Allusions In Lincoln's Inaugural Address

The underlying theme of America is it’s trust in God. Lincoln uses this in his 2nd Inaugural Address as a backbone to bring the nation together after a devastating war. At this point in history, there were far fewer religious disputes than today. So when Lincoln acknowledged that "The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous" (Lincoln 5), the population was actually encouraged.

In the article, Lincoln wrote a lot about God. He states that “the almighty has his own purposes” and that “if God’s will continues… the judgement of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.” In doing so, he implies that even though America has been through its bloodiest war yet, and that many people still have bad blood with each other, that was in the past. He then

In his Second Inaugural Address, Abraham Lincoln provided one of the most memorable speeches in history that affected the way American citizens saw the war. The March 4th speech in 1865 gave more people hope for the country and allowed them to trust that God will help them through the Civil War. The people trusted Lincoln to help them through the situation because he had already served his first term as president, and the people knew he was trustworthy, so they re-elected him. Lincoln professionally used rhetorical appeals such as ethos pathos and logos to press his audience to agree, as well as tone to show his audience how importantly they should be taking the subject. Abraham’s Second Inaugural Address was an introduction to his plan for the United States for the next years he would be president, and much of it was a discussion about the Civil War and how they would bring it to an end.

Also a key point in increasing his integrity, are the Biblical allusions found throughout his speech. One major example is when he says “... to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle for his widow and his orphan…” (73-75) and by saying “Yet if God wills that it continue…” (63). This allusion to the Bible allows Lincoln to establish to the audience that he and the audience are alike in the important ways and that everything is done by God’s will. Another example of the Biblical Allusions are when Lincoln reminds the audience “The Almighty has His own purposes” (49-50). This shows that the audience and Lincoln are both under the same “Almighty” and are just following his given path. The Bible was seen as an important guideline to the way of life. By bringing in the Biblical allusions, Lincoln is trying to make the audience aware that he is following the rules. This makes the audience trust him more and develops the image of a leader in the audience’s eyes.

Could the North and South ever come together again and unite as one nation after the Civil War? The purpose of Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address was to offer his promising predictions for reconciliation with the South and his vision of the future. Lincoln utilizes strong and elevated diction to clearly articulate his vision for the future, with choices like “dreaded” and “sought”. Furthermore, Lincoln’s optimistic tone offers a beacon of hope, with examples like, “achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations,” and “to bind up the nation’s wounds”. The purpose of the address is achieved through parallelism and appeal to religion, too. Lincoln’s diction, one of his most powerful literary devices, is employed prominently throughout the entire passage.

In Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, He talks about the Civil War America was facing at the time. In his speech, his exaggerative diction, allusions to the Bible, and appeals to emotion helped strengthen and portray his point of view.

Weeks of wet weather had occurred before Saturday March 4th, 1865, making Pennsylvania Avenue a thick, muddy place; however, the pounding rain did not stop the spectators from listening to Lincoln give his Second Inaugural Address, given one month before the end of the Civil War. The Civil War was the result of a long standing controversy over slavery. The North and the South did not agree with each other. Slavery in the North had died out to the point where almost all blacks were free. The South on the other hand very few blacks were free. Causing a long lastly disagreement between both sides. When Lincoln gave his speech spectators were expecting a speech on slavery when Lincoln gave a dark gloomy speech that no one saw coming. The Civil War had lasted through his passed presidency and ended five days before his death. United States President Abraham Lincoln surprised his massive audience with a very short speech in which he talked about the effects of the Civil War, and expressed his feelings toward the future of the United States. Lincoln wanted to restore faith in the nation, talking about how the war would end soon, and that the nation was going to reunite. In this short speech Lincoln asserts that the audience knows and is knowledgeable about the war, which shows that the Americans know the war was just by using juxtaposition. Lincoln addresses his opinion towards the war, and makes it clear by utilizing biblical allusion, creating a basis of mutual agreement between the North and the South.

On Saturday March 4th, 1865 president Abraham Lincoln, one month before the end of the Civil War, contemplates the effects of the Civil War and his vision for the future of the nation, through a series of rhetorical analysis rooting in logic. This being President Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Speech, the audience was expecting a lengthy speech on slavery, politics, and state rights. In return, they got a speech rooted in logic. War was “dreaded by all” and both parties “deprecated war.” The south wanted to “make war” instead of letting the “nation survive,” as the North wanted to “accept war” rather than “perish” it.

A issue that was mentioned before was the issue of slavery. The North and South were separated through their paragons, hoping to keep or abolish this institution. Abraham Lincoln fully addressed this issue, despite many avoiding it in order to keep peace within society. Lincoln had questioned why people continued to elude the institution when it was already the root of so much dispute in communities, when it was, as of then, was the topic addressed in their very own religion (Document 5). Through this, Lincoln was able to openly discuss the matter and to not avert it for it was pertinent in preventing a war happening.

Lincoln was a noble man. He was known as honest “Abe” when he practiced law. When he spoke he stood still and kept his hands behind his back. He used his words very cautiously but spoke with conviction and motivation. He was always very positive, hoping for a reconciliation between the states. “Lincoln's distinctively human and

Abraham Lincoln says “Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves.” but the good book says otherwise. “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, with a sincere heart, as you would Christ” ― Ephesians 6:5. Now why would he go against god? The bible clearly states Slaves should obey their masters, why would he try and change what the bible said? He doesn't know what he’s in for, he may be the leader of our country, but god will always be the leader of the world, Lincoln has no power against god.

Lincoln used religion to convey his message of unity liberally throughout his address, which appealed to people of every social class, gender, and side of the war. He

What a fascinating read, thank you for sharing. In my opinion, this article tells us that Lincoln was a knowledgeable man not easily persuaded by others. Instead of acting a certain way because it was expected of him; he took the Bible’s teachings and personal beliefs to establish his moral code. It seems to me he highly respected God and The Bible, and didn’t necessarily agree with the church. People tend to believe their religion or way of life is better because that is all they know. I’m not saying everyone is like this, many research and enjoy learning about other religions and cultures. I assume Lincoln was that kind of ma; he didn’t seem quick to judge because someone was different, he strived to learn more about them in order to

I believe that Bruce Lincoln’s true intentions in writing this book was to educate us from a stand point that was not really an important subject in our current political moment and that is through religion. Lincoln goes on to explain how religion is practiced through two approaches, one being the Maximalist and the other being Minimalist approach. In order for us to comprehend the meaning of religion through Lincoln’s point of view he identifies what he believes to be the main components into four different parts. Those parts consist of Discourse, Practice, Community, and Institution.

Abraham Lincoln has been remembered, both in his own lifetime and thereafter, by the nickname, “Honest Abe.” His characteristic trustworthiness, nevertheless, has not necessarily permitted historians to easily interpret all aspects of his personal life and political career. One such topic that has been somewhat shrouded in mystery is Abraham Lincoln’s religious views. The prolific American theologian, Reinhold Neibuhr once referred to Lincoln as “unquestionably our most religious president,” who was “superior in depth and purity to those, not only of the political leaders of the day, but of the religious leaders of the era.”[i] On the other hand, a contemporary of Lincoln, William Herndon, attempted to combat the idea that Abraham Lincoln changed his views about believing in a personal God by dismissing the existence of any evidence for such a claim.[ii] However, Wayne C. Temple’s more recent tome, Abraham Lincoln: From Skeptic to Prophet, has compiled scores of evidence to outline the religious views of Abraham, which were by no means static throughout