The Civil War and the Gettysburg Address are two of the most major events in American history regarding slavery/racism which are constantly used as a reference to look back at how the country has developed and changed since then. The Civil War and the Gettysburg Address represent an old America with flaws, and although we have undoubtedly changed since then, many people have differing beliefs on how we have changed (either for the better or for the worse). For example, the excerpt by Robert Hicks, from Why the Civil War Still Matters, reflects on America's past attitudes in the War and the Gettysburg Address to emphasize how we have become a more accepting, united, and multiethnic country. On the other hand, the excerpt by Charles M. Blow, …show more content…
By referring back as support to Abraham Lincoln’s opening words in his Gettysburg Address speech, Blow states how the country of unity and equality which Lincoln ever so dreamed of back then is not an existing reality even today. “Those are the opening words of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, and they seem eerily prescient today because once again this country finds itself increasingly divided and pondering the future of this great union and the very ideas of liberty and equality for all.” Blow begins his excerpt by introducing his opinion on the contradicting topic by stating how even though Lincoln dreamed and strived for a united country as seen in his speech, the America seen today is still separating and dividing itself in its own modern ways, creating for itself a future that may not contain the stable equality and unity which Lincoln expressed in his Gettysburg Address speech. Blow seems to strongly support his claim of a modern divided America by using many modern political divisions in today’s America that display this idea of a diverging and separated nation. “The gap is growing between liberals and conservatives, the rich and the not rich, intergenerational privilege and new-immigrant power, patriarchy and gender equality, the expanders of liberty and the withholders of it.” Blow explains how over the past years, the country has separated through a widening of the gaps between different types of groups of people in the country which have very different ideas and beliefs that clash against each other. Blow strengthens his evidence by giving specific examples of the gaps seen in modern America such as the occurrence of secessions in both the
First of all the geography forced the Confederates to switch from offense to defense. The Battle of Gettysburg was the first and last battle fought in the North. All the other battles were fought in the South so the Confederate’s people and towns were constantly in danger. Document A illustrates that the General Lee were tired of being on the defense and wanted to be on the offense for a change. Document A states that even though the Confederates tried their hardest they were pushed back onto the defensive and ultimately lost the war (273).
It would be more than difficult not to read Abraham Lincoln’s First Inaugural Address without some sense of pride or honor for one’s own country. He brings about a call to civility among all citizens striving for unity and harmony with one another. Lincoln understood the dilemma that slavery became for not only the Northerners attempting to abolish the practice entirely, but also for the Southerners perpetuating it in the first place. The fact that there was a faction rising in favor of slavery on a scale that would divide the country indefinitely and that Lincoln foresaw this danger demonstrates the level of prudence he was able to acquire up until his presidency. In this address, Lincoln stressed the importance of the nation staying unified and true to the principles set by
1. Gettysburg is in Southern Pennsylvania. The war of Gettysburg was fought here, and by the second day of the battle, the whole town had been taken control over by the Confederates. 2. The Gettysburg Address really changed the way that people thought of America.
In his Second Inaugural Address, President Abraham Lincoln addressed the topic of the Civil War and argued that the nation needed to change. He supported his claim with parallel structure to highlight the differences between the North and South, then mentioning biblical references to express the importance of religion, and finally the diction he used helped join the citizens together. President Lincoln’s purpose was to express the similarities between the North and South in order to unify the country once again. He uses a critical, yet hopeful tone towards the Americans of both the North and South. Just one month before the end of the Civil War, President Lincoln gave his Second Inaugural Address in the hopes of reuniting the country once
One of the most famous speeches in the history of the United States is the Gettysburg Address, delivered by Abraham Lincoln on November 19, 1863, in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The speech is directed to the American citizens and the soldiers to gain their support; Lincoln also wanted to lead the people to peace and prosperity. The main focus of the speech was to honor the soldiers that fought in the Battle of Gettysburg and to emphasize the importance of liberty. The tone of the speech is extremely hopeful in such a way that he hopes the audience will live a peaceful life.
The Gettysburg Address is known to be one of America’s greatest speeches made by the 16th President, Abraham Lincoln. The Gettysburg Address and Emancipation Proclamation made a significant contribution to history by recognizing all humans as equals, redefining the nation at the time, and changing the course of American history by abolishing slavery. There was strife between the North and the South of America, because of slavery. The South had already seceded from the Union and Abraham recognized that he cannot change the laws of slavery. ““My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery.”
