Lincoln's 1st Inaugural Address: Great Speeches/Articles (but not the greatest photographs)

The art of a great ending

Lincoln delivering his 2nd inaugural address

When Lincoln first spoke at a political convention, his down home accent — even if it was the way most people spoke—was the source of ridicule. Instead of saying “chairman,” for example, he pronounced it “cheerman.” At times his clothes were ill fitting until he met Mary Todd Lincoln, the daughter of a wealthy banker. She saw a potential in him that few others did, and helped him fulfill it.

Lincoln was a great thinker and writer. Once people listened to what he was saying, rather than how he said it, he was embraced as the leader of the new Republican party.

Here is a draft of the close of Lincoln’s 1st Inaugural address by his soon to be Secretary of State, and his own revision. Re-writing the paragraph so that it has strong endings transforms the it from good to great.

Key points to remember:

• People tend to remember endings, so write them carefully

• Take care not to end a sentence on a word like “broken” — that’s what they’ll remember

• Appealing to “the better angels of our nature” is the perfect ending — uplifting encouragement

Seward’s draft for the closing:

I close. We are not, we must not be, aliens or enemies, but fellow-countrymen and brethren. Although passion has strained our bonds of affection too hardly, they must not, I am sure they will not, be broken. The mystic chords which, proceeding from so many battlefields and so many patriot graves, pass through all the hearts and all hearths in this broad continent of ours, will yet again harmonize in their ancient music when breathed upon by the guardian angel of the nation.

Lincoln’s closing, final version:

I am loath to close. We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battle-field and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.

See the full 1st Inaugural address here: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln%27s_First_Inaugural_Address