The Impact of Abraham Lincoln on American History
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The United States has experienced significant transformation under the leadership of different presidents and Abraham Lincoln is one of the most celebrated agents of change in American history. Lincoln became the head of state in November 1860 prior to the civil war. He was the 16th president born in February 1809. His achievements from the first day of his presidency to the day of his assassination have portrayed him as one of the key contributors to the history of the nation. This paper will focus on the main aspects of Lincoln’s leadership to demonstrate how he impacted the history of the nation during and after his tenure as the U.S president. His main
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In fact, the Address is termed as the most famous speech compared to other speeches that were delivered by Lincoln (Abraham Lincoln Online, 2017). In addition, it is also one of the widely quoted and published speeches in the history of the U.S and the world at large (Atlantic Publishing Group, 2016). The speech was not like any other presidential speech because it was just 272 words long and Lincoln used it as an effective tool for expressing the purpose of the civil war.
Lincoln did not use the Gettysburg address to confine himself to some monosyllabic grunts. Instead, he used it to demonstrate that it was possible to capture a great idea without using the classical style of speech (Conant, 2015). In fact, his speech marked the end of the dominant classical speech in the history of America and American rhetoric (Conant, 2015). The Address was a persuasive rather than a decorative effort. The Address continues to inspire people many years later even though no one knows anything about Lincoln’s voice tones and movement when he was delivering the speech (Yaffe,
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Yaffe, P. (2011). The 7% rule: fact, fiction, or misunderstanding. Ubiquity, 2011(October),
Out of the 43 presidents that have served for the United States, the most recognizable and exceptional president by far was Abraham Lincoln. Through childhood, Lincoln seemed always interested in politics, not knowing how much publicity and significance he would get. The three authors of the Grace Bedell and the President’s Beard, Lincoln’s Famous Address, and The Rise of a President all agree with the fact that Lincoln was a fanonimal president. During just four years of office, Lincoln made a memorable picture for himself, led a war between many different parts of the U. S., and made one of the greatest speeches the nation has ever seen.
Pittman, Benn. The Assassination of President Lincoln and the Trial of the Conspirators. New York, NY: Moore, Wilstach, and Baldwin, 1865. 83-87. Print.
leading up to and surrounding President Abraham Lincoln’s death. The purpose of this book is to
The Gettysburg Address given by President Lincoln in the November following the Battle of Gettysburg acted as a call to arms. This speech gave the North a sense of pride and reassured them that they did have a chance at winning the Civil War. In The Gettysburg Address, Lincoln tells the audience not to let the men who died in the battle die in vain he tells them that their dedication will lead to a “new birth of freedom” in the nation(document D). This newly found sense of pride and hope led confidence which was something that the Confederate army was lacking at the
Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words That Remade America "Fourscore and seven years ago ." These are the first 5 of only two hundred seventy-two words that remade America. In Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words That Remade America, the author, Gary Wills, informed us that Abraham Lincoln wanted equality among us and to unite as one. In Abraham Lincoln's own speech, he would not mention single individuals or even top officers. Everyone was considered as equal importance and was never any different. "Though we call Lincoln's text the Gettysburg Address, that title clearly belongs to Everett." 1 This is very true, which I think is interesting. Everett who was chosen by David Wills to commemorate the National Cemetery of Gettysburg, was supposed to be the speaker while Lincoln was only the dedicatory remarks speaker. Not only did Lincoln have the favorable speech, it was only three minutes while Everett's was two hours long. Lincoln also supposedly was not supposed to be there to speak; he actually just told a correspondent that he would be present. It's amazing to believe that a two hundred seventy-two word speech would say so much to thousands of people.
It became the most famous speech of Lincoln’s presidency, and one of the most widely quoted speeches in history.
Lincoln had numerous purposes for his Gettysburg Address. Firstly, it was to be used to dedicate the land where the Battle of Gettysburg had taken place as a cemetery for the fallen Union troops, the most obvious and main reason for his address. His second purpose for the address was to change the war on states’ rights to a war on slavery and upholding the ideals that the founders had created in the Declaration of Independence. By doing this, Lincoln was capable to manipulate countries, such as England and France who had not been fond of slavery for decades, in making them loath the Confederacy and make sure other nations would not recognize the Confederacy as a nation.
Robinson, Luther E. Abraham Lincoln as a man of letters. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: R. West, 1977. Print.
Lincoln had numerous purposes for the Gettysburg Address. Firstly, it was to be used to dedicate the land where the Battle of Gettysburg had taken place as a cemetery for the fallen troops of both the North and the South, the most apparent and central reason for his address. His second purpose for the address was to transform the war on states’ rights to a war on slavery and upholding the ideals that the Founders had authored in the Declaration of Independence. By doing this, Lincoln was capable to manipulate countries, such as England and France who had not been fond of slavery for decades, in making them loath the Confederacy and ensure other nations would not recognize the Confederacy as a nation.
Gross, Terry. “Lincoln’s Evolving Thoughts on Slavery, and Freedom.” eLibrary. Proquest LLC, n.d. Web. 21 Feb. 2014.
Dilorenzo, Thomas J.. The Real Lincoln: a new look at Abraham Lincoln, his agenda, and an unnecessary war. Roseville, Calif: Prima, 2002
Thomas J. DiLorenzo is an economics professor at Loyola College. He has written eleven books, and is very widely published in many magazines and journals. In his book, The Real Lincoln, a twist is placed on the traditional picture of Abraham Lincoln. One of the most famous men in American History, Lincoln was regarded as being many great things, but were these things an accurate depiction of who he really was? As DiLorenzo states, “In the eyes of many Americans, Lincoln remains the most important American political figure in history because the war between the states so fundamentally transformed the nature of American government” (2). Lincoln helped begin a transformation from a small national government to a larger, more centralized one. Perhaps one of the largest misconceptions about Lincoln was his stance on slavery. DiLorenzo goes in depth about this saying, “He (Lincoln) could have ended slavery just as dozens of other countries in the world did during the first sixty years of the nineteenth century, through compensated emancipation, but he never seriously attempted to do so” (9). These two major topics, along with many more, are examined from a different perspective in discovering the man Abraham Lincoln really was.
"Abraham Lincoln." Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th Edition (July 2010): 1-3. Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed February 24, 2011).
On November 19, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln delivered ‘’The Gettysburg Address’’. Abraham Lincoln’s purpose in ‘’The Gettysburg Address’’ was to persuade listeners to finish what those who fought for died for by treating everyone else equally. ‘’The Gettysburg Address’’ is the most compelling speech due to its use of rhetorical
Beardsley, Frank. "American History: The American Civil War: Lincoln's Gettysburg Address (VOA Special English 2005-04-20)." Interesting Things for ESL/EFL Students (Fun English Study). Www.manythings.org. Web. 12 June 2011. .