Antigone Letter From Birmingham Jail Analysis

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Both Antigone and Martin Luther King Jr. were willing to give up their Good Life for someone else’s, whether that is for family or the public. Their stakes however, were very different. Antigone, fought for her brother to have a better life in the after life. However, Dr. King was fighting for the living to have the best life they could have and to be free from the societal chains around his brothers! These types of sacrifices do justify their actions because in the end, a family member and the suppressed black community benefitted from their fight! Sophocles’ “Antigone” is about a young woman whose two brothers killed each other in battle. Antigone takes it upon herself to bury the body of her brother Polyneices, however King Creon forbids …show more content…
King is asking for understanding and equality. His stakes differ from Antigone’s because he is fighting for the people that are alive to have a good life. In his letter, Dr. King’s diction and eloquence is what speaks to his readers, his use of sophisticated vocabulary tells readers that he is educated and what he is saying is no joke! One of his stakes includes people being oppressed, to be more exact, the black community. If Dr. King had failed, blacks across America would probably still be oppressed and not have a say in what goes on. There is a section in his letter that tells the readers almost everything the black community has to go through. For example, witnessing their parents being lynched and even the drowning of their siblings; how everything is split into black and white sections; and how a little girl is forced to understand that colored folks are not allowed at an amusement park (King). If Dr. King were unsuccessful, he would have lost all those brothers and sister because of the abuse of the white superior: “when you have seen hate-filled policemen curse, kick and even kill your black brothers and sisters. (King)” Dr. King could’ve even lost a slave’s right to vote. Dr. King played a large role in the Civil Rights Movement and if he did not stand up for his morals, blacks would not have the opportunities they have today. His actions, like Antigone’s, were justifiable because not only was he a …show more content…
King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” teaches the audience that by putting your life on the line may seem foolish however, it will impact more people that one may think. Antigone made King Creon think about what he had done and he realized that he shouldn’t have been so hard on Polyneices and Antigone. Also, Martin Luther King Jr. taught America that racial segregation should be nonexistence and that we should all come together as brothers and sisters. A person’s acts will never go unseen. Even if a person’s ending is unfortunate, they’re actions will be make a lasting impression that will be remembered throughout