On the 150th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address, President Obama hand-wrote a short remark on the impact of the speech. Though the significance of the president taking the time to turn to pen and paper cannot be overlooked, it is also important to consider his gentle nod at Lincoln himself.
Obama has certainly drawn from Lincoln’s work in the past when writing his own speeches, and it is clear the two are linked in their use of poetic devices in their addresses. Without having to deliver a speech at Gettysburg itself, Obama pays homage not only with the humility of handwriting, but also the subtlety of rhyme and rhythm. Look only to the internal rhyme and beat of lines referencing how “Through cold war and world war, through industrial revolution and technological transformation, through movements for civil rights and women’s rights and workers rights and gay rights, we have” shared in the making of America.
This homage is all the more powerful because Obama is cognizant that “Lincoln’s words give us confidence that whatever trials await us, this nation and the freedoms we cherish can, and shall, prevail.” So, too, might the president hope that channeling Lincoln’s poetry might restore confidence in his successor.
Photo Credit: White House
© 2024 Harvard Political Review. All rights reserved.