“Cruel; merciful; peace-loving; a fighter; despising Negroes and letting them fight and vote; protecting slavery and freeing slaves.†Abraham Lincoln was; W. E. B. Du Bois declared; “big enough to be inconsistent.†Big enough; indeed; for every generation to have its own Lincoln—unifier or emancipator; egalitarian or racist. In an effort to reconcile these views; and to offer a more complex and nuanced account of a figure so central to American history; this book focuses on the most controversial aspect of Lincoln’s thought and politics—his attitudes and actions regarding slavery and race. Drawing attention to the limitations of Lincoln’s judgment and policies without denying his magnitude; the book provides the most comprehensive and even-handed account available of Lincoln’s contradictory treatment of black Americans in matters of slavery in the South and basic civil rights in the North. George Fredrickson shows how Lincoln’s antislavery convictions; however genuine and strong; were held in check by an equally strong commitment to the rights of the states and the limitations of federal power. He explores how Lincoln’s beliefs about racial equality in civil rights; stirred and strengthened by the African American contribution to the northern war effort; were countered by his conservative constitutional philosophy; which left this matter to the states. The Lincoln who emerges from these pages is far more comprehensible and credible in his inconsistencies; and in the abiding beliefs and evolving principles from which they arose. Deeply principled but nonetheless flawed; all-too-human yet undeniably heroic; he is a Lincoln for all generations.
#609075 in Books Belknap Press 2005-04-30 2005-04-04Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.25 x .88 x 6.13l; .90 #File Name: 0674017625368 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy NaomiRead this for my Theories and Methods class at Harvard. This book is revolutionary.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Four StarsBy DaveHwriterThis author always delivers a digestible message.2 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Lifting the imposed veil on the early Christian ChurchBy Rev. David PriceAlmost 2000 years ago the Christian church was in its founding stage. The people had experienced Jesus. After his execution by the Romans; people experienced Him in a variety of ways. The church formed from a variety of roots including the Jewish community and its sub-groups including;actual followers of Jesus (the Way); the Essenes (dead sea scrolls); temple gentiles (non-Jews but followers); Jews displaced by the Temple destruction; Hellenistic Spiritualists; followers of John the Baptist and Roman citizens. They mainly came from poor; dispossessed people with poor education. However there were also highly educated people who were able to write and carry on the experiences as the original observers died due to age and some persecution by the state supported Caesar worship.There were those whose different experiences with Jesus and their understanding collided with others. Some of this early salade of belief wanted to have a literal interpretation of their memory while others; influenced by the mythology tradition of religion; from a variety of sources preferred a more spiritual interpretation from myth.Hellenistic spiritual followers tended to be better educated and abstract in their thinking and embraced an equality of women and men in leadership while others with less education often craved and followed a literal interpretation of the memory. There was an almost 300 year struggle between these two basic streams of interpretation. The male centered; literalist group won out due to the support of Constantine; this group became the state church; the Roman Catholic Church. Quickly; the writings of the other group were destroyed; their members scattered and in some cases murdered. The dominant group had already branded the mythos group as heretic and labelled them Gnostic.Their beliefs and understanding was then defined only by those who mocked them until 1945 when a cache of their early writings were found in Egypt. This library was translated from Coptic into English and published in English in 1977. Dr. King lifts the veil in this work and takes us on a journey of deeper understanding allowing the Gnostics to speak for themselves.If you are interested in spirituality; myth and co-equal female-male spiritual leadership as well as history; this book is for you. It will shine a light on a broader foundation of Christian understanding and practice. It is worth the read and then a critical reflection. We now live in an age of Spirit. " What is Gnosticism" will speak greatly into this new world that has moved beyond correct belief to one of post-modern spiritual understanding.
