Allusions In Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address

Lincoln chooses to make certain religious allusions in his speech, in an attempt to unify the divided country around a common central concept: religion. Lincoln makes such references to religion to confirm others beliefs, and assure them that God stands with them, even in such a difficult time. To show sympathy towards African Americans, and to unify them with the others in the country, Lincoln states, “Both read the same bible, and both pray to the same God.”

The end of the battles of the Civil War introduced a period which was set to restore and reconstruct the United States of America. President Abraham Lincoln had plans to reconcile the nation in a peaceful manner. Lincoln’s goal was to reestablish the nation in a way that would not reproach either the north or south. In his second inaugural speech following the end of the Civil War, Lincoln’s statement “Both read the same Bible, and pray to the same God; and each invokes his aid against the other” (Abraham Lincoln, Blackboard, p. 269) points out the shared

Prior to John F. Kennedy’s inauguration was, of course, the election of 1960, in which Kennedy went face to face with Richard Nixon on issues such as, the Cold War, Kennedy’s religious beliefs, and the display of each’s competence. In Kennedy’s inaugural address, he not only alludes, but also addresses to the Cold War, and makes mention of his future plans and Roman Catholic religious beliefs; and, he does so through use of allusions and anaphoras. Through the use of allusions and anaphoras, Kennedy effectively achieves his purpose of fulfilling citizen’s expectations, addressing the Cold War, and stating the United States’s future plans to his audience, the United States of America and other nations, through emphasis and rhetorical appeals towards pathos and ethos.

When the new generation of Americans displayed their violent nature in 1838, President Abraham Lincoln felt the need to express his concerns for the future of the country. Springfield, Illinois is the location at which Lincoln delivered these concerns to a group of young men. At the time Lincoln was just twenty eight years old, yet he was thoroughly prepared to deliver his speech. Throughout his speech titled “Lyceum Address”, Lincoln expressed his main concern as the fall of the nation. He enunciated the country’s greatest strengths and weaknesses by mentioning both past accomplishments and current troubles; such as mob violence. In fact, although never specifically mentioned, the mob murder of Elijah Lovejoy. The murder provided verification

A pathway of reconciliation and healing is what President Lincoln wishes for the country. Lincoln also personifies the nation as having “wounds” which the American people must now bind up in order to heal and save the nation from death. The phrase, “bind up” invokes the emotion of healing not only the personal wounds suffered by the American people because of the war, but also the wounds of the nation as a whole. After the nations wounds have been bound, then “lasting peace” will follow, as with the unity of the nation. President Lincoln also reminds the people of their similarities and focuses on their same religious belief and God by stating, “Both read the same Bible and pray to the same God”. In doing this Lincoln emphasizes the similarities of both the north and south in order to reunite them after the Civil War crisis.

On March 4, 1865 Abraham Lincoln delivered his second inaugural address as president of the United States. The inaugural address came at the very end of the American Civil War, and just a month before the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Prior to this address, the United States had been split into two different independent states, the Union and the Confederacy. Throughout Abraham Lincoln’s first term and the very beginning of his second, Lincoln had to deal with the secession of the eleven states that made up the Confederacy. Also during the war, Lincoln competed in the 1864 presidential election in which his leadership was challenged by George B. McClellan. This inaugural address was important at the time, and remains a relic of Abraham Lincoln’s powerful speaking ability.

Lincoln suggests that the two thoroughly different ideas of the North and South to become one once again, as he also juxtaposes life and death in the same speech, almost as to compare the ideals of the North and South to the ideas of life and death. Lincoln matched his uniting tone with his juxtaposed exemplars. Lincoln compassion for the Civil War is shown as he mourns the loss of many fellow Americans, not differentiating between Union and Confederate soldiers. He creates juxtaposition in his final statement of a “new birth” and the obstruction of a “perished” nation. His patriotic address charms his audience into action. The usage of juxtaposition allows Lincoln to transfer the zeal in his speech into action by uniting the people of America.

In order to persuade his audience that the war was just Lincoln appeals to  juxtaposition in his first paragraph. The juxtaposition that occurs in the first paragraph of Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address when comparing the North and the South. Lincoln says, “ one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive, and the other would accept the war rather than let it perish, and war came.” Here he is stating that both are willing to fight making another point of why the war was just. In this sentence specifically Lincoln is blaming the North and South he is  stating that both sides must own the offense together and accept that the war was just. He does this so that the reader can see that he is not taking

“Neither anticipated” the “conflict” it would cause. Lincoln is contemplating the results that this war will have, at this point he looks at is as now we must put war into the hands of the “almighty.” If “American slavery” is a “providence of God” then we must cease to accept it. Lincoln expresses that God gave both “North and South this terrible war.” Then goes on to logically explaining that the country is a “bondsman” and has an abundance of debt that must be “paid.” The war will not be over until every drop of “blood” has been “drawn” with the “lash” that shall be “paid.” God will not grant this war to be over until a price has been paid. Lincoln explains that the judgements of the “Lord are true” and “righteous” altogether. Lincoln conveys that the outcome of war is now in God’s hands.

“The pattern of the prodigal is: rebellion, ruin, repentance, reconciliation, restoration” (Edwin Louis Cole). Abraham Lincoln’s “Second Inaugural Address” is a speech that highlights every point in Cole’s quote. He, Lincoln, talks about how the south manages to rebel, how their economy will be left in ruin, how they will repent and be forgiven by both God and the North, how the North and the South will reconcile, and finally he talks of how the nation will move on to restoration. Abraham Lincoln’s “Second Inaugural Address” emphasizes the reconciliation of a torn apart nation by appealing to pathos, logos, and ethos and by using diction to appeal to the listener’s emotion.

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

Lincoln suggests that the two exceedingly contrary ideas of the North and South to become one once again, as he also juxtaposes life and death in the same speech, as to compare the ideals of the North and South to the ideas of life and death. Lincoln matched his uniting tone with his juxtaposed exemplars. Lincoln’s compassion for the Civil War is shown as he mourns the loss of many fellow Americans, not differentiating between Union and Confederate soldiers. He creates juxtaposition in his final statement of a “new birth” and the obstruction of a “perished” nation. His patriotic address appeals his audience into action. The usage of juxtaposition allows Lincoln to transfer the zeal in his speech into action by uniting the people of America.

The Civil War was a period of racial injustice and a time of great loss for the people of America. During Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address, he creates a moral framework for peace and reconciliation with the use of many rhetorical strategies. With a sincere but reflective tone, Abraham Lincoln highlights the reality of the troubled nation and the solution to all of the problems, which is unity. Lincoln repeats strong phrases to enhance the theme, references to a holy figure, and creates simple, yet structured ideas to achieve his purpose of reuniting the broken nation.

He states how both, the North and South, “read the same Bible and pray to the same God,” and neither the North nor South expected for the war the magnitude or the duration which it attained. Lincoln also maintains an optimistic tone throughout the speech and invokes unity with his parallel structured sentences.

In the Gettysburg Address, President Abraham Lincoln states that the Union needs to fight in the civil war in order for the country to become free once again. Lincoln uses allusion and didactic tone to convey his transition of the past to the future of our country.