- Joined
- Jul 9, 2005
- Location
- Galena, Illinois 61036 U.S.A.
Most all of us will admit that Abraham Lincoln had a way with words, no matter what one may think of him as a person or a president or a leader or an enemy.
His most praised words, for their eloquence, are the Gettysburg Address and the 2nd Inaugural speech - there have been several books devoted entirely to just these.
There have also been several collections of quotes, with or without context, usually condensed into one or two sentence 'sound bites'.
This thread is dedicated to any of those of Lincoln's words/phrases which you might have found impressive or persuasive or in whatever way you found that they impressed you as somehow significant to you.
It may be in a simple thing, like his response to Thomas Swan's request for troops: "They can not fly to either place. Let us be vigilant but keep cool." or to those seeking an interview: "It is a matter of no importance to me whether I spend my time with half a dozen of you or with the whole of you, but it is of importance to you. Therefore when you come in, don't stay long."
So if there is something that Lincoln said or wrote that affected you in some important way, please post it here, and give the context/circumstances in which those words were issued.
My initial entry:
"We can succeed only by concert. It is not "Can any of us imagine better?" but "Can we all do better?" Object whatsoever is possible, still the question recurs, "Can we do better?" The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country. Fellow-citizens, we can not escape history. We of this Congress and this Administration will be remembered in spite of ourselves. No personal significance or insignificance can spare one or another of us. The fiery trial through which we pass will light us down in honor or dishonor to the latest generation. We say we are for the Union. The world will not forget that we say this. We know how to save the Union. The world knows we do know how to save it. We, even we here, hold the power and bear the responsibility. In giving freedom to the slave we assure freedom to the free--honorable alike in what we give and what we preserve. We shall nobly save or meanly lose the last best hope of earth. Other means may succeed; this could not fail. The way is plain, peaceful, generous, just--a way which if followed the world will forever applaud and God must forever bless."
- From Lincoln's State of the Union Address (Dec. 1, 1862) in which he makes the case for the Emancipation Proclamation.
His most praised words, for their eloquence, are the Gettysburg Address and the 2nd Inaugural speech - there have been several books devoted entirely to just these.
There have also been several collections of quotes, with or without context, usually condensed into one or two sentence 'sound bites'.
This thread is dedicated to any of those of Lincoln's words/phrases which you might have found impressive or persuasive or in whatever way you found that they impressed you as somehow significant to you.
It may be in a simple thing, like his response to Thomas Swan's request for troops: "They can not fly to either place. Let us be vigilant but keep cool." or to those seeking an interview: "It is a matter of no importance to me whether I spend my time with half a dozen of you or with the whole of you, but it is of importance to you. Therefore when you come in, don't stay long."
So if there is something that Lincoln said or wrote that affected you in some important way, please post it here, and give the context/circumstances in which those words were issued.
My initial entry:
"We can succeed only by concert. It is not "Can any of us imagine better?" but "Can we all do better?" Object whatsoever is possible, still the question recurs, "Can we do better?" The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country. Fellow-citizens, we can not escape history. We of this Congress and this Administration will be remembered in spite of ourselves. No personal significance or insignificance can spare one or another of us. The fiery trial through which we pass will light us down in honor or dishonor to the latest generation. We say we are for the Union. The world will not forget that we say this. We know how to save the Union. The world knows we do know how to save it. We, even we here, hold the power and bear the responsibility. In giving freedom to the slave we assure freedom to the free--honorable alike in what we give and what we preserve. We shall nobly save or meanly lose the last best hope of earth. Other means may succeed; this could not fail. The way is plain, peaceful, generous, just--a way which if followed the world will forever applaud and God must forever bless."
- From Lincoln's State of the Union Address (Dec. 1, 1862) in which he makes the case for the Emancipation Proclamation.
Bringing the