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with all the facts and factors surrounding the Second Inaugural, "Lincoln's Greatest Speech" is both an important historical document and a thoughtful analysis of Lincoln's moral and rhetorical genius.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 47
... third , and fifth sentences of this first paragraph , Lincoln lowered them with the key words " less ... little ... no . " He started more like an observer than the main actor . The language of the first paragraph is impersonal . Yes ...
... third , and fifth sentences of this first paragraph , Lincoln lowered them with the key words " less ... little ... no . " He started more like an observer than the main actor . The language of the first paragraph is impersonal . Yes ...
Page 89
... Third , the Declaration of Independence enunciated the Enlightenment doctrine of natural rights and the dignity of all persons . The South's greatest statesman , Thomas Jefferson , had championed this viewpoint . Finally , by the middle ...
... Third , the Declaration of Independence enunciated the Enlightenment doctrine of natural rights and the dignity of all persons . The South's greatest statesman , Thomas Jefferson , had championed this viewpoint . Finally , by the middle ...
Page 172
... third of Lincoln's " with " passages : with firmness in the right , as God gives us to see the right This third and final imperative neither was printed on the silk ribbons of that day nor is much quoted in our day . Lincoln clearly ...
... third of Lincoln's " with " passages : with firmness in the right , as God gives us to see the right This third and final imperative neither was printed on the silk ribbons of that day nor is much quoted in our day . Lincoln clearly ...
Contents
Inauguration Day | 21 |
At this second appearing | 43 |
And the war came | 60 |
Copyright | |
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