Abraham Lincoln

The Contents of Lincoln’s Pocket

Shana Li

          In his article on the characteristics of heroism, Tollefson writes in 1993“Heroes serve powers or principles larger than themselves.” Before one is called a heroic person, he should try to find a cause or principle where he is not the only one concerned. A hero cannot be called a heroic person if he does not defend something that should help people in general and not just himself. A hero gets his strength from higher principles and he knows the value of sacrifice. Only brave and strong men and women are able to fight against something evil that has existed for a long time; if they fight it, they might die or they might lose everything. Heroes are never afraid to fight for something that they believe in. Abraham Lincoln was one of heroes. He was an American president during 1861 to 1865, and he used all his power to help his country. Abraham Lincoln was an outstanding hero because he endured many hardships in life, abolished black slavery, and helped reconstruct America after the Civil War.

          One reason why Lincoln is known as a hero was that he never gave up even though he had many hardships in his personal and political life. This somehow proves right Tollefson’s idea in 1993 about a hero having character flaw like “political incorrectness” and become “easy targets for the purveyors of heroic perfectionism” (Tollefson 160). However, despite their flaws of character, they remain great people. Lincoln is one of those heroes who had many failures in life but have proved himself great in the end. According to the website “Lincoln’s Failures,” Lincoln quit his job and lost in his position for state legislature in 1832. After one year, he failed in business. In 1835, his wife died, and the following year, he had a nervous breakdown. In the year of 1838, he was defeated for speaker (“Lincoln’s Failures”). Nevertheless, he kept pushing and he still had the dream of becoming the President. He did not give up until he was finally elected President. If only ordinary people be able to experience these failures, maybe they would just give up easily. Only very strong human beings known as heroes can actually remain strong even though they fail many times in life. President Lincoln was one of them. If Lincoln had not kept trying, maybe he would not have become President and perhaps America would be very different from now. It was admirable that Lincoln did not give up until he became the president because the country claimed him to free the slaves. 

          A second reason why Lincoln is considered a hero is that he abolished slavery in the United States. When Lincoln was still president, slavery was allowed in the country, so he opposed this, he did not believe slavery was a correct thing. The reason is, as a hero, Lincoln himself believed that the hero “profoundly believes in the value and dignity of human life.” Therefore, everyone deserves respect, whether a person is a white or black American. Since Lincoln thought slavery was wrong, he wanted to change this part of history. According to Tollefson, “Heroes are catalysts for change” (Tollefson) and so Lincoln, as a catalyst for change, desired to change American society by abolishing slavery. Lincoln ordered the attack of the South in order to abolish slavery and maintain the union. The war ended with Lincoln’s victory and the surrender of the South under Gen. Robert E. Lee. This convinced the American people about the freedom of the slaves (“Abraham Lincoln”). In doing this, Lincoln changed the American society during his time. Without Lincoln, perhaps until now blacks would still be working for whites and that they would still be treated in a cruel way. Also, because of Lincoln, there are now black actors, black sports men and black models and singers. This is all because of the heroism of a man named Abraham Lincoln.

          Another reason why Lincoln is a hero is that he was able to reconstruct America despite the damage to lives caused by the Civil War. The period of heroism was over after the war and Lincoln was already a hero. He still worked for his country, he decided to rebuild the country. This is the picture of a true hero. In his Gettysburg Address, Lincoln promised that “the government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth” (“Abraham Lincoln”). This means that America will remain strong even though many people have died in the Civil War. Moreover, during his second time of president speech, Lincoln emphasized “malice towards none and charity for all” (“Abraham Lincoln”). This means that America will remain strong even though many people have died in the Civil War. There should be no malice against the people of the past who did not favor the freedom of the slaves, and American society and the country itself had to be rebuilt (“Abraham Lincoln”). Lincoln did not focus on the war but rather on how America could begin again in spite of the death of many people. Therefore, Lincoln’s action vindicated him after the Civil War.  Through the Reconstruction; Lincoln restored his image to the American people and also restored their trust in him and in the government.         

          Abraham Lincoln was a hero because he did not give up in spite of his imperfections. He failed so many times in his early life. Lincoln was also a hero because his respect for the value of life made him a “catalyst for change” (Tollefson) in America through the freedom of the slaves in the Civil War. Lastly, he was also a hero because he silently made possible the reconstruction of America. Without a man like Abraham Lincoln, America would never be the wonderful that it is now.

Works Cited

Abraham Lincoln. (n.d.). Retrieved Oct 22, 2014, from http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/abrahamlincoln

Abraham Lincoln's "Failures" and "Successes" (n.d.). Retrieved December 2, 2014, from http://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/education/failures.htm

Polster, M. (2012). "Eve's Daughters." Gestalt Journal Press

Tollefson, T. (1993). "Is a Hero Really Nothing but a Sandwich?"

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