The Impact of the Gettysburg Address on the United States
The speech we now know as the Gettysburg Address was given to consecrate the fallen soldiers in the bloodiest battle of the Civil War. It is known as one of the most influential speeches ever and has been recognized in hindsight as pivotal in the outcome of the war. Its brevity and poetry emphasized America’s original dream, the importance of equality, and the opportunity for a new birth of freedom, a message which continues to be of relevance today.
The Gettysburg Address was powerful because each word was thought out and was meaningful to Lincoln. It was on November 19, 1863, when Lincoln delivered the speech after the battle of Gettysburg. The Battle of Gettysburg was the most demoralizing battle of the Civil war between the Union and the Confederacy, with over 50,000 casualties in just three days. Lincoln spoke at the ceremonies honoring the brave Union soldiers after Edward Everett, a famous orator who spoke for two hours. In contrast Lincoln captivated his crowd for just over two minutes with a mere 272 words. He was concise and to the point while also poetic. Everett is known to have sent Lincoln a letter after the ceremony that said; "I should be glad, if I could flatter myself that I came as near to the central idea of the occasion, in two hours, as you did in two minutes." Lincoln repeated words that he wanted to emphasize; we, dedicated, and nation. He stressed these words to make his message clearer.
Today, the Battle of Gettysburg is considered one of the most important battles of the American Civil War. However, with 23,049 casualties on the Union side and 28,063 on the Confederate side, it can also be considered one of the bloodiest (Civil War Trust). Such heavy losses naturally rattled the entire nation and Americans on both sides began to question the war and what it stood for. As Americans gathered together at the consecration ceremony of the Gettysburg National Cemetery, the much acclaimed orator and politician Edward Everett delivered what was meant to be the Gettysburg Address. Yet, today, it is not Edward Everett’s Gettysburg Address that the world remembers, but Abraham Lincoln’s, who was invited to the ceremony almost as an afterthought. Lincoln’s 272 words helped remake America by giving hope to its citizens at a time when they were at their lowest.
The Gettysburg Address is one of the most famous speeches in American history. The History Place indicates that on November 19, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln went to a battle field positioned in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania where three dreadful days of battle occurred called the Battle of Gettysburg. While he was attending the battle field to dedicate it as a national cemetery, he read his speech to the public. After the main orator, Edward Everett of Massachusetts, delivered his speech that lasted about two hours, it was Lincoln’s turn. Everyone was shocked that it only lasted a little over two minutes. The speech talked about the men who fought in the Civil War to help create the nation people have today: that it is only fair to honor them
While the Gettysburg Address is fairly short in length at around 300 words, this famous speech delivered by President Abraham Lincoln on November 19, 1963 in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania is both enduring and meaningful for all Americans today, almost exactly 146 years later. The first paragraph of his speech sets the tone, in which Lincoln does not directly mention the bloody Battle of Gettysburg, in which 50,000 soldiers lost their lives. Instead, he refers in the opening phrase, “Four score and seven years ago,” to the founding of America through another important written document, the Declaration of Independence in 1776. I believe Lincoln wanted the country to focus on preserving this
The Gettysburg Address was created by President Lincoln and is one of the most important speeches in American history. According to Barr, (2015) the Gettysburg Address was a remarkable endeavor for Lincoln and the president utilized it to his political advantage. Before he arrived at the Gettysburg cemetery to deliver it to the American people, Lincoln composed five different drafts of the Gettysburg Address.(Dirck, 2015) The Gettysburg Address came from a time of uncertainty, war, and change in U.S. history. It was just a time Americans were confused non the less. The old
Lincoln’s speech in the Gettysburg Address lasted about two minutes and only few from the large audience comprehended what he had stated (Cochran 1). It was over so quickly that the audience lacked an applause (Cochran 1). Lincoln was very self conscious of his speeches and with a lack of an applause from the large audience, it made lincoln believe that he had failed them. Though they hadn’t understood what he meant at that moment in time, from this day forward Lincoln’s speech had become one of the best speeches in American History that gave a purpose to the nation.
The Gettysburg Address was a speech composed and addressed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863, at the time of the political fight in Gettysburg Pennsylvania. At that time, Abraham Lincoln was the President of the United States. He was also the President who led America through the Civil War. During the Civil War, at Gettysburg, some soldiers died protecting the nation. This was mentioned in Lincoln’s speech, which was meant to be dedicated to the soldiers who died defending their people. He spoke of how a piece of land on Earth should be dedicated in their memory in order to show respect for dead soldiers. The Gettysburg Address was an effective way of President Abraham Lincoln communicating with the people of the United States at a time
“Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” The Gettysburg Address, by Abraham Lincoln explains that “all men are created equal,” thus they should have the freedom to pursue education, emancipation, and equal rights. Up from Slavery by Booker T. Washington, who was a freed slave, despite the odds founded the Tuskegee Institute. The Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglas written by Fredrick Douglas is the story of his life as a slave, his courage and his escape. Their lives and stories inspired other African Americans to seek a better life. Booker and Fredrick were both authors, orators, freed slaves, and both men valued education. In addition, both men wanted personal freedom and the freedom of others. “Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom,” stated George Washington Carver. Viewing education as the “key to unlock the golden door of freedom” they inspired others to seek education,
Seven score and fourteen years ago, following the Battle of Gettysburg, President Abraham Lincoln stood in front of a crowd of approximately 1,500 people and gave a short speech. His audience included surviving Union soldiers, families of those who perished, and some politicians, all of whom gathered to consecrate the National Cemetery at Gettysburg. The Gettysburg Address, although only 271 words and lasting a mere two minutes, is one of the most well-known speeches in American history. In it, Lincoln argues that though he would like to dedicate the field to the fallen soldiers, there is no way to “add or detract” from the consecration those men gave with their blood (Lincoln). In the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln uses the stasis forms of evaluation and proposal to convince his audience of the importance of the fallen soldiers. Using the rhetorical appeals of pathos, appealing to emotions of the distressed soldiers, ethos, catching the attention of his audience with both his diction and his position granting him credibility, and logos, structuring his speech in such a way as to draw in his audience, he successfully resolves his constraints while continually surrounding his argument around the exigence, the loss of life at the Battle of Gettysburg, to the target audience.
