The Rhetorical Analysis Of The Declaration Of Independence

Throughout time the Declaration of Independence has been referenced to and modified to speak on equality and how the founding fathers laid the principles for all men being equal regardless of race, social standing, or amount of wealth even if they wrote the document in a completely different time period . Three major contributors to this were President Abraham Lincoln, President Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR), and Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK). All three of these men used the Deceleration of Independence in one way or another to strengthen their argument on equality. Each of the three had different types of equality that they were valuing and they all interpreted the Declaration in different way so that they could convey their message in a way …show more content…
This allowed him to be well respected and allowed for him to be able to use the Declaration of Independence, which was held in high regard by American citizens, as a tool for conveying the message of natural and political equality for all people. A prime example of his use of the Declaration is in his 1863 Gettysburg Address. During this speech Lincoln is speaking at the dedication of the Soldier’s National Cemetery and in just around two minutes Lincoln gave one of the most influential and powerful messages on equality in a time where the United States was still in shambles after the end of the civil war. During his speech Lincoln professed that both the North and the South shared the sin of slavery and that the civil war was Gods way of punishing the people for committing the act of slavery. This use of God really connected to the American people because during this time period people were very religious and held their religion in high regard. Not only did it connect well with the people it also helped Lincoln better prepare them for how they should change the way that they look at the Declaration. Lincoln embraced the fact that the Declaration of Independence was the foundation of our republic, but he also knew that the Declaration was written in a time period that was not in the same situation that he was in at that moment. He knew that because of this that it needed to be interpreted in a different way so that he could apply it to the situation that he was in. A prime example of this is when he looks at the quote from the declaration that says "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." Lincoln goes on to say that this was the