Abraham Lincoln:
A Man for All the People
A Ballad by Myra Cohn Livingston
Introduction: Myra Cohn Livingston was an award-winning poet who wrote many wonderful poems that we enjoy today. In this book, Livingston writes a narrative poem about the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. She uses a poetic form known as a ballad, to present biographical highlights from Lincoln's life. Ms. Livingston was the recipient of the NCTE Award for Excellence in Poetry in 1980. She died in 1996.
Abraham Lincoln: A Man for All the People
A man for all the people,
A man who stood up tall,
Abe Lincoln spoke of justice
And liberty for all.
Born in a log cabin
Work was what he knew,
Helped chop trees,
plant corn, split logs.
Abe just grew and grew.
Abe Lincoln spoke at Gettysburg.
He wrote a nation free
"Shall not perish from the earth."
Abe loved democracy.
Abe Lincoln was a strong man
True to the people's will.
Tall, like his marble statue,
He sits among us still.
A man for all the people,
A man who stood up tall.
Abe Lincoln honored justice
And liberty for all.
This ballad has 18 quatrains that make up the narrative poem.
I have included a sampling of them above.
Extension: As a Social Studies activity, have children use the poem to recreate a timeline of Lincoln's life.
Livingston, Myra Cohn. Ill. Samuel Byrd. 1993. Abraham Lincoln: A Man for All the People. New York: Holiday House.
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