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Lincoln by Gore Vidal
New York:  Random House, 1984

     Gore Vidal's Lincoln, though not without controversy over its historical inaccuracies, provides a fascinating portrayal of the presidency of Abraham Lincoln.  Furthermore, students of the Civil War will appreciate Vidal's detailed account of the progress of the war from Lincoln's perspective.  Vidal also deserves credit for his description of other key figures in Lincoln's presidency, including Secretary of State Seward and Secretary of the Treasury Chase.
     The book is, after all, historical fiction, and Vidal does take liberties with historical facts.  Fortunately, at least some of these inaccuracies are acknowledged by Vidal himself in the book's "Afterword" when he points out the characters in the book that never actually existed.  While he indicates that the historical figures, including Lincoln, were reconstructed from "letters, journals, newspapers, diaries, etc." he fails to specifically cite his sources.  Of course, he is not obliged to do so, but it would have been helpful to know the basis of his information, particularly since they are primary sources.
     In spite of its historical flaws, Vidal deserves credit for his intelligent mix of actual history with the drama of Lincoln's presidency.   Curiously, some reviewers of the book, such as Nicholas von Hoffman ("Lincoln," Nation, June 16, 1984, v 238, p. 744) criticize Vidal for failing to bring Lincoln together into a "believable person" because he is "too weighed down by respect for the facts."
     Meanwhile, Richard N. Current, writing in the February 1986 issue of "The Journal of Southern History", Vol. LII, No. 1, makes reference to a scene between Lincoln and his wife Mary at the Willard Hotel in which Vidal clearly is speculating on what actually occurred.  Current writes, "Perhaps, then, a critic ought to judge such scenes and conversations not by their faithfulness to documented detail but only by their consistency with the general record.  Even by this lenient standard Vidal's Lincoln does rather poorly.  At many points it is hard to know whether his version of Lincoln's life and times is an outright invention, a dubious interpretation, or simply a mistake."
     Since Vidal claims his novel is essentially true, it is unfortunate that the book contains as many historical inaccuracies as it does.  Nevertheless, many of the inaccuracies are distracting, but minor flaws, such as several instances in which a British English version of a word (e.g., practise rather than practice) are used rather than the American version.  On balance, the book still succeeds on many levels, and provides a useful and interesting insight into Lincoln's presidency.

Comment
     In spite of its many historical inaccuracies, Lincoln is an excellent choice for summarizing Lincoln's presidency, the causes of the Civil War, and its key historical elements.  The book is quite long (657 pages), but it may be possible to assign specific chapters if they are properly introduced.  When assigning the book, it may be useful to discuss some of the book's inaccuracies, while still acknowledging the novel's essential conformity to historical fact. 

Reading Level:  N/A
Interest Level:  Adult

Support the Following Instructional Objectives:

Evaluate the Causes and Impact of the Issues that Led to the Civil War

Describe the Cultural, Political and Military Progression of Events in the Civil War

Excerpt

     Chase thought himself a saint for concurring so wholeheartedly in Lincoln's plan to emancipate the slaves of the rebel states.  Granted, he had no alternative, for the President had been uncharacteristically firm.  Lincoln had assembled the cabinet in order to tell them what he intended to do.  Since Seward was plainly behind him, pulling the strings, Chase was outnumbered.  More than ever, he was convinced that Seward was the mind of the Administration to the extent that such a haphazard and themeless government could be said to have a mind.  Since he himself was not permitted to create grand strategy, he could at least continue to be the voice of conscience - seldom heeded, of course, by these conscienceless politicians.

Lincoln photo courtesy of "The American Civil War HomePage".  Permission granted by George Hoemann.  Visit the "The American Civil War HomePage at:  http://sunsite.utk.edu/civil-war/
Accessed June 18, 2002.

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