In this sweeping assessment of American history, a history professor emphasizes the foundational role of Abraham Lincoln's moral and political theory, arguing that his focus on the value of labor and the rights to property and self-determination are values that can still unite Americans.
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In this sweeping assessment of American history, a history professor emphasizes the foundational role of Abraham Lincoln's moral and political theory, arguing that his focus on the value of labor and the rights to property and self-determination are values that can still unite Americans.
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Poor. Used, dust jacket outer edges have minor scuffs, cover has light scratches and marks, some outer pages have shelf wear, book content is in very good condition. Glued binding. Paper over boards. With dust jacket. 330 p.
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Good-Bumped and creased book with tears to the extremities, but not affecting the text block, may have remainder mark or previous owner's name-GOOD Standard-sized.
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Very Good. Very Good condition. Good dust jacket. A copy that may have a few cosmetic defects. May also contain light spine creasing or a few markings such as an owner's name, short gifter's inscription or light stamp. Bundled media such as CDs, DVDs, floppy disks or access codes may not be included.
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Very Good. Size: 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall; 1st print (full # line), Very Good Plus/Good condition, text tight clean and unmarked, NO age toning, boards new looking, a line type of mark (very minor) on fore-edge of text block, dust jacket NOT price-clipped, some wear at tips and at top and bottom of spine on dust jacket and a small closed taped tear on top edge of dust jacket.
Professor John Diggins's study "On Hallowed Ground: Abraham Lincoln and the Foundations of American History" is part history, part philosophy, and part polemic. The title of the book suggests a study of Abraham Lincoln and his impact on American values. The exploration of this subject alone is a formidable task, but Professor Diggins adds to it with his discussions of the American Revolution, the political philosophy of Locke, the observations on American character of de Tocqueville, the political economic theorizing of Veblen and Weber, the studies of American liberalism by Louis Hartz, and much more.
Professor Diggins argues against those scholars who see Lincoln exclusively as a pragmatic politician and claims that our Sixteenth President sought a foundational, non-relativistic source for our political values in the principle that all men are created equal, and in the right of all to work and to strive to own property and to better themselves. Lincolns' philosophy, Diggins claims, had its roots in the Declaration of Independence and in Lockean ideas. His reading of Lincoln is supported by discussions of numerous speeches and writings, most of which can be found in the wonderful two-volume Library of America edition of Lincoln's writings.
The broad targets of Professor Diggins's book are philosophical relativists. Much of the book, however, is devoted to a polemic against modern multiculturalism and deconstruction. Lincoln, the philosophy of consensus (one shared broadly by Americans irrespective of their interest group, race, sex, status), and the value of work motivated by material self-interest are defended as an integral part of the American vision, striven for by all and, paradoxically, expanding the scope of our liberties.
The book suffers, I think, from being overly ambitious and from its structure. The arguments are unduly repetitive and this, I think, hinders Professor Diggins from developing them with the depth they deserve. The book strays too far from Lincoln. While much of the discussion of other figures in the book is valuable and illuminating, particularly the discussion of Professor Hartz and of the Federalists, it moves too far from Lincoln or, more precisely, it gives the book a loose free-wheeling character with ideas suggested rather than sufficiently developed. Similarly, Professor Diggins's criticism of multiculturalism, with which I greatly sympathize, is not well integrated with the rest of the book. It is simply too much to do a political polemic, a study of Lincoln, and a treatment of American intellectual history in a single, relatively short volume.
These quibbles to one side, the work is well worth reading. It explores our American heritage, challenges prevailing orthodoxies and offers much for further study and reflection. This is a worthwhile exploration of important issues in the nature of our precious American experience.
