Summary: Legend has it that Lincoln wrote this electrifying address only on the train ride over to Gettysburg. Whether or not this is true, his dedication of the cemetery was one of his greatest moments. Lincoln champions the rights of man, equating the war to not only a struggle to maintain the nation's union, but a fight for democracy and freedom. In effect, with a few words he turns this bloody and brutal battle into a sacred struggle to defend the shining light of the world.
By canonizing the dead and consecrating the ground on which countless bloodies bodies were strewn, he created a sense of unity, one that permeated the crowd and rallied the North. He uses the pronoun "we" in his speech to further this feeling of unity, this understanding that this country is bound together. This country must succeed or hope is lost for democracy and this nations joint future.
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