The Lincoln-Douglas Debates

He was a strong believer in popular sovereignity. Since he felt so strongly about it, he agreed that popular sovereignity would decide whether or not Kansas and Nebraska would be free states or slave states. This decision caused a huge disagreement between the North and South because this would allow slavery north of the Mason-Dixon dividing line created in the Missouri Compromise. The president at the time, Franklin Pierce, supported Douglas’ bill and passed it on May 30th, 1854.

The Lincoln Douglas debates were a series of several debates that took place all over the state of Illinois. In these debates, two men argued in order to express their beliefs and standpoints on certain issues, primarily slavery, in an attempt to be elected into a seat in the U.S. Senate. The two men that participated in these debates were

Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy each began their political careers at an early age. Abraham Lincoln ran for the Illinois legislature in 1832 when he was just 23 years old but he was unsuccessful. However, two years later, he was elected to the Lower House for the first four successive terms as a Whig until 1841. Lincoln was married to Mary Todd Lincoln on November 4, 1842. In 1847 to 1949 Lincoln served as a member of the United States House of Representatives where he opposed the Mexican War. In 1854 there was a Kansas-Nebraska Act presented before Congress which would open lands previously closed to slavery to the possibility of its spread by local opinion. Lincoln strongly opposed slavery and viewed it as immoral so when the act passed in 1854 Lincoln was loosing interest in politics. In 1856 he joined the newly reformed Republican Party and two years later campaigned for the Senate against Douglas. Lincoln appeared with Douglas in seven debates. This was his first considerable national fame. However, he did not win the Senate seat. The democratic holdovers in the upper house elected Douglas. John F. Kennedy became involved in politics after World War II. In 1946 he was elected to the U.S. Congress, representing a district in greater Boston. He was a

Abraham Lincoln, is a Kentucky made legitimate counsel and past Whig agent to Congress, he at first amplified national stature in the midst of his campaign against Stephen Douglas of Illinois for a U.S. Senate seat in 1858. The senatorial fight highlighted a shocking methodology of open encounters on the misuse issue, known as the Lincoln-Douglas reviews, in which Lincoln fought against the spread of subjection, while Douglas kept up that each area should have the point of preference to pick whether for no good reason to be free or

Douglas provides an understanding of the United States that satisfies Kant’s “definitive” criteria for perpetual peace. In the Lincoln and Douglass debate of 1858, Douglass clearly sides with slavery. His discourse was a speech meant to unite the country and to prevent future conflicts over the issue of slavery. Douglas meant to persuade the people to accept slavery as a nationalize institution. This may have seemed morally wrong, however, Douglas understood that slavery was essential towards the country’s economic prosperity. In addition, Douglass understood that Lincoln’s speech in opposition of slavery was going to divide the house and bring war where many people would die. As a result, Douglas made clear that he believed in popular sovereignty, where the people had the right to choose if they wanted slavery or not (Johannsen, p. 24). More specifically, Douglas thought white people had the right to choose if blacks were to be slaves or not. This demonstrates that Douglas speech was also meant to separate politics and morality since his ideals removed the moral condemnation of slavery by its efforts to spread slavery over the new territories of the United States. Therefore, Douglas satisfies Kant’s definitive criteria for perpetual peace. According to Kant, no treaty of peace shall be made if it leaves space for future wars since peace signifies the end of all fighting (Kant, p. 107). In other words, Kant thinks that all actions must be taken in order to prevent war. It

Lincoln’s rival, Stephen Arnold Douglas was an American politician from Illinois and the creator of the Kansas–Nebraska Act that Lincoln opposed. Douglas studied law in Canandaigua, New York, before moving to Illinois in 1833 where he first became involved in politics. He also served as the leader of the Democratic Party. Douglas strongly defended popular sovereignty and supported slavery, as he owned more than one hundred

A leading example of the struggles of slavery in the western states was the struggle over slavery in Kansas. Document F depicts a political cartoon basically stating that Stephen Douglas, Franklin Pierce, and James Buchanan all attempted intentionally or unintentionally to spread slavery to the West. Stephen Douglas proposed the Kansas-Nebraska Act in which the Midwest Nebraska territory would be divided into two states Kansas and Nebraska and the issue of slavery would be determined by in state vote known as "popular sovereignty". Franklin Pierce aided with the signing of the bill. The results upon this bill was harsh fighting between pro-slavery supporters and non-slavery supporters in Kansas over this issue. It also led to the non-reelection of Pierce and the end to the Whig party, along with the introduction of the sectional Republican party, who opposed the Kansas-Nebraska Act. An attempt at forcing slavery into

