Question

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.
abraham lincoln, springfield, illinois, june 17, 1858
i deny the right of congress to force a slaveholding state upon an unwilling people. i deny their right to force a free state upon an unwilling people... the great principle is the right of every community to judge and decide for itself whether a thing is right or wrong.
stephen douglas, springfield, illinois, june 17, 1858
based on the excerpts, how did abraham lincoln’s and stephen douglas’s views differ regarding the government’s role in slavery in 1858?
a. lincoln believed that the states should remain equally divided as slave or free, while douglas thought that congress should ultimately decide for each state.
b. lincoln believed that slavery should be limited to the states where it already existed, while douglas thought it should spread without limits.
c. lincoln believed that the fate of slavery should be determined for the entire nation, while douglas thought the issue should be left to the states.
d. lincoln believed that all slaves should be free, while douglas thought that only slaves in newly admitted states should be freed.

Explanation:

Lincoln's view was that the government couldn't endure permanently half - slave and half - free. He believed in a unified stance on slavery. Douglas, on the other hand, supported the idea of popular sovereignty. In Lincoln's excerpt, he emphasizes that the government's fate regarding slavery (either all slave or all free) would be determined as a whole for the nation. Douglas' view in his excerpt is about the right of each community (state) to decide for itself.

Answer:

C. Lincoln believed that the fate of slavery should be determined for the entire nation, while Douglas thought the issue should be left to the states.