Chapter 5, Abraham Lincoln and the Self-Made Myth Summary and Analysis

Hofstadter begins by repeating the high adulation that American culture and American historians have given to Lincoln. Americans have elevated Lincoln to the status of a religious figure. But it is arguable that this is a myth and that Lincoln was always the consummate politician, a moderate conservative, and only incidentally interested in the deep moral question of slavery. Lincoln grew up in Kentucky and hated his chores. He was rather lazy and preferred to give stump speeches. He read primarily in order to hone his speech-giving skills, which is why he preferred to read aloud. Apparently Lincoln had great political ambitions and talents, rising from obscurity at age twenty-four to speaker of the house in Illinois four years later. Politically, Lincoln was a moderate Whig, meaning that he...