What the author is SAYING The Gettysburg Address What the author is DOING

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1 Directions: 1. Dissect the SAT prompt and write the CLAIM on the top of this page. 2. Closely read and analyze the text. On the left, write notes on what the author is saying, that is the main ideas. On the right side, take notes on what the author is doing, that is what persuasive devices are used and why they are used (effect). What the author is SAYING The Gettysburg Address What the author is DOING 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 so 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.

2 The NEW SAT Essay Prompt Dissection The Gettysburg Address The Prompt Dissect the Prompt Write an essay in which you explain how Abraham Lincoln builds an argument to persuade his audience to honor the Union dead and remind listeners of the purpose of the soldiers sacrifice: equality, freedom, and national unity. Your essay should not explain whether you agree with Lincoln s claims, but rather explain how Lincoln builds an argument to persuade his audience. Write an essay in which you explain how Abraham Lincoln builds an argument to persuade his audience to honor the Union dead and remind listeners of the purpose of the soldiers sacrifice: equality, freedom, and national unity. Your essay should not explain whether you agree with Lincoln s claims, but rather explain how Lincoln builds an argument to persuade his audience. Claim Statement Analysis Task

3 The NEW SAT Essay Example for the Gettysburg Address President Abraham Lincoln in his Gettysburg Address honors Union soldiers who lost their lives in the war and dedicates a part of the battlefield in memory of their sacrifices. Lincoln s purpose is to not only honor the men that lost their lives at the Battle of Gettysburg, but unite and remind the nation of the principles America was founded upon. He adopts a somber tone in order to not only emphasize the gravity of the occasion, but to help unite a nation divided against itself. Lincoln begins his speech by alluding to the Declaration of Independence and planting the notion of unity in the minds of his audience. His ingenious and now celebrated opening of four score and seven years ago is a direct reference to 1776-and an allusion to a time in which the country fought for independence and persevered in the face of crippling circumstances. Lincoln uses this emotionally charged opening and the historical allusion in order to ground his audience in a common event, thus creating a sense of unity in a divided country, which is also reinforced through Lincoln s use of our fathers and all men. Lincoln then uses four superbly crafted sentences to articulate the purpose of his address and in doing so is able to manipulate the emotions of an audience drained and weary from war. The lead sentence in this section ultimately poses a question for America: can it long endure and adhere to the principles it was conceived and so dedicated to? Lincoln is in Gettysburg to dedicate a portion of the battlefield to the Union soldiers who gave their lives so that the nation might live. This use of pathos contributes to the somber, almost reverent, tone of the address and reminds the audience of the underlying purpose of the sacrifice - to unify a nation conceived in Liberty. After appealing to the audience s emotions and reiterating his purpose for being in Gettysburg that March day, Lincoln expounds upon the sacrifices made by the soldiers and again reminds the audience to hold steady to the cause. This

4 crescendo of a closing relies heavily on both anaphora (repetition) and antithesis (use of opposites) in order to emphasize the importance of this devotion. Through phrases like we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow and of the people, by the people, for the people Lincoln is able to again create a sense of unity with the repetition of we and people, but even more so create a cadence in his speech that reinforces that sense of unity. The same holds true with his use of antithesis. Phrases like living and dead and add or detract highlight the extremes of the war and mimics the divide between the North and South. The use of both anaphora and antithesis aids Lincoln in encouraging his audience to take increased devotion to that cause. Sixteenth president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, in his Gettysburg Address praises and honors the sacrifices of the soldiers who gave their lives and encourages the country to continue to stay devoted to the war cause. Through the use of allusion, pathos, anaphora, and antithesis Lincoln is able to skillfully knead the war weary minds of not only his Pennsylvanian audience, but the minds of a nation in peril. Though not a rallying cry, Lincoln s poignant address reminded the nation that the war was based on principles-those of equality, freedom, and justice. Without this reverent reminder a young nation conceived and so dedicated in liberty may have perished.

5 The NEW SAT Essay Template Intro Paragraph Template: Speaker, Occasion, & Subject 1) (Writer s Credentials), (writer s first and last name), in his/her (type of text), (title of text), (strong verb), (writer s subject). Purpose 2)(Writer s last name) s purpose is to (what the writer does in the text/their CLAIM). Persuasive Elements/Devices 3) He/she uses (list the MAIN persuasive elements or devices used) in order to (verb phrase describing what the writer wants reader to do/think) in his/her (intended audience). Body Paragraphs Template (work chronologically through the text) x number of sections 1) Sentence one: Identify section of text & main idea of section (Writer s last name) (transition word) his/her (type of text) by (strong verb) that (main idea of that section). 2) Sentence two: Conveys the writer s support for the main idea by identifying and providing a specific example for one persuasive strategy used by the writer. (Repeat if you want to discuss more than one persuasive strategy) 3) Sentence three: Explains how the persuasive strategies you discussed in the previous sentences help the writer achieve his purpose by using and in order to statement. 4) Sentence four: Identifies the effect of the writer s use of these persuasive strategies on the audience. Conclusion Template: 1) Sentence one: Briefly restate your main argument (Writer s Credentials), (writer s first and last name), in his/her (type of text), (title of text), (strong verb), (writer s subject) in order to (purpose) (effect on audience). 2) Sentence two: How the persuasive choices of the author influence the delivery of the message. (Writer s last name) use of (persuasive strategies) allows him/her to (adverb)(strong verb) (the message/purpose). 3)Sentence three: Why it matters/real world indications/underlying message.