Question

In this section, you’ll evaluate various texts from different time periods, comparing and contrasting findings from one to another, identifying false statements and fallacious reasoning where present.

Now that you’ve read both documents, you notice there are similarities between Martin Luther King, Jr.'s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” and Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.

Read the excerpts:

“We have waited for more than 340 years for our constitutional and God-given rights.” (King)

“..that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom…” (Lincoln)

Which of the following themes is addressed in both pieces?
Question 7 options:

Freedom and equality are cornerstones of American democracy.


The Constitution must be eradicated as it's outdated and old.


War and conflict should be avoided at all costs.


War is a necessary part of the quest for equality.

Answer 1

Freedom and equality are cornerstones of American democracy.

Both Lincoln’s “new birth of freedom” and King’s reference to waiting “more than 340 years for our constitutional and God‑given rights” emphasize the nation’s obligation to realize liberty and equal rights. The other choices misrepresent the texts: neither calls for eradicating the Constitution, nor do they argue that war must always be avoided or is inherently necessary for equality.