Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.\u2019s life and legacy have resurfaced as the paradigm of social change, as evidenced by the recent \u201cOccupy Movement\u201d and the Arab Spring of 2011. The essence of King\u2019s morality and social ethics can be understood through a critical examination of his sermons, speeches, and writings. Accordingly, the writing seminar, which created the occasion for Zoe Strassfield\u2019s essay, focused on Dr. King\u2019s ethics of hope and love along with his evolving critical thinking on civil disobedience, non-violence, social policy, and the struggle for integration.<\/p>\n
In her exciting essay, \u201cA Day of Sputniks and Explorers: Martin Luther King on Science and Technology,\u201d Zoe captures the essence of Dr. King\u2019s philosophy and its relevance for contemporary society in her unique topic, which raises the question, \u201cHow did King view the scientific progress of his time period?\u201d<\/p>\n
Through a creative exploration of King\u2019s writings, Ms. Strassfield reveals King\u2019s relationship to science on many levels. She makes many claims, but she validates them with solid evidence and consistent documentation of sources. Specifically, and to her credit, Strassfield handles multiple sources\u2014demonstrating her ability to gauge the authority and reliability of sources and making critical choices among the materials at her disposal\u2014manages structure and organization of a \u201clonger\u201d essay, and practices acknowledgement and response.<\/p>\n
In particular, Strassfield not only identifies Dr. King\u2019s essential disavowal of any perceived \u201cconflict between science and religion,\u201d as evidenced in his early academic writings, but also recognizes a deliberate intersection of science in King\u2019s later professional essays and speeches on civil disobedience, nonviolence, and societal reform. The heart of Strassfield\u2019s discussion necessarily focuses on the moral and ethical components of King\u2019s philosophy associated with the human use of science and technology. Accordingly, she maintains the relevance of King\u2019s ethic of love, moral stance on nonviolence, and hope for societal unity\u2014sisterhood and brotherhood\u2014toward the creation of a more humane and just society for all.<\/p>\n
\u2014 MIKEL SATCHER<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.\u2019s life and legacy have resurfaced as the paradigm of social change, as evidenced by the recent \u201cOccupy Movement\u201d and the Arab Spring of 2011. The essence of King\u2019s morality and social ethics can be understood through a critical examination of his sermons, speeches, and writings. Accordingly, the writing seminar, which […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4801,"featured_media":0,"parent":5313,"menu_order":1,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/writingprogram\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5387"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/writingprogram\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/writingprogram\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/writingprogram\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4801"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/writingprogram\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5387"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/writingprogram\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5387\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6002,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/writingprogram\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5387\/revisions\/6002"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/writingprogram\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/5313"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/writingprogram\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5387"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}