Gettysburg Address Dbq Analysis

During Abraham Lincoln’s presidency, Southern states thought the government was becoming too strong. They seceded from the United States so that the North could not control them. President Lincoln said that he would fight to keep the Southern states a part of the Union, when the Confederates opened fire on Lincoln’s union army in Fort Sumter, it began the Civil War. Although originally the purpose of the war was to keep the Southern States a part of the Union, it later evolved into a war over the abolishment of slavery. The North’s original reason for fighting was to keep the southern states a part of the Union. In a letter to Horace Greeley, President Lincoln explained that his goal was to keep all the states united. He mentioned that if

In the Gettysburg Address, President Lincoln shifts the motivation for fighting from preserving the Union to emancipating the remaining enslaved people. The beginning of the speech Lincoln quotes The Declaration of Independence when he says that “all men are created equal”. (Document D) The author’s purpose was to show that what was once a war to defeat the Confederate states and unify them with the North was now a war to end slavery. This speech was clearly a turning point in The United States’ history because it showed a very distinct switch in the reason for fighting. In a speech delivered by John S. Rock, he discusses the reasons of the war. He explains that people must stay hopeful that emancipation with come of all of this. This shows that the change in the reason for fighting was visible to many people. He also explains that the government was now more anti slavery, and although sometimes things may have gotten in their way of achieving their goals, in the end they will be free. While fighting to reincorporate southern states into the Union, they were forced to take actions against slavery as well. Now the abolishment of slavery had become a huge issue that was not going away and needed to be taken care of. (Document E) The author’s intended audience was the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society which was an organization committed to the abolition of slavery. He used this speech to

In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. This proclamation gave many salves hope. They began to see the effects because originally President Lincoln feared that if slaves fought in the war than the border states would secede and join the Confederacy, but later when African Americans were allowed to join and fight in the War. Although it didn’t free a single slave then, it said that any person who is held as a slave should be freed and forever free when the North defeats the Confederate States. (Document F) The author’s purpose was to show that the Civil War was changing from a fight to preserve the nation into a battle for human freedom. This proclamation was yet another turning point in the Civil War and in the history of The United States in general. Lastly the political drawing titled “The First Vote” shows the result of the Civil War and how it affected all African Americans after Reconstruction. (Document G) Based off of the title we know that the men in this drawing are casting their ballots for the first time. It can be inferred that the first man in line is an artisan based on his clothing. Behind him are two other men, one well-dressed, perhaps from the city and free before the Civil War. The other man most likely a Union soldier still in his uniform. The three men show the range of