A house divided against itself cannot stand." I believe this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved; I do not expect the house to fall; but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing, or all the other. Either the opponents of slavery will arrest the further spread of it and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in the course of ultimate extinction, or its advocates will push it forward till it shall become alike lawful in all the states, old as well as new, North as well as South.” -Abraham Lincoln, June 16, 1858, at the Illinois Republican convention

Question

A house divided against itself cannot stand." I believe this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved; I do not expect the house to fall; but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing, or all the other. Either the opponents of slavery will arrest the further spread of it and place it where the public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in the course of ultimate extinction, or its advocates will push it forward till it shall become alike lawful in all the states, old as well as new, North as well as South.” -Abraham Lincoln, June 16, 1858, at the Illinois Republican convention

Use the quote above and your knowledge from the lesson for this short answer question. Answer in at least 2 sentences.

How do you think this relates to the arguments about states' rights and slavery before the Civil War? Can you explain why some states wanted more rights, and how this connected to the issue of slavery?

Answer 1

This quote from Abraham Lincoln reflects the growing tensions over states' rights and slavery before the Civil War. Some states, particularly in the South, wanted the right to determine whether or not to allow slavery within their borders. This desire for states' rights was directly connected to the issue of slavery, as it allowed for the continuation and expansion of the institution in certain regions. Lincoln's warning about a house divided shows how the issue of slavery was causing a rift between the states and threatening the unity of the nation.