Gore Vidal's Lincoln

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In the historical novel Lincoln, Gore Vidal depicts how Lincoln would have reacted to certain situations that happened while he was president. The book is never told from Lincoln’s point of view, but instead from the views of his loved ones and rivals. Vidal implies that Lincoln was in fact a “political animal” and not simply a monolithic figure. Some of the biggest events Vidal discusses in the novel were the Battle of Fort Sumter- a battle near Charleston, South Carolina, on April 12-14, 1861. A battle which essentially started the American Civil War. This battle- and the action of resupplying the troops that were involved- was Lincoln’s first crisis as President. The novel also talks about the secession of states from the Union, and what Lincoln did to try to keep them from seceding. Vidal’s information about both of these topics is generally very accurate, with little change to the events that took place. He does not go into much detail, but just enough so that you understand who was on Lincoln’s side and who was definitely not.
The Battle of Fort Sumter essentially began on December 26, 1860 when Major Anderson moved his troops from Sullivan’s Island to Fort Sumter. President James Buchanan had made a failed attempt to reinforce the troops at the fort on January 9, 1861, just before Lincoln took over. The novel states that Lincoln said “No, he had prepared no instructions for the major because ‘I have not yet taken the oath of office. I will say how… impressed I was last month, as was everyone, when General Scott sent a merchant steamer with reinforcements for Fort Sumter and the governor or South Carolina was able to turn back that ship,” (Vidal 40). Lincoln later said to General Scott, in a meeting about the war, that “I w...

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...tty accurately, with the novel adding some things and taking out others. The Battle of Fort Sumter was one of the only battles described in the book, and was accurate in the history of Lincoln’s decision to resupply and evacuate the troops from the fort. The book stated Lincoln’s, as well as other official’s opinions on the secession of the states after his election, which was also extremely accurate.

Works Cited
"Confederate History - The Confederate Society of America." The Confederate Society of America. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Jan. 2014.
"Digital History." Digital History. N.p., 05 Jan. 2014. Web. 03 Jan. 2014.
"Lincoln on Secession." National Parks Service. National Parks Service, 14 Dec. 2013. Web. 02 Jan. 2014.
"Lincoln, Slavery, And Racism." The Historic Present. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Jan. 2014.
Vidal, Gore. Lincoln: A Novel. New York: Random House, 1984. Print.

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