The mighty river flows through the mountains with liquidity and nutrients, providing life to all who wish to take a sip. Yet the river is powerful in its own strength, destroying even the largest rocks and crumbling them into small pieces. People may be able to stop the river for a short time or even dry it up, but the water always comes back in one form or another, and any dam is doomed to failure. Some people were able to harness the power of the river, redirecting the powerful water to flow constructively. Similar to the river, language has influence. Its true power is not visible to the naked eye but to those who study it, those who use it as an ally in a linguistic war. In Martin Luther King Jr.'s letter, Birmingham City Jail, he is able to use all three rhetorical appeals to prove that protests lead to negotiations and benefit both sides of an argument. Martin Luther King Jr. uses the rhetorical appeal of the Logos to provide a sense of logic and reason in his letter. When accused of resorting to demonstrations rather than attempting negotiations, King presented his four-step plan for a successful nonviolent campaign, citing direct action as the final step and negotiations as the second. This point peacefully refutes the accusations of the ecclesiastics and does not provoke new controversy. King also uses facts to prove a point such as: "There have been more unsolved bombings of black homes and churches in Birmingham than in any other city in the country." » (King, ¶-5) This quote validates King's reasoning that he would be in Birmingham for demonstrations and not just negotiations. Among his use of logic, King also uses the rhetorical appeal of Ethos to show his credibility and explain his reasoning for the protests. ...... middle of article ...... if we take the example of a river and a language, it is easy to see how Martin Luther King Jr. uses destructive force of the river to its advantage. He is able to combine diction and syntax to form the perfect letter filled with logical, honorable and emotional appeal to the audience. His words flow together in harmony while having an altering effect on the mind, heart and soul. This is why Martin Luther King Jr. is able to successfully use rhetorical appeals to prove that nonviolent protests will lead to negotiations and benefits for both sides. Birmingham City Jail was a private letter not intended for the world to read and yet it still has the ability to stimulate a response in its unintended audience. What literature today can do this? Maybe we can be the ones to create it simply by pursuing what we believe in and showing the world that we are right..