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Reviews
| Lincoln Revisited, edited by John Y. Simon, Harold Holzer, and Dawn Vogel. New York: Fordham University Press, 2007. 369 pages. $27.95, cloth.
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| In the past few years, there has been a renaissance of interest in Abraham Lincoln. The number of books seems to have exponentially grown as the bicentennial of Lincoln's birth approaches. Lincoln Revisited, edited by John Y. Simon, Harold Holzer, and Dawn Vogel, is a collection of eighteen essays written by leading Lincoln scholars that presents much of what is new and emerging in the Lincoln literature. Originally presented at The Lincoln Forum in Gettysburg, the essays in this collection explore with fresh perspectives traditional questions, such as Lincoln's complex attitudes toward emancipation and race, and new questions, such as Lincoln's religious faith. Some of the essays are provocative. Some are subtle. All are excellent. |
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One of the traditional questions examined in the collection is the quality of Lincoln's leadership. John F. Marszalek contrasts Lincoln's judgment and decisiveness in 1862 with Henry W. Halleck's inability to bring matters to a conclusion. Jean Edward Smith, in a provocative essay, compares the public perceptions of Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant. She finds that Lincoln, vilified while in office, has been nearly deified by history, while Grant, nearly deified while President, has been almost vilified by history. Pursuing an unusual tack, Geoffrey Perret writes about the leadership of Lincoln, Grant, Douglas MacArthur, and John F. Kennedy, concluding that regardless of style and motivation, all comparisons of leadership in America begin with Lincoln. Craig L. Symonds, in a well-argued essay, examines Lincoln's leadership in how he managed his admirals, an often neglected perspective. |
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A second traditional question examined in the collection is Lincoln's attitude toward emancipation and race. William Lee Miller, using the case of a slave trader who appealed for a Presidential pardon, examines Lincoln's uncompromising moral opposition to slavery. Michael Vorenberg traces Lincoln's attitudes toward race, exposing the President's failure to see that not only blacks, but also whites required special education in order to create a multiracial society. Other essays exploring traditional themes in the Lincoln historiography include Harold Holzer's insightful discussion of how the Cooper Union speech and Mathew Brady's images of Lincoln were skillfully used during the Campaign of 1860. Ronald C. White, Jr. dissects metaphysically and rhetorically the Second Inaugural Address, arguing that it was Lincoln's greatest speech. Frank J. Williams, in an essay that will provoke strong comment, draws a parallel between Lincoln's handling of civil liberties during the Civil War with President George W. Bush's management of the same issues during the "War on Terrorism." William C. Harris provides a new perspective on Lincoln's skill in avoiding conflict with England and France after the election of 1864. In a fascinating and provocative article, Edward Steers, Jr. explores the connection between John Wilkes Booth's assassination of Lincoln and the Confederate government. |
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A number of the articles in the collection examine new questions. Joseph R. Fornieri provides a sophisticated exploration of Lincoln's political faith, linking democracy with Christianity. Lucas E. Morel also examines the intertwining roles of religion and politics. Morel argues that Lincoln believed that religion should inform politics by connecting people to the government. Jean Baker thoughtfully compares how Abraham and Mary Lincoln's ideas on religion changed over time. Baker argues that Mary Lincoln, who began as an orthodox Christian, moved outside the mainstream, while Abraham Lincoln began outside the mainstream and moved to an orthodox Christian view of God. Also exploring the relationship between religion and politics, John Y. Simon examines how Lincoln refrained from exploiting Stephen Douglas's vulnerability on the Mormon issue during the 1858 Debates, choosing to attack the evil of slavery rather than polygamy. Other new questions explored in this collection revolve around Lincoln's relationships with individuals. Matthew Pinsker provides a fascinating look at Lincoln's decision to live during the summer at the Soldiers' Home, which served not only his family's need for privacy, but also his need for unstructured interaction with the public. Daniel Mark Epstein speculates on how Lincoln and Walt Whitman influenced each other, arguing that Lincoln's speeches were influenced by Whitman's poetry and that Whitman's poetry was shaped by his observations of Lincoln. Garry Wills describes Henry Adams's long intellectual journey as coming to terms with Lincoln's greatness. |
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Lincoln Revisited offers an outstanding collection of recent scholarship, some of which breaks new ground and some of which provides new insights to familiar questions. The book can readily be used in upper level division college courses to introduce students to the study of Lincoln as well as to stimulate discussion on significant historiographic questions. |
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| Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville |
Stephen Hansen |
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