Comparing The Civil War And Abraham Lincoln's Rejection Of Democracy
Ambiguous Words
Essay Question: “Southerners maintained that secession was the ultimate expression of democracy, while Lincoln claimed it was rejection of democracy. How
did they explain and justify their principles.”
On December 20, 1860, the Confederacy was born when South Carolina
seceded from the federal Union. The Union and the Confederacy severely clashed in
their views on the Constitution; the South felt that individual states should have the right
to nullify laws, while Abraham Lincoln believed the federal government should appoint
representatives for individual states. The South and Abraham Lincoln contrasted
sharply on the idea of secession because the Constitution was ambiguous regarding …show more content…
John B. Baldwin also warned the South that crops from
eastern Virginia were sold in Baltimore and cities of the Northwest, thus, abandoning
the Union would ultimately terminate trading abilities. “ [Lincoln and the Unionists were
also worried that] deep southern secessionists intended to reopen the African slave
trade [after the North and South were divided], thereby depressing slave prices and
benefitting the slave importation of the slave-exporting states in the upper South” (107).
Lincoln worried about the interpretation of the Declaration of Independence statement
that “all men are created equal.” “The Founding Fathers included blacks in their
reference to ‘men’ in the Declaration and thus made ‘the great fundamental principle
upon which our free institutions rest’ ” (Jones 24). Likewise, Lincoln feared that
southern misunderstanding of northern intentions would create a threat leading to a civil
war. This notion lead the North to blame secessionists for distorting northern intentions.
As a final plea, Lincoln restated his intention to the southerners that he would leave
them alone, and in no way interfere with their institution. Furthermore, in his
Essay Question: “Southerners maintained that secession was the ultimate expression of democracy, while Lincoln claimed it was rejection of democracy. How
did they explain and justify their principles.”
On December 20, 1860, the Confederacy was born when South Carolina
seceded from the federal Union. The Union and the Confederacy severely clashed in
their views on the Constitution; the South felt that individual states should have the right
to nullify laws, while Abraham Lincoln believed the federal government should appoint
representatives for individual states. The South and Abraham Lincoln contrasted
sharply on the idea of secession because the Constitution was ambiguous regarding …show more content…
John B. Baldwin also warned the South that crops from
eastern Virginia were sold in Baltimore and cities of the Northwest, thus, abandoning
the Union would ultimately terminate trading abilities. “ [Lincoln and the Unionists were
also worried that] deep southern secessionists intended to reopen the African slave
trade [after the North and South were divided], thereby depressing slave prices and
benefitting the slave importation of the slave-exporting states in the upper South” (107).
Lincoln worried about the interpretation of the Declaration of Independence statement
that “all men are created equal.” “The Founding Fathers included blacks in their
reference to ‘men’ in the Declaration and thus made ‘the great fundamental principle
upon which our free institutions rest’ ” (Jones 24). Likewise, Lincoln feared that
southern misunderstanding of northern intentions would create a threat leading to a civil
war. This notion lead the North to blame secessionists for distorting northern intentions.
As a final plea, Lincoln restated his intention to the southerners that he would leave
them alone, and in no way interfere with their institution. Furthermore, in his