Question

In the second sentence of his address in Gettysburg Speach, Lincoln repeats the word conceived. What is the meaning of conceive as it is used in this speech?

Answer 1

Lincoln harkens back to the Declaration of Independence. The founding fathers conceived: had the idea;

all men are created equal, entitled to Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness.

Slavery flew in the face of that concept/idea. Lincoln was reinforcing it was time to end the slavery vs. freedom for all mankind addressed in the Declaration of Independence. The bloody civil war must end with return to a United States, offering freedom/rights to all.

Step-by-step explanation:

Gettysburg Address:

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.