In order to describe the tone of the address I would use the words “hopeful mourning” because while Abraham Lincoln pays tribute to the men who have passed, he also describes how their sacrifice has helped our nation move towards freedom. He’s using their death as a propelling force in the war for the people. A great example of this is in paragraph two where it says, “We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that this nation might live.” In his opening sentence Lincoln refers to our forefathers and their coming forth to America in order to establish a new nation. This reference reminds the audience of the very cause our country was founded upon; freedom. Thus alluding to the proposition that all men are equal which creates a parallel structure with what they were fighting for in the civil war taking place at that time. The brevity of the Gettysburg Address is not because it is simple, but because Lincoln carefully chose each word, and each sentence had a purpose. He does this by using antithesis, repetition, and parallelism. Lincoln adequately expresses his purpose through repetition, and he uses antithesis and parallelism to compare and contrast all …show more content…
Some of these include phrases such as “great battle field”/”great civil war”, “so dedicated”/”come to dedicate”, “we cannot”, “we are”, and “to be dedicated”/”to be here dedicated”. The use of the repeated phrases “great battle field”/”great civil war” and “so dedicated”/”come to dedicate” are used for political purposes. The phrases beginning with “we cannot” is Lincoln’s way of starting with the negative first in order to get the audience to agree with him when he brought in the positive phrase “we can”. And finally, “to be dedicated”/”to be here dedicated” is a repetition similar to the first, however this time he uses the phrases of dedication to reiterate his
Utilizing rhetorical devices such as formal diction, allusion, and repetition, Abraham Lincoln’s “The Gettysburg Address” successfully expresses the importance of coming together as a nation during the Civil War. Lincoln portrays himself professionally and speaks to his audience in a strong, firm manner by using formal diction. Instead of making his speech casual and more personal, in a sense, the author makes sure that his words are to be heard and respected by using the word choice he did. For example, in the thirds paragraph, Lincoln talks about the soldiers stating, “It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have this far so nobly advanced.” The specific word choice
Another device Lincoln uses is a metaphor. He compares the
In the closing months of the Civil War, and in his Second Inaugural Address, Abraham Lincoln speaks upon important matters at the time. These matters being about slavery and politics. He wanted to express his thoughts on the ongoing Civil War and his hopes for creating a better future. In order to achieve his purpose, Abraham Lincoln utilizes sophisticated diction, irony, and pathos. Abraham Lincoln uses sophisticated diction in order to express his thoughts on the Civil War and his hopes for creating a better future.
Abraham Lincoln wrote “The Gettysburg Address” to remind the audience that they’re fighting the war to unite the nation and give equality to everyone. He uses rhetorical appeals to develop and support his purpose. Throughout his speech, he uses ethos by alluding to the Declaration of Independence, an example being in the first paragraph when he states, “all men are created equal”. By using ethos, he establishes that he is credible by referencing a trusted document that supports his purpose of equality. Another way he develops his purpose is by using logos when he claims that it’s “fitting and proper” that they should dedicate part of the battlefield to the people who died fighting (2).
Abe Lincoln, in his second inaugural address, uses language with which the audience can connect and relate. Through inclusive pronouns, parallel sentence structure, pathos, and metaphors, Lincoln does not simply list off what the war has entailed or recommend a certain path the people must take. Lincoln instead consoles the nation as if it was a dear old friend whom is in dire need of advice. The first rhetorical strategy Lincoln used was inclusive pronouns such as “we”, “us”, and “all”. Additionally, the president began the address with the inviting words “Fellow Countrymen”.
Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address Rhetorical Analysis The purpose of this speech is detailed in the time period. This speech was written/spoken at the end of the American Civil war. It is President Lincoln’s way of putting a tentative end to the war and a start to the recovery period. He is still oppressing the south in his diction when he states “Both parties deprecated war: but one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive; and the other would accept war rather than let it perish.
Throughout the speech, Lincoln uses repetition to really get the point across to the people just how dedicated he was and how dedicated the people should be. He repeats multiple
Throughout the speech, Lincoln seldom utilizes dividing diction such as “you”, “I” or “them” that implies that the people, and even the speaker, are separate from one another. Instead, he utilizes unifying terms, such as in “We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live”(Lincoln, #). Numerous times throughout this section the term “we” can be seen, which Lincoln used specifically as it is a unifying term. The term brings together the speaker and the audience as one, leaving no room for
The Great Speech Abraham Lincoln on November 19, 1863 delivered one of the most iconic speeches in American History. His delivery infuses us with such raw power and emotions that poured out from the bottom of his heart will change the hearts and minds of Americans for ages to come. Abraham Lincoln did not just write one speech he made five different copies with different sentence structure and paragraph structure, to show how important the layout of the message and how it needed to be simple and to the point. Dissecting “The Gettysburg Address” we begin to understand Abraham Lincoln’s heart lies, he reminds everyone about our past and that we should honor those who fought for our freedom; he tells us “All men are created equal” only to show us what we need to work on as people in the present, he spreads hope for the future and encourages us to grow together
In addition Lincoln also utilizes repetition throughout his writing, one example
This paper aims to inspect Lincoln’s use of powerful language and how it all aided him in making this speech unforgettable. Lincoln used effective rhetorical strategies in achieving his
In "The Gettysburg Address," Abraham Lincoln brings his point across of dedicating the cemetery at Gettysburg by using repetition, antithesis, and parallelism. Abraham Lincoln uses repetition in his speech to bring a point across and to grab the audience attention. For example, President Lincoln states, "We can not dedicate--we can not consecrate-- we can not hallow-- this ground." Abraham Lincoln is saying the Gettysburg cannot be a holy land since the ones that fought there will still be remembered, and Lincoln is assuming that the dead and brave that fought would still want Gettysburg to improve on more.
The Gettysburg Address was intended to be an argument to persuade. Abraham Lincoln was inspiring his troops because morale was low after the Battle of Gettysburg. They need motivation to keep fighting. Lincoln used logos by explaining that because people gave their lives defending what they believed in, the living should finish the job the dead started. By talking about the fellow soldiers who died at Gettysburg, Lincoln appeals to the pathos of his listeners.
Rhetorically analyzing the speech, Lincoln uses many literary tactics to engage the audience in taking action in restoring America's unity. He utilizes shifts, comparisons, and repetition to create a speech that connects with the
Gettysburg Address Rhetorical Devices In Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address” he is speaking to the very emotional nation after many people had just died during the Civil War, he needed to speak to nation to remind them that the sacrifices made by those in the Civil War will not be forgotten and that they must continue with what the war was fought for. He first starts off by referring to how the nation was started then continues to discuss the losses that have occurred from the Civil War and why they should move on while still remembering what the war was fought for. His strong use of rhetorical devices emphasises the goals they must aim for and reassures the nation that they are together in reconstruction by referring to events from the war to