Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address Questions And Answers

Question 1. Lincoln has been very influential throughout the years he was president, as well as the years after. He has been labeled as the president that freed the slaves and brought together the United States during the civil war. People say that slavery was the main reason for the civil war, but Lincoln’s “First inaugural Address” and “Second Inaugural Address” bring out the true reason why Lincoln felt the Civil War was, or wasn’t, necessary. Within Lincoln’s “First inaugural Address”, contains many examples of republican language, with some hints of liberalism and biblical. He argues that the matter of the succeeding states should be handled with no bloodshed, in order to protect the citizens of the union. His interpretation of the constitution

The war has already started, but he still states some reasons for starting the war. “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,” (Norton Anthology, 684) is Lincoln trying to blame the South on starting the war, with the North entering the war to defend themselves. This language is very ascriptive and labels the South as a rebel group that needs to be put down. Lincoln’s defending of the meaning of the Constitution, the union known as the United State of America, lends to his republican ideals of preserving of the union. Biblical language can also be seen towards the end of the speech, since the most important goal of the speech was to bring people together. Slavery was also mentioned, and was mentioned as a reason for starting the war as a biblical “cleansing” of the United States. At this point of time, slavery and staying united could be seen as the main reasons the war

The main reason can be deduced to the South violating the Constitution, and unlawfully succeeding from the Union. Although the North was placing heavy burdens on the South, Southern states had many other opportunities to change the nation without the bloodshed of war. Overall, the civil war should have never happened, and the union should have worked itself out through constitutional means.

Question 3. Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. might have been two sides of the same coin. They both wanted equality for African Americans, but had differing ways of expressing their wants. Malcolm X was seen as an extremist, while Martin Luther King Jr. was more akin to a peaceful preacher. In Malcolm X’s speech, “The Ballot or the Bullet”, one can see a very hostile use of languages. “If we don’t do something real soon, I think you’ll have to agree that we’re going to be forced either to use the ballot or the bullet,” (Norton Anthology, 1322) shows that he was tired of being pushed around. All of this aggression and hate can further be seen in the rest of speech, which can almost be seen as a reversed racism. He wanted to get his rights by force, even if it meant another war or an uprising. Both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. wanted equality, but to Malcom X, the ends justified the