Compare and Contrast Essay - James Earl Ray and John Wilkes

While James Earl Ray and John Wilkes Booth both chose their victims because of political reasons, John Wilkes Booth was much more dedicated to his cause than James Earl Ray. James Earl Ray assassinated Martin Luther King Jr. and John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln. As Booth had a reason for his cause, Ray didn't. They were two completely different people starting from their childhood, adult years, and their reasons for assassinating these two public figures. Although Ray and Booth wee completely different in many ways, they also shared many similarities. "Road to Memphis" and "The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln" are two documentaries that gave information on these two assassinations.

As Ray grew up, he started showing many signs of becoming a criminal. He was a very trouble child at a young age. However, Booth was making his way into becoming a celebrity. Ray grew up in a very dysfunctional family. They were poor and they would move often. He was always known as an outcast compared to everyone else. Booth on the other hand, was rich. He grew up on his family's farm and was very popular and adored. Everyone thought that he was very charming and outgoing. Ray was in and out of prison a bunch of times, according the documentary. Unlike Ray, Booth became successful and became a very popular American stage writer.

Due to Ray's rough childhood, he turned out to be a very bad person in general. It led him to committing murder. Booth, a believer in slavery and the Southern cause, made plans with co-conspirators to abduct Lincoln, after failed attempts, he vowed to destroy the president and his cabinet. However, ray spent many hours and days researching and following King to make sure that he succeeded with his assassination. Booth had some accomplices that helped him out with his plan to assassinate Lincoln. Like Ray, Booth researched and followed Lincoln around. They were both very cautious and smart about