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Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address Essay

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In Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, he stressed that the citizens should carry on this war “with malice toward none” and “with charity for all.” This statement could be considered self-contradictory because the North had immense amounts of hate for the South, as did the South for the North. Despite their hate for each other, Lincoln had much desire for this war to end quickly, as he wanted to reunite the Union as it once was before this horrendous dispute started. Lincoln found it mandatory that the people relieve all hate for each other in order to obtain a peace that only the end of the war could possibly bring. Lincoln, unlike many others, was remarkably optimistic. He hated this war. Lincoln could do nothing but view this war divide …show more content…

However, he also wished that it end peacefully. He wished that once the fighting had ceased and the war was declared over, that the North and South care for each other as they do their own people. But, a peace would be very difficult to achieve due to how long this war had been going on and how many lives were lost in this conflict. By this quote from the final lines of the Second Inaugural Address by Lincoln, “With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gave us to see the right, 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 - to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves, and with all nations,” Lincoln showed his true emotion and feelings about the war. He wanted nothing but peace. In conclusion, Lincoln had a hate for this war like no other. He truly cared and loved the country and wanted nothing more than for the country to be once again united as one. He wanted this war to end very quickly so we could just move on and forget it happened, although this would be difficult. But being the optimistic man that Lincoln was, he never lost his hope and never lost his faith that God would let whatever was meant to happen,

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