President Abraham Lincoln, in his inaugural address, addresses the topic of the civil war and its effects on the nation and argues that America could be unified once more. He supports his claim by using massive amounts of parallel structure and strong word choice. Lincoln ‘s purpose is to contemplate the effects of the civil war in order to unite the broken America once again. He adopts a very hopeful tone for his audience, the readers of the inaugural address and others interested in the topic of American history and the civil war.
Did you know that after the Battle of Gettysburg, the troops on each side had lost many soldiers? The Battle of Gettysburg, was part of the Civil War that lasted 4 years and it was the Union (North) against the Confederacy (South). This battle, was a win for the Union boosting up their moral, but giving up confidence for the Confederacy. Each side had many casualties and therefore, the Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point during the Civil War because of the effects that came with the battle. After the battle, the Confederacy leader named Robert E. Lee had given up his hope and his confidence of making the Confederacy win and become independent.
On November 19, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln gave a speech that, unbeknownst to him, would become one of the most recognized speeches in the history of the United States. The empowering speech was given in the midst of the gruesome civil war that began between the north and the south over the long-conflicted morality of slavery. Through one of the most highly remembered speeches of our history, The Gettysburg Address, Lincoln commemorates the dead and wounded soldiers at the site of the battle in Gettysburg through references to history, unificating diction and metaphors of life and death to unite the nation in a time of separation and provide a direction for the future of the country. Lincoln begins his essay utilizing historical references in order to illustrate to the public the basis of what the nation was founded upon. Through this, he reminds Americans the morals and ideals that the people are willing to spill blood for.
The Great Speech Abraham Lincoln on November 19, 1863 delivered one of the most iconic speeches in American History. His delivery infuses us with such raw power and emotions that poured out from the bottom of his heart will change the hearts and minds of Americans for ages to come. Abraham Lincoln did not just write one speech he made five different copies with different sentence structure and paragraph structure, to show how important the layout of the message and how it needed to be simple and to the point. Dissecting “The Gettysburg Address” we begin to understand Abraham Lincoln’s heart lies, he reminds everyone about our past and that we should honor those who fought for our freedom; he tells us “All men are created equal” only to show us what we need to work on as people in the present, he spreads hope for the future and encourages us to grow together
Another rhetorical device that is notably seen in the Gettysburg Address is the use of anaphora. For instance, in his final paragraph, in order to stress the point that it was the soldiers who fought at Gettysburg who will save this country and not the people standing before him there on that day, he repeats “we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground.” This repetition, combined with the dashes to indicate dramatic pauses, creates that effect. Lincoln also uses anaphora later in the speech, even though it was only two minutes, to emphasize what the listener, if he cannot fight, can actually do, “that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure
In "The Gettysburg Address," Abraham Lincoln brings his point across of dedicating the cemetery at Gettysburg by using repetition, antithesis, and parallelism. Abraham Lincoln uses repetition in his speech to bring a point across and to grab the audience attention. For example, President Lincoln states, "We can not dedicate--we can not consecrate-- we can not hallow-- this ground." Abraham Lincoln is saying the Gettysburg cannot be a holy land since the ones that fought there will still be remembered, and Lincoln is assuming that the dead and brave that fought would still want Gettysburg to improve on more.
The Gettysburg Address was intended to be an argument to persuade. Abraham Lincoln was inspiring his troops because morale was low after the Battle of Gettysburg. They need motivation to keep fighting. Lincoln used logos by explaining that because people gave their lives defending what they believed in, the living should finish the job the dead started. By talking about the fellow soldiers who died at Gettysburg, Lincoln appeals to the pathos of his listeners.
Abraham Lincoln in the speech, The Gettysburg Address, constructs a point of achieving a "just and lasting peace" between the North and South without retribution. Lincoln supports his assertion by justifying his beliefs of unity between the states. Lincoln's purpose is to influence the people to not allow what has been done to go to waste. He wants his audience to realize that this division will only persist if no one settles the current issues in society. Lincoln speaks in a sympathizing, determined tone to address the Americans who are mourning the loss of their loved ones and to the rest of Americans who he wants to see a change from.
Gettysburg Address Rhetorical Devices In Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address” he is speaking to the very emotional nation after many people had just died during the Civil War, he needed to speak to nation to remind them that the sacrifices made by those in the Civil War will not be forgotten and that they must continue with what the war was fought for. He first starts off by referring to how the nation was started then continues to discuss the losses that have occurred from the Civil War and why they should move on while still remembering what the war was fought for. His strong use of rhetorical devices emphasises the goals they must aim for and reassures the nation that they are together in reconstruction by referring to events from the war to