Henry David Thoreau wrote “Civil Disobedience” in 1849 after being jailed for not paying a poll tax. Thoreau states that “That government is best which governs not at all” (Thoreau). He holds remorse over the fact that the government has jailed him for not paying a tax. Thoreau was also against slavery and believed in the abolition of it. This is best reflected when he says “How does it become a man to behave toward the American government? I answer, that he cannot without disgrace be associated with it. I cannot for an instant recognize that political organization as my government which is the slave's government also”
(Thoreau). At this point, The Mexican-American War was being fought, which Thoreau did
not approve of at all. Thoreau knew that the southern USA wanted Texas for more slave land. This increased Thoreau's belief in Civil Disobedience by means of non-violent protest, like he had done.
Thoreau uses logos in his essay, which also enforces his ethos appeal. Logos appeals
to a person's logical perspective while ethos refers to a belief in a person's words based on how famous a person is. This essay is what shot Thoreau's fame up. Thoreau made a name for himself with the ideas he presented in the essay. His argument was easy for the people reading it to understand exactly what he meant. His appeal was very logical and he made great points in his argument. His writing style incorporated pathos as well, which is a personal appeal. Thoreau uses emotion to express his ideas at the beginning of the essay when he continually rebukes the American government as a just government.
Martin Luther King wrote the “Letter from Birmingham Jail” in April 1963 after being jailed for a non-violent protest in Alabama, which is an act of civil disobedience. King wrote in his letter to the clergymen saying “one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws” (King). It is obvious that one of the writers that helped shape King's ideas was Thoreau. King also writes “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” (King). He is saying that if the state of Alabama allows all of the injustices, then it is OK for the rest of the world to do so. Martin Luther King was a king of civil disobedience. His ideas were definitely hatched by some of the ideas that Thoreau had prior to King.
King's writing style and eloquence appealed to all three modes of persuasion: logos, pathos, and ethos. King's letter appealed to logos because of the simple, yet powerful, words he used. He made complete sense with everything he was saying and didn't fault the people who had put him in jail. King appealed to ethos just with the fact of who he was. Around the USA, the name Martin Luther King was associated with a man who believed in rights for all man and did not fight violently to spread his message. King appealed to pathos for the same
reason he appealed to logos. The simple words were powerful, but true. King uses pathos
when he stresses his idea of more power given to the people through the ill treatment of minorities and how it affects society as a whole. He states, “Its ugly record of brutality is widely known. Negroes have experience grossly unjust treatment in the courts. There have been more unsolved bombings of Negro homes and churches in Birmingham than in any other city in the nation” (King). King says this to tell the public how much of an issue injustice is in society at this time. The honesty of King's letter makes it hard for people not to sympathize with King. Because of his thorough and eloquent appeal to all three modes of persuasion, Martin Luther King was a better writer than Henry David Thoreau.
Thoreau was used by King as a vehicle to shape ideas of civil disobedience. Thoreau
wrote about them, but King put them into action. Thoreau's style of writing, which included large words and repetition, was an effective form of writing but it was not as good as King's, which appealed to a person's personal beliefs. Although King came one hundred years after Thoreau, the same message was still there. In Thoreau's times, he was arguing in favor of the destruction of slavery and injustice. King was arguing in favor of rights for all and the destruction of injustices, which go hand-in-hand. King would have been a great writer anyway, even if Thoreau had not influenced him. Ultimately, Thoreau and King were two men from different backgrounds and different times that believed in the same message, which was that reduced government power and increased power to the people is most beneficial to society. They both stress this in their papers, written in such great, persuasive detail. The fact that Thoreau influenced King's ideas, however, makes King's writing abilities look so much better. In a few ways, it is as if King is Thoreau's heir, building up on what Thoreau would have wanted the future to look like.
