Biblical References in A Letter from a Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr.

Abstract

The main purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of Biblical references in A Letter from Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King published in the United States of America in 1963 during the Civil Rights Movement. The first part of the paper explains basic terms connected with rhetoric, figures of speech used in political speeches, and the role of the Bible in these speeches follows. The historical background is contextualized in the next part. Generally, information about Martin Luther King and his denomination are also described in the paper. The last part deals with the analysis of Biblical references in A Letter from Birmingham and possible connections between Biblical stories and events of the Civil Rights Movement.