In American history, there were always these amazing speakers like John Fitzgerald Kennedy (JFK), Martian Luther King Jr and others, that would influence the people around them to strive for success, never give up because there will always be hope, and one of those speakers was Abraham Lincoln in possibly his best speech “The Gettysburg Address”. The American civil war was the bloodiest war the Unites States had ever seen roughly 620,000 soldiers died, and in that dark time people needed inspiration to rekindle the flame of hope, to have something worth fighting for and Abraham Lincoln inspired them to fight for their nation and not let those who died for the cause not die in vain. In Abraham Lincolns Gettysburg Address he used rhetorical appeals, Parallel structure, Contrast, and Allusion to end the American civil war, unite the north and the south to end slavery in the United States once and for all.
Blood, sweat, and tears will always be shed. Maybe you will find bone or even an actual bloody body part on the very land of Gettysburg if you went back in time to the very moment of the war. July 1 to July 3, 1863, will forever go down as the bloodiest moments during the Civil War. The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point during the American Civil War. The American Civil War started because of the differences between the free and enslaved state. They fought over the power of the national governments to forbid slavery in the territories that have yet to become states. The South is also known as the Confederate were at war with the North also known as the Union. After the war Abraham Lincoln gave his famous speech, The Gettysburg Address. In his speech he mentioned that the dead who fought shall not die in vain. His speech also addresses the concept of equality and the struggle with equality.
At the time when our country was divided and the Civil War was ongoing, a President delivered one of the most influential speeches of all time; The Gettysburg Address. On November 19, 1863, four months after the Battle at Gettysburg former President Abraham Lincoln addressed the weary soldiers, the deceased soldiers’ family members, and many other citizens that traveled far and wide to attend the dedication ceremony. The dedication was for the Soldiers’ National Cemetery, in the small town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Over 20,000 people were in attendance, they witnessed first had a powerful and heartfelt speech. Furthermore, it became one of the greatest masterpieces of all time. With 227 words Lincoln planted the seed in the hearts and minds of the people in attendance, with the notion of reforming the nation by discussing the Declaration of Independence, slavery, honoring the dead, dedication to the cause, and new birth of freedom. (LaFantasie 74)
The Gettysburg speech was short, sharp, powerful and one to remember. Still to this day it remains to a well known, well respected speech.
This speech was spoken by Abraham Lincoln and written on November 19, 1863. The Gettysburg Address was a speech that President Lincoln gave at the declaration ceremony. The speech was about the National Cemetery of Gettysburg as a statement about the impact of the Civil War. This speech was about two minutes long and 273 words. Eleven years after Lincoln died his speech had became famous. It emphasized freedom, equality and unity. It's also about the freedom of African Americans and why there treated so harsh. People are so mean to them just because there skin color. Who cares what color you are
Abraham Lincoln is arguably one of the United States greatest presidents and is well-known for writing one of the most iconic literary pieces in American history, the Gettysburg Address. Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address is an outstanding 272-word oration, meant to have been a “few appropriate remarks” (Wills), yet it is considered to be one of the greatest speeches ever written, and rightly so. However, Lincoln was not the only one that gave a Gettysburg Address at the Soldiers’ National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, nor was he “the star of the show” (Emberton). Today, many have forgotten the name of Edward Everett and the importance and value of his Gettysburg Address. Edward Everett was chosen as the main speaker at the ceremony and gave a 2-hour oration, preceding Lincoln’s 2-minute dedicatory remarks, that was highly praised among critics and the audience. Everett’s qualifications, his message within his speech, and his overall purpose have greatly contributed to the value of his Gettysburg Address. Today, it is clear to see that Lincoln’s Address has overshadowed Everett’s Address, but that wasn’t the case in 1863. The question left to answer, should Everett’s Gettysburg Address be considered just as valuable and praiseworthy as Lincoln’s speech?
The time of the speech was towards the end of the civil war, when the North and the South where still fighting after a bitter 4 year war. The battle of Gettysburg had already been fought and Lincoln had given the distinguished Gettysburg address just a few months before. He spoke of freedom, devotion, and the ideals for which he believed the Union stood. Lincoln had also already written the emancipation proclamation which had freed the slaves of the south in the previous year. The audience which