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Reviews
Lincoln Revisited
New Insights from the Lincoln Forum
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Edited by John Y. Simon, Harold Holzer, and Dawn Vogel
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| (New York: Fordham University Press, 2007. Pp. vii, 369. Illustrations, notes. $27.95.) |
| This collection of essays was originally presented at the annual Lincoln Forum symposium in Gettysburg between 2003 and 2005. Although hardly any aspect of Lincoln's life has been left unstudied, these essays show that room remains for interpretation and reassessment. The range of topics is broad, but the essays generally concern the mature Lincoln of the 1850s and the presidency. Readers will find in these selections two directions that have interested scholars in recent years: first, the role of Lincoln's religious thinking in shaping his understanding of the nation and the crises it faced; second, the qualities of Lincoln's leadership, which stemmed naturally from his sensitivity to human behavior and motivation. |
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Three essays attend to the junction of Lincoln's religious and political ideas. Analyzing the 1854 Peoria Address, Joseph R. Fornieri discusses what he calls Lincoln's "biblical republicanism," or "the mutual influence and philosophic harmony between these traditions," (p. 5) which, Fornieri argues, undergirded Lincoln's conviction that political trends in the 1850s indicated a rejection of the self-evident truth of equality. Lucas E. Morel argues that Lincoln believed religion was meant to "fulfill a divine purpose between an individual and God" (p. 27). The Second Inaugural Address, in particular, revealed Lincoln's recognition that, as he put it, "there has been a difference of purpose between the Almighty and them" and that Americans needed to reconstruct a Union true to its principles (p. 43). Jean Baker argues that, for both Abraham and Mary Lincoln, personal experiences shaped their religious ideas: the unchurched war president "intensified his belief in God's omnipotence" while Mary, "punished in her cost-benefit acknowledgment of sins," moved from conventional Protestantism to spiritualism (pp. 106, 113). In a fourth essay, Ronald C. White Jr. also necessarily attends to the influence of Lincoln's religious ideas upon the Second Inaugural Address. |
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Lincoln receives high marks from scholars assessing the character traits and actions that made him a successful war president. Analyzing the events of 1862, John F. Marszalek contrasts the decisive Lincoln with his commanding general, Henry W. Halleck. Geoffrey Perret compares Lincoln to Ulysses S. Grant, Douglas MacArthur, and John F. Kennedy. Craig L. Symonds argues that, in naval affairs, Lincoln gained mastery and effectively used his ability to judge men's character. William Lee Miller looks at the moral underpinnings of Lincoln's decision not to pardon a slave trader. Frank J. Williams compares President Lincoln's record on civil liberties with the treatment of civil liberties since September 11, 2001. He argues that, while "the verdict of history is that Lincoln's use of power did not constitute abuse," "the full impact of Lincoln's legacy on President Bush is yet to be realized" (pp. 252, 278). In foreign affairs, writes William C. Harris, Lincoln skillfully avoided war with Great Britain and France in the winter of 1864–1865. Jean Edward Smith compares the Lincoln and Grant administrations, finding that Grant's reputation has suffered from past negative interpretations of Reconstruction but that it will improve as "Reconstruction is being reevaluated" (pp. 176, 177, 180). |
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Some scholars explore less-studied topics: John Y. Simon takes on Lincoln's perspective on popular sovereignty and the Mormons in Utah in 1858; Matthew Pinsker looks at the Soldier's Home, Lincoln's summer refuge; Daniel Mark Epstein explores the possible influence of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass on Lincoln's writing; Garry Wills analyzes Henry Adams's postwar shift from disdain to admiration for Lincoln. Others revisit classic questions: Harold Holzer discusses Lincoln's Cooper Union address and the presidential campaign of 1860; Michael Vorenberg regards Lincoln's views on race; and Edward Steer Jr. writes on John Wilkes Booth's connections with Confederate agents. In some cases, the subjects presented here have counterparts in monographs, but together, these essays make a useful collection. |
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Matthew N. Vosmeier is associate professor of history at Hanover College in Hanover, Indiana.
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