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Rhetorical Analysis Essay On Civil War

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Nathan Jones Period 7 Mr. Jackson Greatest Hits Essay Throughout the course of American history, there have been conflicts and differing opinions, many of which threatened the unity and founding ideals of the nation. Ever since the nation’s birth, sectional issues between the North and South about slavery caused the respective regions to become increasingly culturally different in terms of the ideals of justice, equality, and unity. Authors have tried to remedy this through literature, utilizing rhetorical strategies to communicate themes and arguments. Some of these authors were our nation's greatest leaders such as Abraham Lincoln and Thomas Jefferson, while others were some of the biggest advocates of civil rights, like Martin Luther …show more content…

America has always struggled with division, especially amongst the issue of equality. Slavery pushed the North and South morally, politically, and economically apart. Tensions grew, however right before the Civil war and his election, Lincoln gave an address attempting to unify the nation. He said that he was “devoted altogether to saving the Union without war, [however] insurgent agents were in the city seeking to destroy it without war—seeking to dissolve the Union '' (Lincoln 1). In this, Lincoln addresses his rhetorical situation, and utilizes words such as [insurgent] and [destroy] to convey the direness of the situation. However, at the same time he uses his own ethos to promise that he will do everything to unite the union, to prevent war. The entire purpose of the civil war was first and foremost a war to reunify the country. In both his words, promises, and actions he communicates the importance of a unified nation. During the war, lincoln said in the Gettysburg address “are engaged in a civil war, testing whether [the] nation can long endure”, later saying that “this nation under god shall have a new birth of freedom and shall not perish from the earth"(Lincoln 1). Together Lincoln addresses the historical context with these two quotes. He uses diction and word …show more content…

Before the nation was even created, Americans had to preserve to create a nation. To attempt to unite and reinforce morale amongst the colonists, Thomas Paine publishes the pamphlet “The Crisis”. At the time, only one-third of the country supported the revolution, thus Tohmas Paine was trying to convince them in a crisis. He doing so, he said that “ By perseverance and forti- tude [americans] have the prospect of a glorious issue; by cowardice and submission, the sad choice of a vari- ety of evils-a ravaged country…our homes turned into barracks and bawdy-houses for Hessians.” (Paine 3) Here, Paine uses a variety of rhetorical devices to make his point. He uses diction through words such as [fortitude], conveying the need for strong perseverance and [bawdy-houses] to convey the direness of the situation and the absolute need to preserve, or else the country will be ravaged. He uses a bit of ethos that leans onto scare tactics to convince his audience that they must continue fighting for their country, must continue to preserve for the prospect of freedom. As previously mentioned, equality and unity are the biggest issues facing America and solving them is necessary for America to live up to its founding ideals. To solve this, whether in war or peace, America must preserve. In the Civil

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“The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.” Before Thomas Paine proposed to fight against the British, the colonists were already under stressful situations such as; taxes, unjust acts/laws, and the British army seeming more intimidating due to the sheer numbers. For Thomas Paines Crisis No. 1 speech, he primarily resorts to ethos, logos, and pathos as ways to appeal the colonists from his own personal experience and to attract the feelings about America from the colonists which evidently urges the colonists to fight for it. Thomas Paine utilizes both ethos and logos for the more ethical (personal experience) and logical (rhetoric) approach towards a waning situation suchlike the American Revolution.

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In Thomas Paine’s pamphlet, The American Crisis, he wrote “Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered, yet we have the consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.” The American Crisis was written to motivate the soldiers and remind them of why they are fighting. It gave incentive to the soldiers to continue fighting. The American Crisis was significant because it helped the soldiers overcome the weariness and lonesome that comes with fighting. To sum up, the war the soldiers were fighting is for their own liberty, which is enough incentive to

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During the election of 1860, Lincoln had run for president and won. He was from the North, and believed that the country’s government would not be able to endure half slave and half free. His intent was to end slavery, or at the very least, stop it from spreading. The South didn’t agree with his views, and decided that they wouldn’t live in a slavery-free country. Soon, they began to secede, and the South had left on their

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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.

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The widely admired 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln is known for preserving the Union during the U.S. Civil War and the emancipation of slaves. Lincoln is idolized by many as one of America’s greatest heroes for his outstanding impact on the nation and as the savior of the Union. As the war was ending, Lincoln’s Union forces had slowly but effectively pushed the Confederate South into compliance and his aim in battling the South had been to hold the Union together, but a cultural abyss remained between the Southern states as they were forced to reunify and Northern states as they increasingly stumbled in their resolve to vanquish the Confederacy. In Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, he lectures about a divided nation and attempts to create a spirit of national unity and forgiveness and uses a variety of rhetorical strategies when doing so.

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In his inspiring pamphlet series American Crisis, Thomas Paine, a founding father and political activist, aspires to encourage and rally the support of the American colonists. Following the winter of 1776, the Revolution and Philadelphia – the capital of the 13 colonies – were on the verge of collapse. The lack of support and belief in the stability of the Revolutionary movement created a sense of dissatisfaction and distrust within the colonies. The title, American Crisis, alludes to the looming concern of total British control, indefinitely. Paine reaches out to the colonists in a way that portrays him as similar to them, using common English without verbosity, unlike previous statements made by bureaucrats with no commoner relations.

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In the beginning, Paine brings up the lack of laws and civility in the colonies. Paine states, “The Continental Belt is too loosely buckled. And if something is not done in time, it will be too late to do anything, and we shall fall into a state, in which, reconciliation nor independence will be practicable.” He writes about the importance of declaring independence and not conceding to the British and attempting to reconcile. Paine continues by criticizing the Quakers.

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(Common Sense, P.24) He believed that Britain had nothing to offer the Americas any longer. America was no longer just colonies that grew crops, they had formed into something much great, a country that could stand on its own in the world. To top that off America was no longer just British colonies, it became a safe haven for many types of Europeans of different religions. Which is why Paine said, “Europe, and not England, is the parent country of America.”

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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

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According to Foner, “Paine had arrived in America when the conflict between the colonists and England was reaching its height”. After the Battle of Lexington and Concord, Paine argued that the cause of America should not be just a revolt against taxation but a demand for independence. (Foner, Philip S). Thomas Paine strongly supported the idea of American Independence and inspired many people to fight for it. He boosted the morale of soldiers and inspired them.

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In summarization, he says reconciliation will bring ruin because of the British desire to advance at the expense of America and Great Britain’s inability to protect or govern the colonies due to its distance from the continent (page 36-40). By providing numerous logical responses to arguments opposing the formation of America into its own state, Paine assures worries common among colonists, gaining even more advocates for American

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Abraham Lincoln was first wanting to show that 87 years ago our fathers created a new nation to form a nation that gives the offer that all men are equal. He says that this war is actually about which side can create an idea that everybody can live with happiness with respect and love. What he’s really saying is that the Civil War is testing our nation. That 's why we’re in the middle of this war. Lincoln states that we give a piece of this land to honor those who gave their lives in hope that the nation might live as a final resting place.

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799 Words | 4 Pages

It is seen clearly in his word choice that Lincoln calls for a lasting and fair peace, but not only between the North and South. He also calls the American people to apply this concept of peace with other countries and in foreign policy. Throughout his Second Inaugural Address, President Abraham Lincoln employs a variety of rhetorical strategies to promote unity between Americans. As Lincoln once said, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”

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Paine also wrote other works to motivate and ignite the colonial soldiers to keep fighting for the freedom of America. Paine’s works show and enhance the need for a new political system other than that of Great

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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.

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