Lincoln's Greatest Speech: The Second InauguralAs the day for Lincoln's second inauguration drew near, Americans wondered what their sixteenth president would say about the Civil War. Would Lincoln guide the nation toward "Reconstruction"? What about the slaves? They had been emancipated, but what about the matter of suffrage? When Lincoln finally stood before his fellow countrymen on March 4, 1865, and had only 703 words to share, the American public was stunned. The President had not offered the North a victory speech, nor did he excoriate the South for the sin of slavery. Instead, he called the whole country guilty of the sin and pleaded for reconciliation and unity. In this compelling account, noted historian Ronald C. White Jr. shows how Lincoln's speech was initially greeted with confusion and hostility by many in the Union; commended by the legions of African Americans in attendance, abolitionist leader Frederick Douglass among them; and ultimately appropriated by his assassin John Wilkes Booth forty-one days later. Filled with all the facts and factors surrounding the Second Inaugural, "Lincoln's Greatest Speech" is both an important historical document and a thoughtful analysis of Lincoln's moral and rhetorical genius. |
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Page 28
... building was transformed into a hospital , two thousand cots placed in corridors and even in the Rotunda . On Friday , March 3 , as the evening wore on , a dense fog de- scended over the capital , yet even the dismal weather could not ...
... building was transformed into a hospital , two thousand cots placed in corridors and even in the Rotunda . On Friday , March 3 , as the evening wore on , a dense fog de- scended over the capital , yet even the dismal weather could not ...
Page 41
... build the enthusiasm of the gathering . The applause and cheers rolled toward those in the farthest reaches of the crowd ... building and out past the magnificent Corinthian columns . At fifty - six , he looked older than his years . The ...
... build the enthusiasm of the gathering . The applause and cheers rolled toward those in the farthest reaches of the crowd ... building and out past the magnificent Corinthian columns . At fifty - six , he looked older than his years . The ...
Page 99
... building this para- dox , although the audience barely recognized its initial build- ing blocks . In the second paragraph , Lincoln built the tension in the paradox by comparing the aspirations of the parties in the crisis . On the one ...
... building this para- dox , although the audience barely recognized its initial build- ing blocks . In the second paragraph , Lincoln built the tension in the paradox by comparing the aspirations of the parties in the crisis . On the one ...
Contents
Inauguration Day | 21 |
At this second appearing | 43 |
And the war came | 60 |
Copyright | |
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