Abraham Lincoln

  The 16^th President of the United States was a man who not only freed the slaves and saved the Union, but he also possessed many heroic attributes. This man's name is Abraham Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln was born on February 12, 1809, in Hodgenville, Kentucky. As a child he did not receive a high level of education.  He eventually ran for Senate in 1858 against Stephan Douglas.  Although he was not elected, he became very popular in the political world. He ran for President in 1860 as the nominee of the Republican Party.  The main goals of his Presidency were to save the Union, and to destroy slavery. After his election but prior to his inauguration, the southern States seceded from the Union, and the Confederate States of America was born. After four long years of civil war, The United States claimed victory over the Confederates. But sadly, the victory would not be enjoyed for long. Only a few days after the war ended, Abraham Lincoln was murdered. Dictionary.com defines hero as: "A person who, in the opinion of others, has heroic qualities or has performed a heroic act and is regarded as a model or ideal." Abraham Lincoln possessed all of these qualities, and is someone who I believe is a true hero.  Abraham Lincoln is my hero because he never gave up, possessed a willingness to do whatever it took to improve this country, and he stayed firm to his beliefs.

Despite many trials and struggles throughout his life, Abraham Lincoln never gave up. Before Abraham Lincoln was elected the 16^th President, he ran for U.S. Senator for the State of Illinois. Abraham Lincoln lost the election, but won the popularity of the people.  "In 1858 Lincoln ran against Stephen A. Douglas for Senator. He lost the election, but in debating with Douglas he gained a national reputation that won him the Republican nomination for President in 1860"(Freidel). This quote shows that even after being defeated, he would eventually triumph and succeed. He never let opposition get in the way of his ultimate goal.  When Lincoln faced setbacks, he persevered and kept going. The debates with Stephen Douglas sharpened his oratory skills, and he turned defeat into ultimate triumph by winning the 1860 Presidential election.  Abraham Lincoln also never gave up in his goal of freeing the slaves. He even sought to free the slaves that were part of the Southern Confederacy: "President Abraham Lincoln is starting to scribble away at a document, an ultimatum to the rebellious states: Return to the Union, or your slaves will be freed" ('Emancipating Lincoln'). There is no question that Lincoln saved the Union from permanent collapse. He prevented this country from being forever divided. He helped make this country what it is today, a free nation.  By signing the Emancipation Proclamation, he finished what the Framers of our Constitution started.  He applied the principles they set out in the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence to all people. At first, when Lincoln was drafting the Emancipation Proclamation, he only threatened to free the slaves if the southern States wouldn't re-join the Union.  However, he realized that half measures like these would only prolong the problem; the only way the Union could be a stable country is if the protections in the U.S. Constitution apply to everyone.

         Abraham Lincoln loved this country and was willing to do whatever it took to improve it.  At first when Lincoln was drafting the Emancipation Proclamation he only threatened to free the slaves if the southern States wouldn't re-join the Union, ``My paramount object is to save the Union, and not either to save or destroy slavery'' (Encyclopedia of occultism). Abraham Lincoln was willing to do whatever it took to save the Union. He even was contemplating letting the South keep their slaves, if they would just rejoined the Union. However, he came to the conclusion that this was not compatible with the U.S. Constitution, and that he truly could not "save" the U.S. if it meant that some people would remain as slaves.   Thus, he knew that in order to truly save the Union, and preserves the principles of the U.S. Constitution, he would have to free the slaves.  The Emancipation Proclamation was a decree that abolished slavery in the entire United States, even those States that belonging to the Confederacy. "Although the government had no power to enforce the decree, and abolishing slavery was not Lincoln's apparent goal, the Emancipation Proclamation established a new moral foundation for the country" (Freedom: as we approach.). This quote shows that Lincoln did whatever it took to give every person in the Union their freedom.  Lincoln risked his own Presidency by fighting a war that was unpopular.  But, he knew that fighting the Civil War was necessary to ensure everyone their freedom.  While civil war was not something he wanted or desired, he knew that if he gave up and let the South secede, the principles of the Declaration of Independence would never truly take root in the United States. Lincoln freed the slaves because in the long run that was the only way to fulfill the promise of the Constitution, and to truly save the Union.

Though he faced many obstacles in his life, he stayed firm to his beliefs. Abraham Lincoln was a very faithful man. He believed that all men could be forgiven. Even though the South started the Civil War, he wanted them to be welcomed back into the Union with open arms: "With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation's wounds.... "(Frank). He believed that if the Union was truly going to heal, that he had to make it easier for the Southern States to truly re-join the Union.  It would have been easy to view the South as a conquered territory, and to make its citizens pay for the death and destruction that was caused by the Civil War.  However, Lincoln wisely knew that true healing would only begin if the North was charitable in victory, and he made sure that the South would not be asked to pay too high a price for their rebellion.  The deaths of hundreds of thousands of the South's soldiers, along with adoption of the 13^th and 14^th Amendments which abolished slavery and ensured equal treatment to former slaves, was enough of a price to pay. Lincoln's always hoped he could find a way to abolish slavery. In the Emancipation Proclamation he was able to fulfill his dream: "...the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free..." (The Emancipation Proclamation). This quote shows that President Lincoln was willing to do what he believed in. The Emancipation Proclamation actually made many people in the North angry. Many in the North did not believe that the Civil War was fought to free the slaves, but only to preserve the Union. By freeing the slaves, Lincoln changed the reason that the Civil War was being fought.  Many of Lincoln's decisions were unpopular at the time, such as freeing the slaves and fighting the war. However unpopular, he stuck with what he thought was right.

Abraham Lincoln is an inspiration to me because he never gave up, changed this country for the better and stayed firm to his beliefs. Even after going through many rough patches in his life, Abraham Lincoln never gave up. He made this Country free from the evils of slavery, and firmly cemented in our tradition the promises of the Declaration of Independence; that all men are truly created equal. Abraham Lincoln is a true American hero because he made this country truly free for all people. He made sure that no man was deprived from their unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Works Cited

Abraham Lincoln." Encyclopedia of Occultism and Parapsychology. Detroit: Gale, 2001. Biography In Context. Web. 2 May 2013.

'Emancipating Lincoln': A Pragmatic Proclamation." All Things Considered 14 Mar. 2012. Biography In Context. Web. 2 May 2013.

The Emancipation Proclamation." Human and Civil Rights: Essential Primary Sources. Ed. Adrienne Wilmoth Lerner, Brenda Wilmoth Lerner, and K. Lee Lerner. Detroit: Gale, 2006. 107-110. Biography In Context. Web. 7 May 2013.

"Freedom: as we approach the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, 11 thoughtful voices explain why it still matters to all of us." American History 47.5 (2012): 54+. Biography In Context. Web. 9 May 2013.

Freidel, Frank. "Abraham Lincoln." The White House. N.p., 2006. Web. 07 May 2013

JAFFA, HARRY V. "Abraham Lincoln." Encyclopedia of the American Constitution. Gale, 2000. Biography In Context. Web. 9 May 2013