Synopses & Reviews
Review
"Though based on the same basic transcripts that Lincoln and most subsequent scholars have used, Davis and Wilson have corrected the irregular paragraphing, arbitrary punctuation, and occasionally garbled transcriptions in the originals. The result is a definitive new edition that is far more readable and almost certainly more reliable."--The New York Review of Books
"One of the highlight Lincoln publications. . . . The first critical edition, parsing what the candidates actually said, regardless of the source, and clarifying and extending the speakers' words by correcting the originals' irregular paragraphing, arbitrary punctuation, and occasionally confused transcriptions."--American Heritage
Review
“Davis and Wilson have crafted a clear, unadulterated presentation on the debates by offering them in their entirety. . . . Recommended.”--Choice "The words spoken over the course of these debates deserve every ounce of the critical attention that Davis and Wilson have lavished on them. . . . The most reliable text of the debates now available."--The Journal of Southern History
Review
"[Davis and Wilson] bring to light a multitude of linguistic, rhetorical, and contextual factors that influenced the formation of an authoritative printed text."--Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association “This edition of the Abraham Lincoln—Stephen Douglas debates surpasses all previous editions and establishes the standard text for the foreseeable future. . . . Davis and Wilson’s edition is accessible and user-friendly.”--The Journal of American History
Synopsis
While the debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas are undoubtedly the most celebrated in American history, they may also be the most consequential as well. For the issues so fiercely debated in 1858 were about various interrelated aspects of one momentous, nation-threatening issue: slavery. The contest between Lincoln and Douglas became a testing ground for the viability of conflicting ideals in a nation deeply divided. One of the most colorful and engaging episodes in American history, this series of debates is of enduring interest as an illuminating instance of the ever-recurring dilemma of self-government: what happens when the guiding principle of democracy, "popular sovereignty," confronts a principled stand against a "moral, social, and political evil"? The tragic answer in this case came three years later: civil war.
Important as they are, the Lincoln-Douglas debates have long since ceased to be self-explanatory. This edition is the first to provide a text founded on all known records, rather than following one or another of the partisan and sometimes widely-varying newspaper accounts. Meticulously edited and annotated, it provides numerous aids to help the modern reader understand the debates, including extensive introductory material, commentary, and a glossary. The fullest and most dependable edition of the Lincoln-Douglas debates ever prepared, this edition brings readers as close as possible to the original words of these two remarkable men.
Synopsis
The most complete record ever assembled of the landmark Lincoln-Douglas debates, published on their 150th anniversary
About the Author
Rodney O. Davis and Douglas L. Wilson are codirectors of the Lincoln Studies Center at Knox College, in Galesburg, Illinois, and the coeditors of Herndon's Lincoln and Herndon's Informants.