A House Divided
“A House Divided”:
Falling Table
By,
Eileen Sanchez
Mr. Balina
March 4, 2015
Social Studies 321/8th
Falling Table Standard rectangular tables stand on 4 legs: one at each corner. A table where half the legs are missing (2), cannot stand. A table where 2 legs are shorter than the others cannot stand. Here, the table is the United States in 1858: times leading up to the Civil War in 1861, where those who were against slavery were part of the Union in the north and those who wanted slavery to continue were part of the confederacy in the south. Abraham Lincoln, running for U.S. Senate against democrat Stephen A. Douglas, made his famous speech “A House Divided” in Springfield, Illinois June 16th, 1858. The United States becoming a falling table is what he is illustrating with his controversial words. However, this speech did not bring the United States back together. In fact, northerners and southerners saw and responded to this speech in different manors. To begin, the part of Abraham Lincoln’s speech I am connecting to is, “In my opinion, it will not cease, until a crisis shall have been reached and passed. A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved – I do not expect the house to fall – But I do expect it will cease to be divided”. In this part of the speech, Lincoln is addressing his opinion that our nation’s division will not end until a crisis happens and the resolution of that crisis will also solve our issues as a nation. Lincoln is also addressing the obvious: if our country cannot come together and stand as one, our country cannot stand at all. Now, if you were a northerner and heard Lincoln’s speech, you would be jumping up and gladly voting for him. Although Lincoln himself did not say so in his speech, all civilians knew if he was elected, he would end slavery and the United States would become one again. You see
Falling Table
By,
Eileen Sanchez
Mr. Balina
March 4, 2015
Social Studies 321/8th
Falling Table Standard rectangular tables stand on 4 legs: one at each corner. A table where half the legs are missing (2), cannot stand. A table where 2 legs are shorter than the others cannot stand. Here, the table is the United States in 1858: times leading up to the Civil War in 1861, where those who were against slavery were part of the Union in the north and those who wanted slavery to continue were part of the confederacy in the south. Abraham Lincoln, running for U.S. Senate against democrat Stephen A. Douglas, made his famous speech “A House Divided” in Springfield, Illinois June 16th, 1858. The United States becoming a falling table is what he is illustrating with his controversial words. However, this speech did not bring the United States back together. In fact, northerners and southerners saw and responded to this speech in different manors. To begin, the part of Abraham Lincoln’s speech I am connecting to is, “In my opinion, it will not cease, until a crisis shall have been reached and passed. A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved – I do not expect the house to fall – But I do expect it will cease to be divided”. In this part of the speech, Lincoln is addressing his opinion that our nation’s division will not end until a crisis happens and the resolution of that crisis will also solve our issues as a nation. Lincoln is also addressing the obvious: if our country cannot come together and stand as one, our country cannot stand at all. Now, if you were a northerner and heard Lincoln’s speech, you would be jumping up and gladly voting for him. Although Lincoln himself did not say so in his speech, all civilians knew if he was elected, he would end slavery and the United States would become one again. You see