Preview

Abraham Lincoln's Inaugural Address Analysis

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
298 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Abraham Lincoln's Inaugural Address Analysis
The story is told of a union soldier who during the early days of the Civil War in America was arrested on the charges of desertion.
During his trial, he was unable to prove his innocence and so was sentenced to death.Coming to his senses and realising how grave his mistake was, the young soldier, wrote a letter of repentance and appealed to the then President – Abraham Lincoln!On reading this letter and realising that the soldier was truly sorry for his mistake, the President granted him mercy and pardon.
The soldier returned to service, fought bravely the war during its entirety, but was killed in the last battle.When his compatriots lifted his body to be taken back to base, they found, tucked away safely in the pocket of his uniform, the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    As a president of a biggest country of the world, we can see that our president is skillful speaker. He is the one of greatest american speakers. One of his famous speech is " Ask not what your country can do for you" when he is in his inaugural address. President Kennedy have used many of the tools in rhetorical or presuasive writing. He has full knowleged with Aristotle three areas of rhetorical such as: Ethos, Pathos and Logos.…

    • 262 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Abraham Lincoln’s second inaugural address was put in the president’s awareness of the Union citizens’ developing concern about the grave causes and effects of the then warring Civil conflict. In order to push Union citizens to remain influenced towards this repair of the Union by forgiving Confederate insurgents and seeing pass the necessary war, Lincoln changes between inclusive pronouns to dual language to capture battles and shared beliefs among Americans, as well as intense statements to God’s high powers to portray the war as revenge for the sins of slavery.…

    • 439 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Lincoln’s opening lines of his speech, he establishes that he knows that neither attitude has changed. The North is still pressing for expulsion of slavery and the South is still pushing for expansion of slavery. However, he establishes that slavery is not the point of his address. He uses words such as “extended,” “pursued,” “progress” and “reasonably satisfactory” to show that his main points are the effects the war will have on future generations. He does not address the issue with a condescending tone: he speaks in a supportive, optimistic way that encourages unity.…

    • 210 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    On March 4th, 1865, during his second inauguration as President, Abraham Lincoln delivers a speech to the people of the nation, which are divided, reflecting on the causes and meaning of the American Civil War. Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address requests the North and the South to put aside the disputes that are causing the division in order to restore the broken nation. Through powerful diction, figurative language, and rhetorical devices, Lincoln’s moving speech help accomplish his determination of uniting the nation back together.…

    • 382 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    All great speeches contain ingenious rhetorical strategies. It is a great way to captivate and relate the gist of it all to the audience. In his second Inaugural address, Abraham Lincoln's purpose was to reflect on the ever-lasting Civil War and look forth to peace. His strategy is to convey his view with God as his witness. President Lincoln successfully achieves his purpose of contemplating the effects of the Civil War and offering his vision for the future of the nation, using meaningful rhetorical strategies.…

    • 386 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    that according to the principle foundation of the U.S. government, it is his duty to keep…

    • 1726 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    After being arrested for spying on the enemy, the spy would be placed in a secure area or jail until the trial has taken place. Because espionage was not a civilian crime for both the Union and the Confederacy, all cases involving espionage would require a military tribunal. Since the US Army’s Court-Martials were given the power to sentence a spy to death, the enemy did the same. However, some spies were executed without trial due to the international military customs stating that Spies can be executed without trial. Once at the trail, the spy would be proven guilty or innocent. If the spy was found Guilty, he would be charged with Conspiracy to commit treason and sentenced to death by hanging. However, If you were proven innocent, you were charged as a prisoner of war and help in custody for exchange or release once the war was over. When exchanging prisoners, each side wanted one man for another causing many prisoners to be exchanged. One famous spies who got captured and punished was Timothy Webster. After John Scully revealed information about Webster, he was arrested and sentenced to death by a Virginia Court-Martial. Four days later, he was hanged in Camp Lee and was known as the first spy executed during the civil war. Many spies in the civil war tried several tactics to not get charged for espionage. One such tactic was to wear an outfit of a soldier. If you were arrested,…

