"We Cannot Escape History": Lincoln and the Last Best Hope of EarthJames M. McPherson In "We Cannot Escape History" a remarkable group of top Lincoln and Civil War scholars come together to explore the meaning of Lincoln for the destiny of the United States. They focus on Lincoln's view of American history and on his legacy - for Americans and for the world. In the process they deepen the reader's understanding of and appreciation for the complexity of the problems Lincoln faced and for the genius of his leadership, which surmounted these obstacles and preserved the United States as one nation indivisible while purging it of slavery, which had marred the democratic and egalitarian promise of America from the beginning. The contributors develop themes including Lincoln's conception of the United States as the last best hope for the preservation of democratic government and a republican polity, his view of American history and its meaning, his international impact, Lincoln and slavery, Lincoln and the uses of political power, and Lincoln as commander-in-chief in time of war. |
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... John Rhodehamel , curator of American history at the Huntington , and to Thomas F. Schwartz , curator of the Lincoln Collecation at the Illinois State Historical Library , we are indebted not only for the inspiration provided by this ...
... John Rhodehamel , curator of American history at the Huntington , and to Thomas F. Schwartz , curator of the Lincoln Collecation at the Illinois State Historical Library , we are indebted not only for the inspiration provided by this ...
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... John Slidell from the British ship Trent , that " three fourths of the House [ of Commons ] will be glad to find an excuse for voting for the dismemberment of the Great Republic . " When Sir John Ramsden , a Tory member of the House ...
... John Slidell from the British ship Trent , that " three fourths of the House [ of Commons ] will be glad to find an excuse for voting for the dismemberment of the Great Republic . " When Sir John Ramsden , a Tory member of the House ...
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... John Bright , the great spokesman for expanded democracy , described America as " that free country and that free government [ which ] has had a prodigious influence upon freedom in Europe and in England " and was now fighting with ...
... John Bright , the great spokesman for expanded democracy , described America as " that free country and that free government [ which ] has had a prodigious influence upon freedom in Europe and in England " and was now fighting with ...
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... John Russell , who had pre- viously withheld sympathy from the Union because it did not act against slavery , now perversely pronounced the Emancipation Proclamation a vile encouragement to " acts of plunder , of incendiarism , and of ...
... John Russell , who had pre- viously withheld sympathy from the Union because it did not act against slavery , now perversely pronounced the Emancipation Proclamation a vile encouragement to " acts of plunder , of incendiarism , and of ...
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... John Slidell , telling him bluntly : " It is useless to make any appeal to the people of France . It may be to our interest to support you . There may be strong material and political reasons for a close alliance between us , but as ...
... John Slidell , telling him bluntly : " It is useless to make any appeal to the people of France . It may be to our interest to support you . There may be strong material and political reasons for a close alliance between us , but as ...
Contents
Lincoins History | 17 |
Lincolns Narrative of American Exceptionalism | 33 |
Emancipating the Republic Lincoln and the Means and Ends of Antislavery | 45 |
LINCOLNS LEADERSHIP | 61 |
Abraham Lincoln and Presidential Leadership | 63 |
The Civil War and the TwoParty System | 86 |
Avoid Saying Foolish Things The Legacy of Lincolns Impromptu Oratory | 105 |
LINCOLNS LEGACY | 125 |
What Is an American? Abraham Lincoln and Multiculturalism | 127 |
Abraham Lincoln Our EverPresent Contemporary | 139 |
The International Lincoln | 158 |
Contributors | 175 |
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Popular passages
Page 2 - Fellow-citizens, we cannot escape history. We of this Congress and this Administration will be remembered in spite of ourselves. No personal significance or insignificance can spare one or another of us. The fiery trial through which we pass will light us down, in honor or dishonor, to the latest generation.