Definition: Use of pronouns to refer to a deity.
Example: "...who has watched over and protected our beloved country from its infancy to the present hour to continue His gracious benedictions upon us." -James Polk
Graph:
Conlusions: Usage of pronouns when refering to a deity seems to be fairly consistent over the whole American history. However, there was a period between 1901 and 1917 when no inaugural speeches included pronouns referring to God.
Definition: The use of the actual word “God.”
Example: "God"
Count: 91
Percentage: 55%
Graph:
Conlusions: This chart demonstrates one of the most interesting trends found in our research. In the early years of the American Republic, there were absolutely no examples of a president using the word “God” in his inaugural address. The first such instance occurred in James Monroe’s 1821 address. Following this instance, the word “God” was not used again until Franklin Pierce’s address in 1853. The term’s usage began to increase in inaugural speeches in the mid twentieth century, just as the Cold War was reaching its height. This could be construed as a response to the state atheism of the Soviet Union.
Definition: The use of the actual word "Jesus."
Example: "Jesus"
Count: 1
Percentage: .6%
Graph:
Conlusions:This is graph seems to demonstrate the reluctance of presidents to be to overtly Christian in their inaugural addresses. Only William Henry Harrison in his 1841 address chose to use the name “Jesus” in his inaugural address. These results were surprising due to the lack of usage of this name even in the modern inaugural speeches. While many perceive the nation to have increased in its Christian rhetoric since the 1980’s, no modern president has used the name of “Jesus” in his inaugural address.
Definition: A poetic reference is an allusion to a deity which uses artistic language.
Example:“And may that Being who is supreme over all,the Patron of Order, the Fountain of Justice, and the Protector in all ages of the world of virtuous liberty, continue His blessing upon this nation and its Government and give it all possible success and duration consistent with the ends of His providence.”-John Adams
Count: 33
Percentage: 20%
Graph:
Conlusions:Our research showed slightly higher usage of poetic language to refer to a deity in the early years of the American Republic. These types of references begin to decline in the mid nineteenth century and continue to decline to the modern day.
Definition: A tittle would constitute any direct reference to a deity which does not explicitly use the name “God” or “Jesus” but is not poetic either. It is simply another name for “God.”
Example:“Providence” –William McKinley
Count: 40
Percentage: 24%
Graph:
Conlusions:These types of references have been generally consistent over the course of American history. With the exception of a slight decline in the modern era.