Abraham Lincoln Great Emancipator or Common Politician

President Abraham Lincoln has been revered as one of the greatest presidents in the history of the United States. He is known for his great effect on slavery and served his terms during the civil war in a time of great controversy. The American Civil War (1860-1865) occurred at the exact time of Lincolns presidency (1861-1865). The North and the South were divided and a big issue was slavery, on which Lincoln took an anti-slavery stance. Lincoln has been called many things because of his views from the great emancipator to the reluctant emancipator to the white supremacist, or, in more vulgar terms, Lincoln as just another honkie (Hubbell 1). While many people believe Abraham Lincoln to be the Great Emancipator of the times, he was†¦show more content†¦Lincoln was not ready to abolish slavery in the South, nor was he ready to take too extreme of a stance on the subject. Good politicians never lean to extreme on an issue for fear of losing popularity with the other side, and Lincoln was smart and tried to stay more neutral. He was very hesitant to act to fast or make any drastic decisions because he was scared to completely lose the South. Lincoln had little to gain from slavery and much to lose at that time. A presidential attack on slavery would cause controversy in the north over war goals, create further want for secession in the South and make the South turn against him even more, making restoration of the Union far more difficult (Klingaman 71). Politically, the better choice was to not make any extreme choices for slavery. In the summer of 1964, he even tried to write a statement for peace terms that stated that any proposition for peace, the abandonment of slavery, and an end to the war would be considered by the United States government (Lincoln 201). But this statement was disregarded by the south because it called for abolition. The south was still not willing to compromise and therefore Lincoln could not take a stand completely against slave ry. That is why he was never committed to abolishing slavery, only stopping it from expanding out of the South. Unionists who were opposed to abolition were toldShow MoreRelatedThe Log Cabin Lincoln By Carl Sandburg Essay2166 Words   |  9 PagesWEEK EIGHT- The Log Cabin Lincoln Between this week’s article by Carl Sandburg, â€Å"Abraham Lincoln: The Prairie Years† and the movie Young Mr. Lincoln, we got a chance to delve into Abraham Lincoln’s younger years as a boy growing up in Kentucky and a young lawyer starting his career in Illinois, respectively. 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