Emancipation Proclamation- Lincoln's End of Slavery in America
History 111 Book Report
Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation is still, to date, one of the most debated, revolutionary acts of the any of the Presidents of the United States. Through this document Lincoln took responsibility upon himself for the freedom of four million slaves throughout the divided country he presided over and forever changed the scene of what could be a very different American culture than that of which we live in presently today. After reading Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation: The End of Slavery in America, written by Allen C. Guelzo, I am fully convinced that Lincoln’s accomplishment through that document is very under credited not only by African Americans today, but also by their white counterparts in regards to the lasting impact it made for the future of the races in this country. Allen C. Guezlo opens his book on the defensive for Abraham Lincoln. Guezlo explains that when the topic of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation comes to mind, basically, either you appreciate it at face value for what it accomplished and stands for, or you are a skeptic. Today more than ever, the Proclamation’s skeptics focus on what the document did not accomplish rather than what it did. In his book, Guezlo works at answering the four main questions that critics will raise regarding the Proclamation. Why is the language of the Proclamation so bland and Legalistic? Did the Proclamation actually do anything? Did the slaves free themselves? Did Lincoln issue the Proclamation to ward off European influence or boost Union morale? In defense of Lincoln, Guezlo takes us through a detailed chronology of the events leading up to the weighted decision made by Lincoln in September 1862, including incredible evidence in the form of documented conversations and eye witness accounts. Abraham Lincoln was a product of the end of the Enlightenment Era, an era that emphasized the age of reason and logic. Being a lawyer by profession, Lincoln exhibited
Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation is still, to date, one of the most debated, revolutionary acts of the any of the Presidents of the United States. Through this document Lincoln took responsibility upon himself for the freedom of four million slaves throughout the divided country he presided over and forever changed the scene of what could be a very different American culture than that of which we live in presently today. After reading Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation: The End of Slavery in America, written by Allen C. Guelzo, I am fully convinced that Lincoln’s accomplishment through that document is very under credited not only by African Americans today, but also by their white counterparts in regards to the lasting impact it made for the future of the races in this country. Allen C. Guezlo opens his book on the defensive for Abraham Lincoln. Guezlo explains that when the topic of Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation comes to mind, basically, either you appreciate it at face value for what it accomplished and stands for, or you are a skeptic. Today more than ever, the Proclamation’s skeptics focus on what the document did not accomplish rather than what it did. In his book, Guezlo works at answering the four main questions that critics will raise regarding the Proclamation. Why is the language of the Proclamation so bland and Legalistic? Did the Proclamation actually do anything? Did the slaves free themselves? Did Lincoln issue the Proclamation to ward off European influence or boost Union morale? In defense of Lincoln, Guezlo takes us through a detailed chronology of the events leading up to the weighted decision made by Lincoln in September 1862, including incredible evidence in the form of documented conversations and eye witness accounts. Abraham Lincoln was a product of the end of the Enlightenment Era, an era that emphasized the age of reason and logic. Being a lawyer by profession, Lincoln exhibited
Cited: Guezlo, Allen C. Lincoln 's Emancipation Proclamation: The End of Slaver in America. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Paperbacks, 2004. Print.