Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln was the sixteenth president of the United States. He was the president during the Civil War era. He tried to free the salves. He did this through the Gettysburg Address. The nation was separated before his eyes and he tried to put it back together again. The Gettysburg address was an address to the end of a gruesome battle at Gettysburg Pennsylvania. Thousands of men died at the battle and he was telling the country their next step in what they need to do. The time period is around the 1860s. It was during the Civil war. The Civil war was a war between the Northern Union and the Southern Confederates. The Civil war did bad things for our country. It divided families and thousands of people died (Nation). The speech the Gettysburg address is an example of realism. It is because it is talking about real events that happen in the time period (Werlock). Lincoln states "Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived, and so dedicated, can long endure" (Lincoln, Gettysburg). He is relaying that our nation is at war with itself and only we can help to stop it. He does not hide any of the facts about the men that are dead. He says we should honor the men that have died before us and we need to finish their work and end the war (Lincoln, Gettysburg).

When Abraham Lincoln was signed to his second term in office, the war was still going on. On his first election, the South got mad ans succeeded from the Union (Nation). Lincoln was not for slavery and the South needed slavery to work their plantations (Nations). The Second Inaugural Address by Lincoln for his second term in office was about God and slavery (Lincoln, Second). Abe Lincoln talks a lot about God in his address (Lincoln, Second). He was asking the question "Shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes which the believers in the living God always ascribe to Him? (Lincoln, Second). This is showing Lincoln's beliefs in God. This is more of a naturalism speech. Naturalism focuses on the psychosocial things (Campbell). This is not realism because realism is pertaining to the real parts of life (Werlock). I personally believe in God, but some people may not believe God has a plan. They would not like the Second Inaugural Speech because most of the speech is about what Lincoln thinks God's plan are for the country (Lincoln, Second). This shows that Lincoln is into naturalism. He believes in a greater good and he is willing to find it. Naturalism is about things that can not be seen (Campbell). It reflects a person and their views on how they see a situation (Campbell). Lincoln portrays this by telling the counrty that they need to come back together (Lincoln, Second). Lincoln says, "With mallice towards none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive to finish the work we are in" (Lincoln, Second). This is Abe Lincoln saying that we need to finish the war quickly and we shall forget and forgive.



Lincoln, Abraham. "Gettysburg Address Abraham Lincoln Civil War Speech." American Civil War History Timelines Battle Map Pictures. Web. 10 Feb. 2011. .

"A Nation Divided." Glencoe Literature. Comp. Jeffery D. Wilhelm. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw Hill, 2009. 338. Print.

Lincoln Abraham. "from The Second Inaugural Address." Glencoe Literature. Comp. Jeffery D. Wilhelm. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw Hill, 2009. 339. Print.


Werlock, Abby H. P. "realism." The Facts On File Companion to the American Short Story, Second Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2009. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/

Campbell, Donna M. "Naturalism in American Literature." Washington State University - Pullman, Washington. 27 July 2010. Web. 08 Feb. 2011. .