Abraham Lincoln''s remarkable emergence from the rural Midwest
and his rise to the presidency have been the stuff of romance and
legend. But as Douglas L. Wilson shows us in Honor''s Voice,
Lincoln''s transformation was not one long triumphal march, but a
process that was more than once seriously derailed. There were
times, in his journey from storekeeper and mill operator to lawyer
and member of the Illinois state legislature, when Lincoln lost his
nerve and self-confidence - on at least two occasions he became so
despondent as to appear suicidal - and when his acute emotional
vulnerabilities were exposed.
Focusing on the crucial years between 1831 and 1842, Wilson''s
skillful analysis of the testimonies and writings of Lincoln''s
contemporaries reveals the individual behind the legends. We see
Lincoln as a boy: not the dutiful son studying by firelight, but
the stubborn rebel determined to make something of himself. We see
him as a young man: not the ascendant statesman, but the canny
local politician who was renowned for his talents in wrestling and
storytelling as well as for his extensive store of off-color
jokes. Wilson also reconstructs Lincoln''s frequently anguished
personal life: his religious skepticism, recurrent bouts of
depression, and difficult relationships with women - from Ann
Rutledge to Mary Owens to Mary Todd.
Meticulously researched and well written, this is a fascinating
book that makes us reexamine our ideas about one of the icons of
American history.
From the Hardcover edition.
關於作者:
Douglas L. Wilson is Saunders Director of the International
Center for Jefferson Studies at Monticello in Charlottesville,
Virginia.
From the Hardcover edition.
目錄:
Introduction
NEW SALEM i831--37
One Wrestling with the Evidence
Two Serf-Education
Three Finding a Vocation
Four Women
Five Breaking into Politics
SPRINCFIELD i837--42
Six Springfield
Seven Campaign and Courtship
Eight The Mary Todd "Embrigglement"
Nine Honor
Ten Transitions and Transformation
Notes
Acknowledgments
Index