Rhetorical Analysis Of Abraham Lincoln's Inaugural Address

As his Presidential term began for a second time making him President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln faced a country steeped in division and anger as they were still in the midst of a civil war. Lincoln used a myriad of rhetorical strategies in this awe-inspiring speech. Lincoln’s diction, tone, and syntax help to achieve his purpose of uniting the nation. Clearly, we see he is speaking to both the North and South as his audience. He uses such words as: “both, us, we, neither, each” in order to help us understand clearly who his speech is aimed towards. Lincoln’s positive diction creates a feeling of forgiveness by the use of such words as “bind up” and “peace.” Lincoln uses the words “bind up” and “peace” to express the direction in which he hopes the nation will start to go from that point on. A path of healing and reconciliation is what Lincoln wanted for his nation. “Bind up” expresses the emotion of healing not only the personal wounds suffered by the American people, but also the wounds of the nation in it’s entirety. Lincoln also speaks of a …show more content…
His balanced syntax evokes the idea of a balanced and united nation with a combination of long and short sentences like “While the Inaugural Address was being delivered from this place, devoted altogether to saving the Union without war, insurgent agents were in the city seeking to destroy it without war, seeking to dissolve the Union and divide effects by negotiation” and “All dreaded it, all sought to avert it.” The differences in the sentence …show more content…
Although he describes a “peculiar and powerful institution,” alluding to the common nickname for slavery, Lincoln states that “both read the same Bible and pray to the same God.” He elaborates using allusions to, and quotes from, the Bible, such as, “The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether” and “Woe unto the word because of offenses.” These religious references linked the Union with the Confederacy, reminding them of their shared values