Junior English Survey

Mrs. Phillips

Letter from Birmingham Jail Rhetorical Analysis Assessment

Due: Monday by class time on Turnitin.com
Assignment: You will write a rhetorical analysis paragraph on Martin Luther Kings Letter from
Birmingham Jail.
Your paragraph should answer the following questions:
What is King trying to accomplish with his letter?
How does King use ethos, pathos or logos in his letter?
What logical argumentation strategies does King use?
Why is his letter effective?
Additional Requirements:
For this paragraph, you should focus on only one rhetorical device
Use cited evidence from the text
Use the template provided to form your paragraph
Times New Roman 12 pt. font, double-spaced
Resources:
Letter from Birmingham Jail text
Rhetorical Analysis Paragraph Template
Public Statement Directed to Martin Luther King, Jr., by Eight Alabama Clergymen text
Rhetorical Analysis Group Activity document
They Say/ I Say Sentence Templates
Notes, presentations, and documents used throughout the week

Exceeds Standard
(A)
Analysis

Meets Standard
(B)

Approaches Standard
(C)

Begins Standard
(D)

__ Writer includes
high-quality,
persuasive, relevant
evidence to support
claim

__ Writer includes
adequate evidence to
support claim, but it
may not be
particularly strong or
persuasive

__ Writer includes
evidence, however,
some may be illogical
or unrelated to claim

__ Writer includes
evidence that
does not support
claim, or does not
include any textual
evidence

__ Writer explicitly
names the strengths
of the argument, and
analyzes why the
argument is effective

__ Writer addresses
the strengths, but
analysis is limited or
brief

__ Writer briefly
mentions the strengths,
but analysis is surfacelevel or even illogical

__ Writer makes
no mention of the
strengths of the
argument

Rhetorical Analysis Paragraph Template

Introduction
Introductory
sentence

In Letter from Birmingham Jail

Martin Luther King Jr. uses _____
(ethos, pathos, logos) to build an
effective argument.

Main idea

Kings use of _____ (ethos,

pathos, logos) is most effective in
his argument because ______.

Supporting Evidence
First
Sentence

Quote a sentence from Letter

from Birmingham Jail that is an
example of strong supporting
evidence.
Use a They Say / I Say
sentence template (Using
a quotation).

Second
Sentence

Explain the quotation in your own

words.
Use a They/Say / I Say
sentence template
(Explaining a quotation).

Third
Sentence

Here, he is using ____ (ethos,

pathos, or logos) to support his
argument.

Fourth
Sentence

Explain how this quote uses

ethos, pathos, or logos.

Fifth
Sentence

Explain what type of logical

support he is using.

Sixth
Sentence

Explain why this is an effective

way to support his argument.

Conclusion
Conclusion

By using _____ (ethos, pathos, or

logos), King builds an effective
argument that ultimately
_________ (state what he
accomplishes).