Abraham Lincoln and the Second American Revolution by McPherson - Essay Example

Abraham Lincoln and the Second American Revolution James M. McPherson is a renowned American historian and is known for his in-depth and accurate analysis of complex matters after considering all kinds of perspectives. In his 1991 book Abraham Lincoln and the Second American Revolution, McPherson has provided some profound and contemplative essays that narrate the various aspects of the American President Abraham Lincoln and the war that has been explored in depth. This book stands as a significant piece of historical theme as McPherson exhibits his ability to make deep incisions into historical events. He has explored many important themes in the American history and has presented them in a clear and concise manner. It is already known about the enormity of Abraham Lincoln’s struggle during his leadership of the Second American Revolution. McPherson has provided more detailed views of the constitutional queries that were strong during the Civil War. The author projected Lincoln as someone who totally worshipped and admired the American democracy. McPherson has also discussed about the counterarguments during that time. In all, this book reinforces the image of Lincoln as one of the most courageous and wise leader who made numerous sacrifices for the sake of his country. This book is a collection of seven essays all of which mainly focus on two major themes as indicated by the title of the book: the Second American Revolution and Abraham Lincoln’s participatory role in the revolution. The essays attempt to reflect on various issues during that period of American Civil War. McPherson has talked about how the two sides, i.e. the North and the South supported completely different notions of human liberty. He also speculated on whether the North was fighting for Union or was fighting against slavery. The author gave insights about Lincoln’s true definition of liberty and how well it was eventually achieved. He has targeted all these issues in a straightforward and well-reasoned manner. In the first essay, the author has argued in a rather persuasive manner about the American Civil War and how it brought about radical changes in the United States. Prior to the civil war, America was a land of slave owners that overtly violated the essence of the nation as a land of freedom of man. The Civil War succeeded in transforming America from a slaveholding country to becoming a land of individual liberty. Also, the political epicenter of the country shifted from the South to the North. From economical point of view, according to economic historians, the factors that paved the way for industrial revolution, that previously existed in Europe, had their roots from a generation before the Civil War like railroad, corporation, processes of large scale production, factory system and use of machines in agriculture. McPherson has stated that “while the war may have confirmed and accelerated some of these developments, it produced no fundamental change of direction” (McPherson, 1991, p.10). In the South, the existing order was disintegrated, however not surmounted, and the condition of the Blacks significant improved. However, racial equality was still a far cry. McPherson actually emphasized on another aspect. He focused on the philosophical angle of the change that was brought about by the Civil War. The change was from the philosophy of one kind of liberty which is protest against the oppressive government to that of an optimistic kind of liberty like Federal government’s assurance of protection of one’s rights. In the second essay, the author talks about the contribution of Abraham Lincoln as leader of the revolution. According to McPherson, Lincoln was a practical rebellion. The reason behind Lincoln’s motivation for the revolution was his precise consideration of necessities rather than having lofty ideological ambitions, “Lincoln was no Robespierre or Lenin with a blueprint for a new order – but he was a pragmatic revolutionary who found it necessary to destroy slavery and create a new birth of freedom in order to preserve the Union” (McPherson, 1991, p.41). Lincoln was basically a staunch believer of the virtues of one principle of democracy, and the second American Revolution was a subsidiary outcome for uplifting this principle. The third essay which is “Lincoln and Liberty” is about the struggling phase of Lincoln as an upholder of the principle of protection of rights. His non-idealistic and rather pragmatic approach was assumed as despotic by the Southerners who were against the oppressive rule of the government, “It was Lincoln’s eloquent definition – and redefinition – of liberty that the South most feared” (McPherson, 1991, p.55). The objective of the Republicans was to restrict and eventually obliterate the slave owning rights of the Southerners, and also to implement such restrictions through the intervention of the government, if necessary. McPherson believes that Abraham Lincoln’s great virtue as the supreme military commander has not received the deserved accolades in the history of American Civil War. In the fourth essay “Lincoln and the Strategy of Unconditional Surrender”, he has embarked on making necessary remedies. McPherson has stated with conviction that the most important achievement by Lincoln was that he unequivocally believed in the doctrine of Unconditional Surrender. McPherson also touched this issue in his sixth chapter “The Hedgehog and the Foxes”, where he compared Lincoln with the Northerners who did not have a clear and unambiguous view of the purpose of the revolution like their leader had. In the fifth chapter, the author, as suggested in the title, used metaphors to define how Lincoln achieved victory in the war. Here, McPherson made an interesting comparison with Jefferson Davis whose “prose contains few metaphors or images of any kind” (McPherson, 1991, p.96), and with this, McPherson illustrated that Lincoln had an amazing ability to connect with the common people, unlike Davis, with his usage of metaphors and images in writing that gave his essays “persuasive power of correctness and clarity” (McPherson, 1991, p.96). Thus, McPherson was in equal mind with David Potter who had suggested that “if the Union and Confederacy had exchanged Presidents the South might have won the Civil War” (McPherson, 1991, p.112). In his book, McPherson takes a close look at Abraham Lincoln’s struggle and contribution as a military commander. He explores the significance of Lincoln’s communication skills – how with the use of metaphors he was able to provide a new definition to human liberty. McPherson views the Civil War as a Second American Revolution and has stated how the war has been most effective in bringing changes in America, and how Lincoln is one of the most prominent leaders in American history. There is however one weakness in this otherwise splendid collection of essays focusing on Abraham Lincoln’s commandment in the Second American Revolution, which is that there was a more need of coherency in topics. For instance, the enlightening comparison made between Jefferson Davis and Lincoln in the fifth chapter was prominently absent from other chapters. Lack of such concurrency throughout the book somewhat lessens the impact of the narrative, making it more like just a collection of events than a focused work on a specific subject. Then there is the fourth essay which is actually a good one as it focuses on Lincoln’s unshakable faith and commitment towards complete abolishment of slavery in order to achieve human equality and freedom. However, since Lincoln was also prepared to negotiate on issues other than slavery therefore it will not be strictly correct to state that he demanded unconditional surrender from the Southern states. Also, the topic on metaphors was quite interesting and illuminating too, it nevertheless does not seem too sensible to suggest that words have won the war. Reference McPherson, J.M. (1991). Abraham Lincoln and the Second American Revolution, Oxford Univ. Press Read More