"Douglas basically explained in the Freeport Doctrine his belief that the people in a new territory be able to decide whether or not they would allow slavery."(What Were the Results of the Lincoln-Douglas Debates?) The Freeport Doctrine was the subject Douglas spoke about. It made people uneasy."Lincoln argued that while he wanted to end the extension of slavery into US territories"(What Were the Results of the Lincoln-Douglas Debates?) It was important, and a historical debate time. As Lincoln spoke his famous quotes a nation cannot stand as a divided nation, and everyone had rights through the Declaration Of Independence.The problem also was extension to the different territories for slavery. The Debates were not to fix slavery, but to talk about what would make it better. What laws could change it, or stopping slavery from happening in many other

Abraham Lincoln, the abolisher of slavery, the African American’s President; he shocked the world when came up with plan to end the war. That was to take the South’s biggest asset, their greatest workhouse the Black community. The South were superior at agriculture without having to it touch. Then on the other hand you have the North that is big in factories and don’t want to lose any jobs. So Lincoln had a lot going against him he still pushed for the Emancipation Proclamation. The time period when everyone was fighting each other lincoln wanted something that would end the fight for good, something to bring this war-torn nation at peace. The amendment is to take away the heart and soul of the South so they have no reason to fight. At the time the Democrats were mainly in the South, while the Republicans are in the North where they don't need slave because they work complex mechanic jobs. President Lincoln was entering his second term and wanted the bill to pass before the election stared back up. With some other states already have secede from the Union with some

The creator of the act was Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois, who wanted to see citizens be able to settle in these territories. Underlying it all, Douglas’s real desire was to build a transcontinental railroad to go through Chicago. Although opposition was intense, The Kansas-Nebraska Act was finally passed by congress on May 30, 1854. It allowed settlers in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide whether slavery would be legal or not within their borders based on popular sovereignty. Territory north of the 36°30' parallel was now open to popular sovereignty as Northern leaders’ moods grew darker than the midnight sky. This sudden change in affairs largely contributed to the humongous political change that was about to happen next.

The Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858 was a very influential event that occurred in American history and has much significance, even till this day. The debates were in contest for the United States Senate seat in Illinois. The main topic involved in the debates was based around slavery and the separation of the union because of it. Both Lincoln and Douglas refer to the U.S. Constitution in their remarks and state different opinions surrounding what they interpret the meaning of certain parts regarding slavery to be.

The freedom of America’s slaves has always been accredited to Abraham Lincoln, but he was not always the complete abolitionist as he is commonly portrayed. The “house divided”, as Lincoln depicts it in his famous ‘House Divided’ speech, of the United States during the Civil War, was not always lead towards the freedom of all mankind, and there is sufficient evidence to support this claim. The sixteenth president is most commonly remembered for inducing the courage and determination to end the Civil War, with the Emancipation Proclamation, although when it more closely studied he did not cross the great divide of enslavement vs. freedom with the submittal of that fabled document. When following the many famous quotes and speeches of Lincoln’s life, it appears that he was against all slavery and bondage. Although when they are more closely examined, the quotes and speeches actually leaned towards his lack of strong opinion on the outcome of slavery. Lincoln is perceived as the most famous revolutionary of American history, but he does not live up to his legacy of being the eradicator of forced servitude.

The event that started the chain reaction of the American Civil War was the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854. This bill was created and implemented by Stephen Douglas, a Democratic Senator out of Illinois, shortly after he steps in after Henry Clay. With the intention of becoming president, Stephen Douglass wanted to organize territory from the Louisiana Purchase, with also building a railroad that would stretch across the Midwest, however, an important question

Archaeologists have traditionally viewed the list of seven debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas through the 1858 Illinois state voting campaign as amongst the most important declarations in American imperial history. Those concerns they addressed were not only of crucial significance to the regional dispute over states’ rights and slavery but also covered deeper into issues that would proceed to change political dialogue. What is usually neglected is that these contests were a component of the comprehensive campaign, that they were intended to achieve some main policy objectives, and that they showed the features of mid-nineteenth-century political speech . Douglas, being part of Congress as from 1843 and a famous nationwide spokesperson for the Democratic body, was contesting for another election for a third season in the Senate, whereas Lincoln was vying for the same seat as a Republican1. Due to Douglas’s political development, the campaign captivated nationwide attention.

Before watching the debate, read through this section twice. The first time will give you the gist of what is presented, while the second time will allow you to see if you can actually do as it instructs.