The political genius of Abraham Lincoln remains unequivocal. As a
great leader, he saved the Union, presided over the end of slavery,
and helped to pave the way for an interracial democracy. In his
speeches and letters, he offered enduring wisdom about human
equality, democracy, free labour, and free society. This rare
combination of theory and practice in politics cemented Lincoln's
legacy as one of the most talented statesmen in American history.
Providing an accessible framework for understanding Lincoln's
statesmanship, this thoughtful study examines Lincoln's political
intellect in terms of the traditional moral vision of statecraft as
understood by the political philosophers Aristotle and St. Thomas
Aquinas. The enduring wisdom and timeless teachings of these great
thinkers, author Joseph R. Fornieri shows, can lead to a deeper
appreciation of statesmanship and of its embodiment in Abraham
Lincoln. Statesmanship, Fornieri posits, is a moral greatness that
stems from six virtues: wisdom, prudence, duty, magnanimity,
rhetoric, and patriotism. Drawing on insights from history,
politics, and philosophy, Fornieri tackles the question of how
Lincoln evidenced each of these virtues. Through close textual
analysis of Lincoln's speeches and writings and careful
consideration of relevant secondary literature, Fornieri reveals
Lincoln to be a philosopher statesman in whom political thought and
action were united. Lincoln's character is best understood, he
contends, in terms of Aquinas's understanding of magnanimity or
greatness of soul, the crowning virtue of statesmanship. True
political greatness, as evidenced by Lincoln, involves both
humility and sacrifice for the common good. With the great
philosophers and books of western civilisation as his guide,
Fornieri demonstrates the important contribution of normative
political philosophy to an understanding of our sixteenth
president. Informed by political theory that draws on the classics
in revealing the timelessness of Lincoln's example, his
interdisciplinary study offers profound insights for anyone
interested in the nature of leadership, statesmanship, political
ethics, political history, and constitutional law.
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