The Gettysburg Address
- Why does Lincoln begin his eulogy to the soldiers buried at Gettysburg with a reference to "Four score and seven years ago"? (Hint: What significant event happened in America eighty-seven years before 1863?)
- The Declaration of Independence says "all men are created equal" is a "self-evident" truth, suggesting that human equality is obvious to any unbiased person. Why does Lincoln at Gettysburg call human equality a "proposition," meaning something that needs to be proven? (Hint: What does the Civil War suggest about American convictions in the 1860s regarding human equality?)
- What does Lincoln mean by calling the Civil War a test of the ability of the nation to "long endure"?
- What does Lincoln say is the best way for the living to honor the dead at Gettysburg? (Hint: How does Lincoln use the idea of dedication to shift his audience from the ceremony at the battlefield cemetery to the audience's responsibility once the ceremony is over?)
- What is "the unfinished work" or "great task remaining before" his audience, the American people?
- What is "the cause" for which the soldiers buried at Gettysburg "gave the last full measure of devotion"?
- What is "the new birth of freedom" Lincoln calls for, and how does it differ from the nation's original birth? (Hint: Who were the main beneficiaries of the original birth of freedom in 1776, and who does Lincoln think will experience the new birth of freedom if the federal military wins the war?)
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