Martin luther king/The purpose of language
The English language, at times can be very confusing. Confusion arises because the English language consists of different perspectives on the same thoughts, writings, or words. Such is the case with Martin Luther King and his fellow clergymen; as King says “the question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be.”(7), thus indicating that the word extremist can have more than one meaning. The clergymen have intended to label King with a negative connotation of the word extremist, but King perceives that label to be a positive depiction. But is the word extremist’s lack of explicit meaning a bad thing? Or is this lack of explicit meaning essential for the English language? Martin Luther King indirectly argues in his “Letter from Birmingham jail” that words having no explicit meaning are for the good of the English language, since it allows him to further his case and clarify his stance on the going on in Birmingham. Martin Luther King redefines the word extremist so effectively that he proves there is an advantage in the English language having words which lack explicit meaning. The word extremist is usually associated with negative connotations; Martin Luther K
Martin Luther King is able to successfully prove that the English language is better off having words that lack inherent meaning; King proves this by redefining the word extremist, redefining it from its negative context, in which the clergymen had chosen to use it, to a more appropriate positive context. King goes on to prove that the word extremist, used in a positive context is more appropriate, he does this by giving evidence that many respected and great men such as Jesus, Lincoln, and Bunyan were all men who were extremists of love and or justice. It is not possible that redefining the word extremist is a bad thing, if it were than Martin Luther King would be wrong, as would Jesus, Lincoln, and Bunyan, and history has shown that this is just not the case. The fact of the matter is that by the English language having words that lack inherent meaning, people are better able to communicate their thoughts and beliefs, thus fulfilling the sole purpose of having spoken language. Martin Luther King is able to give undisputable evidence that the clergymen, will have to accept as truth. For no clergymen will disagree with King’s statement that Jesus was an extremist for love, and even if they do, King, in his letter to the clergymen includes a piece of evidence from the bible where Jesus says, “love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray to them that despitefully use you, and persecute you”(7). Jesus’ statement is an extremist way to deal with one’s enemies, so extreme and so accepted among the clergymen that they have devoted their entire lives to this way of living. So when the clergymen “speak of our [King’
Some topics in this essay:
Luther King,
King’s Birmingham’s,
Lincoln Bunyan,
Bunyan’s Lincoln’s,
Language English,
Lincoln’s Bunyan’s,
word extremist,
Abraham Lincoln,
english language,
John Bunyan,
Martin Luther,
luther king,
martin luther,
martin luther king,
explicit meaning,
language words,
english language words,
inherent meaning,
king able,
words lack,
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words explicit meaning,
lack explicit,
lack explicit meaning,
Jesus Lincoln,
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Approximate Word count = 1128
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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