House Divided Speech

Content Warning: The source material and this guide reference the enslavement of Black Americans and the associated racism and prejudice.

A metaphor is a figurative comparison between two things (e.g., objects, actions, processes, etc.). A metaphor is a master figure (or trope) in that it includes many subordinate figures such as simile, personification, and hyperbole.

Lincoln resorts to metaphorical language at many points in “A House Divided.” For example, he directly compares the “legal combination” by which the Democrats have conspired to open the territories to slavery as “machinery” (426). He indirectly compares (simile) “squatter sovereignty” to temporary scaffolding or a mold used for an iron casting (429). Likewise, in an appeal for The Need for Moral Leadership, he indirectly compares the precautions taken by Douglas to the “patting and petting [of] a spirited horse” (430). Later, he compares Senator Douglas to a caged and toothless lion (433).

Metaphor is used in “A House Divided” to persuasively connect with the audience. “Machinery” suggests that the Democrats are using a tool to achieve their pro-slavery purpose as opposed to a genuine and honest use of the legal system.