Kimberly Hinojosa Ms. Lehmann English 1-3 2 October 2019 Quindlen vs Lincoln: Equality, Unity, and Patriotism in America Are equality, unity, and patriotism important to you? Anna Quindlen and Abraham Lincoln both thought they were crucial to the success of our nation. This essay will compare and contrast the way Quindlen and Lincoln discuss equality, unity, and patriotism in their works “A Quilt of a Country” and the “Gettysburg Address.” The first point to consider is equality. Quindlen and Lincoln both talk about equality. Both authors agree that equality is worth striving for even though we don’t have it yet. Quindlen explains that our nation has held onto the value of equality since its creation. She writes, “America...is held together by the notion that all men are created equal” (Quindlen 3). Here, Quindlen highlights the value of equality, not only as something we should fight for, but also as a value that has held our nation together. Although both authors value equality, Quindlen points to cultural inequalities while Lincoln faced the much more severe slavery issues of his time. Lincoln, like Quindlen, saw the inequalities in the way people in our country are treated, but he fought a civil war to free slaves. In his speech, he says, “We here highly resolve that... this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom” (Lincoln 28). Lincoln wanted equality to keep our nation together, but he didn’t see the fruits of his labor. Quindlen and Lincoln both recognized the value of equality, but they saw it in different ways. Both recognized its potential and pitfalls as a national value, and both argued that it is something the United States needs to continue to work for, just like unity. Lincoln and Quindlen both fought for equality but knew the only way to reach it was through the unity of the nation. Quindlen fought for equality, but her war was with waring cultures; she strongly believed that our differences are what brought us together. She writes, “Of all the nations in the world, the United States was built in nobody’s image... That’s because it was built of bits and pieces that seem discordant like... crazy quilts... That is the ideal” (Quindlen 3). Quindlen thinks that even though we have so many differences, in religion, color, gender, and so on, we are all intertwined like a quilt, making it so that we create something almost impossible: a nation of freedom. While they both believe that unity was crucial, Quindlen’s focus was on uniting America’s many cultures, and Lincoln’s was more towards uniting our nation politically. Lincoln fought a war for equality, but it was also to reunite the states, because he believed that the United States was something worth saving. Lincoln says, “That this government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish on this earth” (Lincoln 28). Lincoln was determined to fight for this government, this ideal of a nation, because he believed that it had something worth keeping. When the south tried to leave the union, he fought back, eventually reuniting the states. All of this not only ended slavery but kept this government intact. Quindlen fought for equality between cultures, Lincoln fought for slaves’ freedom. While their problems were different, the goal was the same: equality for all. And the only way to reach that goal was through uniting this nation’s proud patriots. Both Lincoln and Quindlen agree that patriotism is having pride in America, flaws and all. They also see importance of national pride in keeping the country united. Quindlen says patriotism means having pride in this large, extremely diverse country of ours, that to some seems impossible, and yet exists and works. Quindlen says, “But patriotism is partly taking pride in this unlikely ability to throw all of us together in a country that across its length and breadth is as different as a dozen countries and still call it by one name” (Quindlen 6). Quindlen recognizes that patriotism requires U.S. citizens to be proud that we are diverse but united. Lincoln was proud of America, too, but what he needed form citizens was devotion. Following the battle of Gettysburg, Lincoln said, “We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that this nation might live” (Lincoln 27). Lincoln sees patriotism as being willing to sacrifice for your country. In both cases, patriotism was necessary for unity. Quindlen’s essay “A Quilt of a Country” and Lincoln’s speech the “Gettysburg Address” address the topics of equality, unity, and patriotism in ways that are similar and different. Both authors saw equality as an important ideal, but their struggles to attain it were different. Each of the authors wanted unity for different reasons. Quindlen and Lincoln are both patriots, but they show their loyalty to America in their own ways. So, considering all of this, what do you think the role of equality, unity, and patriotism is in the U.S.?
Works Cited
Lincoln, Abraham. “Gettysburg Address.” Collections,Edited by Kylene Beers, Martha Hougen, Carol Jaga, William L. Mcbride, Erick Palmer, & Lydia Stack, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017, pp 27-28.
Quindlen, Anna. “A Quilt of a Country.” Collections, Edited by Kylene Beers, Martha Hougen, Carol Jaga, William L. Mcbride, Erick Palmer, & Lydia Stack, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017, pp 3-6.
Compare and Contrast Reflection
Please answer all questions in complete, grammatically correct sentences.
1. Explain the process you went through to write this paper. Please be specific. We read about Quindlen and Lincoln, we took notes, then we put it into essay, had it revised, and corrected it.
2. What qualifies this paper as a compare and contrast essay? What are the requirements for this genre and how did you meet them? These two story’s make it into a compare and contrast because they compare how Quindlen wanted unity and what she thought about it. Lincoln also wanted unity and we talked about what he thought about unity. Also how they both fought to get unity, patriotism, and equality. We compared and contrasted how they fought/felt about it.
3. Tell me about one challenge you faced writing this paper and how you overcame it. Probably reversing the essay was one of the more difficult ones that got me but ms Lehman helped me and that’s how I overcame it.