Synopses & Reviews
In 1858, challenger Abraham Lincoln debated incumbent Stephen Douglas seven times in the race for a U.S. Senate seat from Illinois. More was at stake than slavery in those debates. In
Lincoln's Tragic Pragmatism, John Burt contends that the very legitimacy of democratic governance was on the line. In a United States stubbornly divided over ethical issues, the overarching question posed by the Lincoln-Douglas debates has not lost its urgency: Can a liberal political system be used to mediate moral disputes? And if it cannot, is violence inevitable?
As they campaigned against each other, both Lincoln and Douglas struggled with how to behave when an ethical conflict as profound as the one over slavery strained the commitment upon which democracy depends--namely, to rule by both consent and principle. This commitment is not easily met, because what conscience demands and what it is able to persuade others to consent to are not always the same. While Lincoln ultimately avoided a politics of morality detached from consent, and Douglas avoided a politics of expediency devoid of morality, neither found a way for liberalism to mediate the conflict of slavery.
That some disputes seemed to lie beyond the horizon of deal-making and persuasion and could be settled only by violence revealed democracy's limitations. Burt argues that the unresolvable ironies at the center of liberal politics led Lincoln to discover liberalism's tragic dimension--and ultimately led to war. Burt's conclusions demand reevaluations of Lincoln and Douglas, the Civil War, and democracy itself.
Review
John Burt writes with real penetration about the arguments that informed the rise to power of the greatest genius of American democracy. At once a detailed history of the crisis of the 1850s and a searching essay on the moral basis of politics, this book goes far to answer two questions: why did Lincoln believe that compromise was the heart of normal politics, and how did he come to define a moment when normal politics must end? E. C. Sands - Choice
Review
Lincoln's Tragic Pragmatism is a brilliant, ground-breaking book with fresh insights on almost every page. No one has analyzed the ironies and problems of liberal politics with the rigor, depth, and subtlety Burt displays here. He redeems (or recovers) Stephen Douglas's reputation as a writer, speaker, and political thinker, and, through his deep engagement with Lincoln's writings, Burt also makes the best case available for the significance of Lincoln as a literary figure. And Burt's conclusions about the limits of liberal politics, about democracy itself being the barrier to ending a pervasive evil, have deep resonances for nations today. Daniel Walker Howe, author of < i=""> What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848 <>
Review
Thoroughly informed by historical learning and philosophical sophistication, literary critic John Burt provides a detailed analysis of the Lincoln-Douglas debates in their original context, scrupulously fair to both parties. This is the most profound exploration of the enduring significance of Lincoln's rhetoric since Harry Jaffa's classic [Crisis of the House Divided] of 1959. A magnificent achievement. David Bromwich, author of < i=""> A Choice of Inheritance <>
Review
John Burt has written a work that every serious student of Lincoln will have to read...Burt refracts Lincoln through the philosophy of Kant, Rawls and contemporary liberal political theory. His is very much a Lincoln for our time. Steven B. Smith
Review
I'm making space on my overstuffed shelves for Lincoln's Tragic Pragmatism. This is a book I expect to be picking up and thumbing through for years to come. New York Times Book Review
Review
Burt treats the [Lincoln-Douglas] debates as being far more significant than an election contest between two candidates. The debates represent profound statements of political philosophy and speak to the continuing challenges the U.S. faces in resolving divisive moral conflicts. Jim Cullen - History News Network
Review
and#8220;Archivally rich and impressively executed. For the growing number of people intrigued by the District of Columbia as the site of a social revolution during the 1860s, and#8216;Civil War Washingtonand#8217; is a particularly engrossing venture.and#8221;and#8212;Stephen Berry, co-director of the Center for Virtual History at the University of Georgia and author of House of Abraham: Lincoln and the Todds, A Family Divided by War
Review
and#8220;This is a truly remarkable, one-of-a-kind, book. The product of decades of passionate work, A Lincoln Dialogue somehow feels as current as the newest social media. Interweaving powerful documents with eloquent commentary, the story here evokes the tumultuous years of Lincolnand#8217;s presidency in ways more conventional books simply cannot. The story unfolds before us with surprises at every turn, familiar events suddenly made unfamiliar by new voices and new angles of vision.and#8221;and#8212;Edward L. Ayers, president of the University of Richmond and author of In the Presence of Mine Enemies: Civil War in the Heart of America
Review
and#8220;There is no [other] work that provides the extensive and complete documents selected for this book. Rawleyand#8217;s unique approach will make a significant contribution to the existing literature.and#8221;and#8212;Charles M. Hubbard, executive director of the Abraham Lincoln Institute for the Study of Leadership and Public Policy at Lincoln Memorial University
Review
andquot;[A Lincoln Dialogue] is a unique look at Abraham Lincolnand#39;s presidency.andquot;andmdash;James E. Potter, Nebraska History
Synopsis
In their famous debates, Lincoln and Douglas struggled with how to behave when an ethical conflict like slavery strained democracy's commitment to rule by both consent and principle. What conscience demands and what it can persuade others to agree to are not always the same. Ultimately, this tragic limitation of liberalism led Lincoln to war.
Synopsis
While it is impossible to re-create the tumultuous Washington DC of the Civil War, Civil War Washington sets out to examine the nationand#8217;s capital during the Civil War along with the digital platform (civilwardc.org) that reimagines it during those turbulent years.
Among the many topics covered in the volume is the federal governmentand#8217;s experiment in compensated emancipation, which went into effect when all of the capitaland#8217;s slaves were freed in April 1862. Another essay explores the cityand#8217;s place as a major center of military hospitals, patients, and medical administration. Other contributors reflect on literature and the war, particularly on the poetry published in hospital newspapers and Walt Whitmanand#8217;s formative experiences with the city and its wounded.
The digital project associated with this book offers a virtual examination of the nationand#8217;s capital from multiple perspectives. Through a collection of datasets, visual works, texts, and maps, the digital project offers a case study of the social, political, cultural, and scientific transitions provoked or accelerated by the Civil War. The book also provides insights into the complex and ever-shifting nature of ongoing digital projects while encouraging others to develop their own interpretations and participate in the larger endeavor of digital history.
Synopsis
The words of Abraham Lincoln have been immortalized in speeches and enshrined in policies and practices, and none of those words, spoken or written, has gone unnoticed or wanted for a response. It is this broader contextand#8212;the wider conversation about Lincolnand#8217;s wordsand#8212;that this book discusses. The final project of James A. Rawley, a preeminent historian of the Civil War era,
A Lincoln Dialogue cross-examines Lincolnand#8217;s major statements, papers, and initiatives in light of the comments and criticism of his supporters and detractors.and#160;
and#160;Drawn from letters and newspapers, pamphlets and reports, these statements and responses constitute a unique documentary examination of Abraham Lincolnand#8217;s presidency. Rawleyand#8217;s careful selection and his judicious interweaving of historical analysis and background invite us into the dialogue and allow us to hear the voices of American history in the making.
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About the Author
James A. Rawley (1916and#8211;2005) was the Carol Adolph Happold Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Nebraskaand#8211;Lincoln. His many books include The Transatlantic Slave Trade: A History, revised edition (Nebraska, 2009), and Abraham Lincoln and a Nation Worth Fighting For (Nebraska, 2003). William G. Thomas is the John and Catherine Angle Chair in the Humanities and a professor of history at the University of Nebraskaand#8211;Lincoln. He is the author of several books, including The Iron Way: Railroads, the Civil War, and the Making of Modern America.