Part from “Letter from Birmingham Jail” What is the main idea of this part? What is the tone of this paragraph? What does King hope to accomplish with this part? How is it connected to the ideas before or after it? Heading The heading shows that King is in jail. Not applicable He hopes to show the injustice of the situation. Not applicable
Greeting King addresses “fellow clergymen.” Kind He shows that he is also a clergyman and that he considers himself a part of the group he is addressing. The whole letter is written to these clergymen who criticized King for taking action.
Paragraph 1 Patient
Paragraph 2 The steps that King and others have taken to try to end discrimination and the reason for choosing Birmingham as the site for their protest Factual
Paragraph 3 Passionate He shows how foolish it is for the clergymen to say “wait” for change. He shows that change must happen soon.
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Paragraph 7 By fighting racial injustice, we are not causing problems, rather we are revealing the problem. He wants to remind the pastors that he and other activists are not causing problems by protesting; instead, they are revealing the problems in society.
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Paragraph 10 The Church used to speak up and cause society to change, but now it accepts injustice and does not fight for others. The paragraph before it is also about the inaction of the current church.
Paragraph 11 Reflective It is a new thought reflecting on the length of the letter and signaling the close of the text.
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Closing He hopes that the pastors will join his cause and change society.
Analysis Questions
Complete the following sentence.
The purpose of King’s letter is to cause to fight .

What is the relationship between the underlined sentence and the bolded sentences?
In any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: (1) Collection of the facts to determine whether injustices are alive; (2) Negotiation; (3) Self-purification; and (4) Direct action. We have gone through all of these steps in Birmingham. There can be no gainsaying of the fact that racial injustice engulfs this community. Birmingham is probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States. Its ugly record of police brutality is known in every section of this country. Its unjust treatment of Negroes in the courts is a notorious reality. There have been more unsolved bombings of Negro homes and churches in Birmingham than any city in this nation. These are the hard, brutal, and unbelievable facts. On the basis of these conditions Negro leaders sought to negotiate with the city fathers. But the political leaders consistently refused to engage in good faith negotiation.

Response:

What is the purpose of the sentence "These are the hard, brutal, and unbelievable facts" in the following paragraph?
In any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: (1) Collection of the facts to determine whether injustices are alive; (2) Negotiation; (3) Self-purification; and (4) Direct action. We have gone through all of these steps in Birmingham. There can be no gainsaying of the fact that racial injustice engulfs this community. Birmingham is probably the most thoroughly segregated city in the United States. Its ugly record of police brutality is known in every section of this country. Its unjust treatment of Negroes in the courts is a notorious reality. There have been more unsolved bombings of Negro homes and churches in Birmingham than any city in this nation. These are the hard, brutal, and unbelievable facts. On the basis of these conditions Negro leaders sought to negotiate with the city fathers. But the political leaders consistently refused to engage in good faith negotiation.

Response:

For questions 4-6, reread the following paragraphs from King's letter, paying attention to the way that he structures his ideas.

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I have travelled the length and breadth of Alabama, Mississippi and all the other southern states. On sweltering summer days and crisp autumn mornings I have looked at her beautiful churches with their spires pointing heavenward. I have beheld the impressive outlay of her massive religious education buildings. Over and over again I have found myself asking: "Who worships here? Who is their God? Where were their voices when the lips of Governor Barnett dripped with words of interposition and nullification? Where were their voices of support when tired, bruised, and weary Negro men and women decided to rise from the dark dungeons of complacency to the bright hills of creative protest?"

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