Question

document 3: the gettysburg address source: lincoln gave this short speech in a ceremony dedicating the cemetery in gettysburg, pennsylvania on november 19, 1863. the union forces had successfully defeated a confederate invasion at this battle (in july 1863), but many thousands of soldiers had lost their lives. text four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and dedicated, can long endure. we are met on a great battle - field of that war. we have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. it is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. but, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. 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 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. reactions, questions, connections below stop & jot question what past event does lincoln refer to when he says “four score and seven years ago”? what does lincoln mean by “a new birth of freedom” (second to last line) what might be lincoln’s reasons for emphasizing this purpose of the war?

Explanation:

To answer these questions, we analyze the Gettysburg Address:

1. What past event does Lincoln refer to with “four score and seven years ago”?

• A “score” is 20 years, so 4 score = \( 4 \times 20 = 80 \) years, plus 7 years = 87 years.
• In 1863 (when Lincoln gave the speech), 87 years prior was 1776.
• This refers to the founding of the United States (the Declaration of Independence, which established the nation “conceived in Liberty”).

2. What does Lincoln mean by “a new birth of freedom” (second to last line)?

• The Civil War tested whether the nation “conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal” could endure.
• The war was a struggle over slavery and the nation’s identity. Lincoln means the nation will be reborn with a renewed commitment to freedom and equality—ensuring the ideals of the Declaration (equality, liberty) are upheld, especially by ending slavery and preserving a government “of the people, by the people, for the people.”

3. What might be Lincoln’s reasons for emphasizing the war’s purpose?

• Honor the dead: The soldiers died for the nation’s ideals; emphasizing the war’s purpose (preserving liberty/equality) ensures their sacrifice was not in vain.
• Unify the nation: Remind the living of the nation’s founding principles to inspire them to finish the war and rebuild a just nation.
• Reaffirm the nation’s mission: The war is not just about victory, but about fulfilling the Declaration’s promise of equality—creating a “new birth of freedom” so the nation “shall not perish from the earth.”

Answer:

s:

1. “Four score and seven years ago” refers to 1776, the year the United States declared independence (founding of the nation).
2. “A new birth of freedom” means the nation will be reborn with a renewed commitment to liberty and equality, ensuring the ideals of the Declaration of Independence are upheld (especially ending slavery and preserving a democratic government).
3. Lincoln emphasizes the war’s purpose to honor the dead, unify the nation, and reaffirm the nation’s mission to fulfill its founding ideals of liberty and equality.