that the legislative body of Mississippi was democratically elected, or the legislative body of Alabama was democratically elected, or the legislative body of even Georgia has been democratically elected, when there are people in Terrell county and in other counties because of the color of their skin who cannot vote?” (King, p.30) This previous passage also had a rhetorical question following it, making it a

Fortin 3 very reasoning and persuasive appeal also known as Logos. The black community in the south during the time saw all the laws as unjust and unequal and Dr. King stands up for a debate that is morally right and to hopefully curb away the immorality of the unjust laws made by the majority of the United States citizens against the minority. By standing up for Moral rights Dr. King is also being civilly disobedient. A law supported by the majority but opposed by the minority is looked at as saneness made legal. Civil disobedience arises mainly because of unjustness. Dr. King introduces civil disobedience by stating “individuals who stand up on the basis of civil disobedience realize that they are following something that says that there are just laws and there are unjust laws (King, p.30) It is stated that the segregationists that support the unjust laws will hold onto those laws at all costs which then turns into uncivil disobedience when the minority oppose being civilly disobedient for a right cause. Dr. King states “I submit that the individual who disobeys the law, whose conscience tells him it is unjust and who is willing to accept the penalty by staying in jail until that law is altered, is expressing at the moment the very highest respect for the law” (King, p.30). The law is the law whether it is moral or immoral but by expressing the highest respect for the law means to follow through with civil disobedience for the better sake of morality. Throughout the entire Love, Law and Civil Disobedience passage Dr. King cites and quotes famous historical philosophers and their passages which help him build a solid foundation for his claims which also makes him more credible. Dr. King refers back to Socrates when he is on the subject of civil disobedience and informs his listeners that Socrates was once practicing civil disobedience and states that “to a degree academic freedom is a reality today because Socrates practiced civil disobedience” (King, p.30). He gives examples in his rhetoric about how the Christians “practiced civil disobedience in a superb manner, to the point where they were willing

Fortin 4 to be thrown to the lions” (King, p.30) Dr. King explains that they stood up for what is right even though they knew there were consequences behind their actions for confronting the laws of the Roman Empire. In a sense Martin Luther King Jr. was in the same shoes as those Christians in the roman empire but dealing with a different struggle, which was rights for equality even though he knew he was going to face consequences such as getting thrown into jail or having someone kill him. He shows his true virtuous character and pathos again when he compares his current standpoint to other situations where immoral actions were taking place by stating “I believe that if I had the same attitude then as I have now I would publicly aid the comfort my Jewish brothers in Germany if Hitler were alive today calling this an illegal process. If I lived in South Africa today in the midst of the white supremacy law in South Africa, I would join Chief Luthuli and others in saying break these unjust laws” (King, p.30). Overall Martin Luther King Jr. and his passage Love, Law and Civil Disobedience was an excellent form of rhetoric and argumentative strategy to persuade and start a movement for moral rights and equality. The meaning of love, law and civil disobedience all intertwine with one another. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. used rhetorical questions, metaphors, repetitiveness in his words as well as ethos, pathos and logos as his main tools for rhetoric strategies. The claim was stated that King wanted to protest by means of peaceful non violent means and stated that by being non violent they will achieve their goals of reaching equality and full freedom. Kings words held true, today the United States is fully free and the inequality and injustice has took a backseat. Without Dr. Martin Luther King’s ability to use rhetoric in such a way to persuade his followers and protest the injustice of the south, it would not be what it is today. Love, Law and Civil Disobedience is a prime example of claims and rhetoric strategy put into great use not only for the sake of paper but also for the sake of mankind.

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