    • 924 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Kennedy's inaugural address he pledges to help the people around the world who "struggle to break the bonds of misery." He wishes to help these people because it is the right thing to do. This shows that there was much poverty around the world at the time. Even the rich needed help; Kennedy said, "If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, then it cannot save the few who are rich." Kennedy also wanted to assure the survival and success of liberty. He wanted every nation to know that America would do anything to preserve and spread liberty. In his inaugural address, Kennedy uses the oxymoron "peaceful revolution." He was referring to the peace he wanted to maintain with Mexico. Likewise…

    • 384 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    LINCOLN'S SECOND INAUGURAL ADDRESS. Abraham Lincoln delivered his second inaugural address on 4 March 1865. As Lincoln prepared to speak, the Civil War was drawing to a close. Newspapers were filled with reports of the armies of William T. Sherman and Ulysses S. Grant. As late as August 1864, neither Lincoln nor his Republican Party believed he could win reelection. Now Lincoln would be the first president inaugurated for a second term in thirty-two years. The crowd of thirty to forty thousand was greeted by an ongoing rain that produced ten inches of mud in the streets of Washington. Sharpshooters were on the rooftops surrounding the ceremony. Rumors abounded that Confederates might attempt to abduct or…

    • 165 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In the course of writing this address, John F. Kennedy and Theodore Sorensen, his advisor and…

    • 4686 Words
    • 19 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Lincoln used rhetorical devices such as allusion and the rhetorical appeals pathos and ethos to convey his message in a way so his audience would respond to his message the way he wanted. He expresses the theme that both the North and South are responsible for the horrible devastation of the Civil War, and that both sides must strive for peace and unity.…

    • 171 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    After reading Kennedy's inaugural speech, Kennedy uses patriotism to gain the support of our general public as he plans to move our country forward. An example of him trying to gain the support of our general public is him saying to rejoice in hope and to be patient when times get rough. Another example is when he gives information to our civil faith. The last example is when he says “how the trumpet summons us again”. He does not shank from his responsibility he welcomes it.…

    • 258 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lincoln begins his second inaugural address by creating himself as a trustworthy and humble speaker. He concedes to his audience repeatedly, sharing that he understands they do not want to listen to a lengthy self-righteous speech at this point, he cannot give them any new information, and “with high hope for the future, no prediction in regard to it is ventured.” By showing great understanding and sympathy for his audience, he lets them know he is on their side and will not lead them astray. If he were to predict outcomes the audience would be well aware that the war had not proceeded as any of them had predicted. Making claims such as this could make him easily lose his credibility, which would be detrimental at the beginning of his speech. Lincoln is hoping to end the war and convince his listeners to extend a nonjudgmental and forgiving hand to their Southern brethren to help reunite the country. By calming his audience and making them feel they are in trustworthy hands, he is setting them up to hear his logic and do as he wishes.…

    • 714 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “Every drop of blood spilt with the lash, shall be paid by another drawn with the sword” (Lincoln 4). One month before the end of the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln stood and delivered a very unique Inaugural Address, not only because it was his second, but because it was structured very different from others. Lincolns first term had followed the war closely, and it was a great feat to be reelected for a second term. Lincoln’s reelection showed the faith of the people in Lincoln’s ability to lead, and to bring the nation back under one banner. Just as at Gettysburg, Lincoln’s speech was concise, and only contained what he felt necessary to address, which is where the uniqueness of his speech is seen. No other president, when giving an inaugural address, had thought to talk on the state of the union, instead feeling content with just a smile and a quick thankyou speech to their voters. One month after this speech, Robert E. Lee would surrender at Appomattox, and only forty days after the speech, Lincoln would be shot at point blank range by John Wilkes Booth, whom had been within eyesight of Lincoln when he gave this address, starting one of the largest man hunts of the time.…

    • 300 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Between the years of 1929 and 1939, many people worldwide was devastated and desperate due to the Great Depression. American citizens often starved with having little to no food in their homes. The Dust Bowl left many with dried-up, withered away crops. The drought affected farmers and their fields greatly. With the stock market crash of 1929, 659 banks closed. Depositors were left with nothing. The financial gains from the previous year were gone. Many suicides were committed; businessmen did not want to live with what lay ahead of them. Due to the Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act, European countries no longer wanted to buy American-made items due to the increased tariffs. This would result in egregious conditions, leaving many Americans hopeless. Soon, the Depression would become worldwide.…

    • 1102 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays