The 271 words of the Gettysburg address were never intended to be the sublime expression of the day. That was reserved for the evening address, with starched shirts, black ties and cummerbunds – if they had such things in those days – and the speech-maker Edward Everett delivered what was thought of as the genuine Gettysburg address. It had 13,607 words and was two hours long. But somehow what Lincoln wrote (but not on the back of an envelope) proved enduring. People have it by heart; it sounds like spontaneous utterance. But it is not.
To be an expert in spontaneity requires practice. It is not, as it seems, a thing of the moment. It relies on antecedents and habitual turns of phrase. Given this approach to memorable speeches of the past, a newcomer to the production of spontaneity may well succeed in overcoming the trip-wires and man-traps that ensnare innocent performers.
We have to notice the close resemblance of seeming spontaneity to long-windedness. A learner is exhaustive. He feels compelled to leave nothing out. An exhaustive style is inevitably a repetitive style. This takes time. It can be turned to advantage by somebody who knows what he is about. Repetitiveness engenders anticipation. The final point in a rule of three fulfils expectation and gains emphasis.
Long-winded performances guarantee – when exceptional capability is lacking – hum-drum vocabulary. It is too much to expect to have a Spenser, a Tennyson or a Cranmer in an average congregation. One might as well expect an El Greco to give a hand with interior decorations.
We should be modest in our sallies into spontaneity. We are unlikely to have outstanding gifts at our command. But what we do have and what we ought to press into service at least occasionally are classics of public prayer – the general thanksgiving, the litany, the prayer for all conditions of men, and the collects. Given that, our sincerity will do the rest. Intercessions will be what they should be.
ATHEISM
‘An atheist is a man who has no invisible means of support. – John Buchan.
‘Puritanism. The haunting fear that someone, somewhere may be happy.’ – H.L. Mencken
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