HIST 215 - The Age of Lincoln

Our attention will hardly be limited to this single individual, however, since any informed assessment of Lincoln must place him firmly in a number of relevant and precise historical contexts.  To this extent we will also be using our focus on Lincoln as a vehicle for understanding better the distinctive shape and character-and hence the central problems and concerns–of American society, culture, and politics from approximately 1815 through the Civil War.  Given Lincoln’s significance to the single greatest crisis in American national history, our ultimate focus will be on the legacy of the Founding Fathers, the crisis of the Union, and the ensuing war for American nationality.  And given the timeless moral issues at stake in that national project, we will surely want to engage even larger concerns and questions.  What is the relationship between private character and public leadership?  Can politics and morality, especially in the context of war, be effectively conjoined?  What constitutes responsible leadership in a democracy?  Can Lincoln’s leadership enlighten and even inspire Americans (and others) in the twenty-first century as we confront our own challenges and crises?

Anticipated Terms Offered: Offered every other year