Henry David Thoreau

Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. were both influential writers and leaders of their times. Thoreau lived during the time when slavery was at it peak and just beginning to be overthrown, and King was alive during the time that called for social reform and the better treatment of African Americans living in the U.S. who were subject to segregation and torment. Thoreau"'"s influences can be seen in the writings of Dr. King. Both authors share similar qualities in their writing styles, well as their topics in their literature.

Each of these authors writes about his opinion of the current situations in their lives. For example, Thoreau writes about his thought on the government of his day. He tells us of the government that he feels would suit Americans the most. He also states that he feels that the people should have a voice in the government that rules them. Thoreau also uses appeal to his readers. He tries to persuade the reader to feel the same way about the topic as he does. He uses his opinion openly throughout the essay. King also uses these tactics and states his opinion in '"'Letter from Birmingham Jail.'"' King relates the current situation in Alabama to the moral degradation of society. He uses factual information in a combination with his personal heartfelt feelings about life in Birmingham to persuade us to feel that something should be done to better the situation at hand.

As well as their opinions being stated in their work, Thoreau and King also have in common the usage of criticism of the government in their writings. For example, Thoreau is not at all afraid to speak negatively of the government. He feels that the government would be better if it in fact didn"'"t have any rule over the people. He states "That government is best which governs not at all" (Thoreau). He also writes that he feels we should be '"'freed from the government…that we should be men first and subjects afterward'"' (Bannon). He thinks that the government has a certain hold on all of us and that we should have the right to not be ruled at all. He means that we should have the right to live as we would like and then be ruled King uses this aforementioned criticism in his letter by condemning the way that the government has treated the people it is supposed to protect. He claims that injustices are being done all the time and that the lawmakers care not to do anything about them. King says, '"'Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere'"' (King) He basically means that if an injustice is done somewhere, there is a chance of an injustice occurring somewhere else. This goes to show that if it is not stopped, it has the ability to recur and commit a wrongdoing to someone else.

Furthermore, Thoreau and King share the common practice of including the fact that minorities aren"'"t