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Rhetorical analysis on The Second Inaugural Address of President Abraham Lincoln
Rhetorical analysis on The Second Inaugural Address of President Abraham Lincoln
Lincoln s 2nd inaugural address
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On March 4, 1865 in Washington, D.C., President Abraham Lincoln gave his second inauguration address to the nation. In his address to the nation he stated what he would do for the nation during his presidency and tried to prepare the nation for the end of the civil war and slavery. President Lincoln used figurative language, allusion, parallel structure, logos and pathos to express his theme that both sides are at fault and need to come together as one. Lincoln uses the rhetorical appeals pathos and logos during his second inauguration speech.
During Abraham Lincoln’s presidency at the start of the 1860, an issue that had divided the nation was slavery. Lincoln’s election to presidency as a republic was not received well by the Southern slave states, as they thought that as a republican he was out to abolish slavery. In an effort to calm southern states and keep them from seceding from the United States, he attempts to ease them with his First Inaugural Address. In his First Inaugural Address his key points are to clam southern leaders of slave states, keep the states from seceding, and make them at ease as he enters presidency.
In hindsight, this seems the only way America’s worst moment could end. After some 600,000 American men had died of wounds, or grossly unsanitary medical practice, Lincoln gave his second inaugural address, the famous “charity for all” speech, on March 4, 1865, one month before his death. There is a photograph of him giving this speech, which also shows John Wilkes Booth standing above and behind him, on a balcony. Lincoln ended his speech with these words: “With malice toward none; with charity for all;…let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation’s wounds; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan.”
In Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address he asserts many points on rhetorical strategies while stating his hopes and admirations for what will come after the Civil War. The purpose of Lincoln’s speech was to unify the nation and bring peace to the states. The tone of this speech emphasizes unity for all. Lincoln begins with parallelism to help get his point across.
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.
Lincoln urges the people to “strive on to finish the work we are in,” “to bind up the nation's wounds,” he is trying to get the United Sate Citizens to become one again to unite and be one strong country, showing that even after a huge war that the country can remain strong and unified and that this war will allow for a strong brotherhood in the US. Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address is significant because Lincoln offered and objective point of view. Lincoln did not speak of the unloyalty of the South nor did he praise the North. Rather, Lincoln used multiple points to show that the Unification should be the main focus of his speech not that the states should be divided because of
Lincoln knew this about his people, which explains why he used biblical allusions to better connect with the country. All throughout the address Lincoln speaks of the North and South relying on the Bible and God to guide them during the war. The aspect of faith has a strong emotional appeal, forming a strong bond between President Lincoln and his people. As previously stated, Lincoln spoke to unite the nation. One way he went about this was referring to the nation as two different sides as little as possible.
The first inaugural address of President Thomas Jefferson was delivered on March 4, 1801, in the Capitol Building of the new capital of Washington DC. As Thomas Jefferson was considered to be one of the most brilliant men who held office, also having authored the Declaration of Independence, he had very strong ideals for the role of government in the new republic. As an advocate for states’ rights, he thrived for a limited role for the federal government. He wanted to keep the government out of honest citizen’s lives and strongly supported individual freedom.
The Civil War was a time period of social, political, and economic tensions. The North and South fought to decide whether to stop or continue slavery. Abraham Lincoln, the then president, addresses the two crowds before and after the war; however, in the second address, after the war, he uses specific literary devices to convey his message, of the need to end slavery. Abraham Lincoln uses varied sentence structure and appeals, in his succinct Second Inaugural Speech, to try to bring back harmony in the states and the abolitionment of slavery. Abraham Lincoln uses varied sentence structure to emphasize his message of harmony and abolition of slavery.
In Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural address he said, "let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to build up the nation's wounds… and just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations. " The main idea of his speech was to end the perilous fight that was the Civil War. Lincoln spoke about how the war needs to pass for the sake of the soldiers and the rest of the nation and that the war would end strong. Lincoln said that if God wishes for the war to continue, then it would because His word is final. When he said "malice toward none, with charity for all" he meant that people should stop fighting and show kindness to all (although at the time women and people of color would still be discriminated against).
President Abraham Lincoln uses a variety of rhetorical strategies in his Second Inaugural Address to pose an argument to the American people regarding the division in the country between the northern states and the southern states. Lincoln gives this address during the American Civil War, when politics were highly debated and there was a lot of disagreement. Lincoln calls for the people of America to overcome their differences to reunite as one whole nation once more. Lincoln begins his Second Inaugural Address by discussing the American Civil War and its ramifications.
The Civil War did reduce a lot of antagonism and made the United States one nation, during the Civil War, many popular people, and battles rose up and became the hope of the people. These events took a huge role into bringing the world peace and freedom. The events caused the Nation to become more equal, more freedom, and protection. Abraham Lincoln’s first Inaugural Address was the most effective feeling to the people.
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
Abraham Lincoln's first inaugural address was delivered on Monday, March 4, 1861, as part of his taking the oath of office for his first term as the sixteenth President of the United States. Abraham Lincoln’s first inaugural address, may not be considered one of his most famous speeches, however, it stands to reason that it is one of the more important speeches given in history. Upon entering the presidency Lincoln’s primary focus was on reuniting the people of the United States, which is directly expressed in his inaugural address. Before the election slavery had divided the nation, causing an uproar and rebellion within several of the southern states which wished to continue slavery. The country was on the brink of civil war and they needed
Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address Rhetorical Analysis The purpose of this speech is detailed in the time period. This speech was written/spoken at the end of the American Civil war. It is President Lincoln’s way of putting a tentative end to the war and a start to the recovery period. He is still oppressing the south in his diction when he states “Both parties deprecated war: but one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive; and the other would accept war rather than let it perish.
