- 1). Read the entirety of the address. It includes many words that have passed out of common usage in modern English, so even those who pride themselves on their linguistic specialties in the English language will have to look up a few words.
- 2). Go through the passage a second time, and identify important passages. Use historical information on both the early ideals espoused at the outbreak of the American Revolution, and the more practical debates surrounding the creation of the U.S. Constitution in the years after the provisional Articles of Confederation were found wanting, to help you identify these.
- 3). Examine these phrases in the context of the separation of church and state. Some useful questions to ask would include "How does Washington refer to divine entities in his address?", "Do these passages include any specific policy recommendations?", "What do these passages say on the relationship of government to the governed?", and "What does Washington suggest in relation to the conduct of members of government?"
- 4). Formulate more specific questions of your own, based on your answers to the general questions suggested above. Use the passages you marked as important but didn't specifically use in answering the above questions to try to answer the questions you formulated. Try reading the address a third time to see if any more passages become important in light of the questions you are now asking.
- 5). Write out your conclusions. Use the questions you asked to help formulate your thoughts, and be sure to use material from the address itself to explain how you came to the conclusions you did.
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