It is stunning in its brevity: ten sentences— words—and delivered in just over two minutes…few have said more with less. Lincoln delivered the address on November 19, He was in Gettysburg to dedicate a national military cemetery to the Union soldiers who fell at the Battle of Gettysburg four months earlier. Lincoln goes back in time—not to the signing of the Constitution, but to the Declaration of Independence.
The Constitution, in forming our government, was the product of many compromises…most notably, slavery. In contrast, the Declaration of Independence declares our enduring national values. In one sentence, Lincoln summarizes the American project: liberty for all and equality of all. First, the United States is unique. No nation was ever founded on a commitment to liberty and equality.
And the Civil War was a trial to see if a nation based on such lofty ideals could survive. In three days of fighting, 51, Americans on both sides—Union and Confederate—were killed, wounded, captured, or missing. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract.
The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
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If your goal is to have motivated employees or children, or students, etc. Lincoln became a great public speaker not only because he knew the right words to say, but because he had a deep knowledge of precisely how it was going to affect his audience and compel them to action. You have 1 free article s left this month. You are reading your last free article for this month.
Subscribe for unlimited access. Create an account to read 2 more. Business communication. Four lessons from Abraham Lincoln. Read more on Business communication or related topic Power and influence. Partner Center. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced.
It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Lincoln changed the way that speeches were made with this address and it was, arguably, the first modern speech as it displayed a catchier, more economic way of speaking. There are various theories about why this speech has proven so significant in the decades that followed, and the most common theory is that the first line, 'Four scor and seven years ago There is one myth that Lincoln was unprepared for the address and wrote it on the train on his way to the event.
This has been disproved in recent years, as he was an exceptionally organized person. Gettysburg was packed on the day of the Address and even the President could not find a room to himself. His speech was more than 14, words long and covered history, philosophy, and politics. After the Address, Lincoln was said to have been incredibly ill with smallpox.
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