Lincoln in American Memory

With insightful detail, University of Virginia historian Peterson ( The Jefferson Image in the American Mind ) richly catalogues the resounding image, for scholars and civil society alike, of the martyred president. From the assassination onward, Peterson writes, five intertwined themes dominated interpretation of Lincoln: Savior of the Union, Great Emancipator, Man of the People, the First American and the Self-made Man. Moving in chronological cycles, the author elucidates these themes. In the late 19th century lecturers, including the poet Walt Whitman, rather than books, were America's major source of information on Lincoln, while black leaders like Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois invoked different Lincoln virtues to express their politics. After WW I, the construction of the Lincoln Memorial and American internationalism spurred a Lincoln revival, and clergy of all denominations claimed this not-so-devout Christian as an inspiration. Lincoln was quoted during arguments about prohibition, by Dale Carnegie and by Cold Warriors. Peterson's thorough research offers wonderful anecdotes, from accounts of the failed movements to build Lincoln monuments to how playwright Robert E. Sherwood, who wrote the 1938 Broadway hit Abe Lincoln in Illinois , found his life altered and became a White House speechwriter. Illustrations not seen by PW . (May)