Question

Which pest does Dr. King mention, metaphorically, as being necessary in spurring societies towards reflection and change?

Answer 1

Answer:

d. gadflies

Explanation:

In his famous letter from Birmingham City Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. wrote:

“...we must see the need of having nonviolent gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood”

Gadfly is an established metaphor for the person that doesn’t take the status quo as such and tries to bring the change and the novelty into the society, usually by standing up to the authorities in the process.

Using the gadfly metaphor, King expresses the importance of standing up to the established rules of the society and creating tension that has to end up in change. The tension he calls for is nonviolent and interference to the authority, but impossible to ignore. He is, therefore, calling for nonviolent civil disobedience that will challenge the racial prejudices, and finally abolish them.