Jabari A. Stafford
English 112
Professor Brandon
4/15/13
“Lincoln” (the Movie)
In this Steven Spielberg
film, it displayed Lincoln’s long journey to abolishing slavery as President.
It showed many of Lincoln’s characteristics and events of his personal and
political life. I discovered a great amount of new information while watching this
film. The different things I saw in the movie surprised me. It is believed
Lincoln used his power in good ways. Altogether, the movie had interesting
facts relevant to history, although I had a difficult time staying focused.
After watching “Lincoln” the third time, I understood much better than the
first two times. This was a great way for classmates and I to learn more about
one of the most important presidents in U.S. history.
First
of all, Lincoln was a republican in politics. He definitely was against slavery
and wanted to end slavery. He was considered an abolitionist. Abe Lincoln
respected African Americans, and valued their opinions. African-Americans were
aware of his concern towards them and their freedom. He did not like the idea
of any man being considered someone’s property. He felt like the fate of human
dignity was in his hands. (Spielberg) He said “abolishing slavery by
constitutional provision settles the fate for all coming time.”(Spielberg) The
13th amendment was the cure to the Civil War. He felt the war was
worthless after the 13th amendment passed. In the movie, Lincoln
said, “there is an invisible strength in the people’s union.” Simply meaning if
all races are equal and become one, America will become a better country.
Lincoln owned no slaves and neither did his parents. Abe had many
accomplishments towards his freeing the slaves as the 16th president
of the United States. One of his accomplishments was passing the second
confiscation act, which freed slaves of any one aiding the rebellion; also the “Emancipation
Proclamation” and the 13th amendment, which officially abolished
slavery and also indirectly ended the Civil War. This was one of the main
differences between Lincoln and Andrew Jackson. He made his profit from
slavery, which is the main reason why he supported the idea of keeping slavery.
Although he supported slavery, he knew when it was time for battle; all
Americans have to work amongst one another. Jackson disliked blacks and Native
Americans. His critics considered him a tyrant and say he utilized his powers
in detrimental ways. Jackson did anything to win, such as threaten people about
losing their jobs. They both differed in their utilization of presidency
powers. During the Civil War every American on the Union worked with one
another, as did the Confederation. Ulysses S. Grant was the Union General and
Robert E. Lee was the Confederates General. There was no complete equality on
either side and the races were still segregated. It seemed African-Americans
were being paid less than white-Americans in the film. (Spielberg) People of
America thought they were not ready for Emancipation. Some of the
representatives did not like slavery, but opposed the amendment. The majority
of representatives felt the amendment was by law, not about slavery. Lincoln
and the republicans wanted the amendment to pass, so did not mention slavery or
racial equality, but only equality under law. Everyone was concerned with
ending the war rather than ending slavery. The only reason some citizens voted
“yes” to pass the 13th amendment, is because the reason for the war
is to end slavery. This is the depiction of race during the civil war.
For the assignment we were told to give a
depiction of homosexuality and gender roles in Lincoln. The only example of
homosexuality was when he visited John Hay’s bedroom in the midnight. He patted
his thigh and rubbed his head before he left, which is unusual. Afterwards Hay
asked Lincoln “did he need company?” Being that Lincoln told him he would
rather be alone, I could not determine whether it showed homosexuality or not.
The women’s rights during
the Civil War were extremely restricted. They were not able to do the many
things men do. Women could not vote, go to war, or barely leave their homes.
During the Civil War women were not considered equals at all. “Hundreds of
women concealed their identities so they could battle alongside their Union and
confederate counterparts.” (
Smithsonian
Magazine) There were also certain women who were soldiers, cooks, nurses,
and also spies during the civil war. Different woman had different roles, but
just could not be the same as men. (
http://www.historynet.com/women-in-the-civil-war)
We were also told to give
a depiction of the attitude towards the federal government. Abe Lincoln had a
way with words and was able to persuade some of both parties to pass the 13th
amendment. He also told lots of stories to get his point across and lighten up
the mood. Usually Lincoln, form what I saw on the film, used his power in
positive ways. He was not perfect but he most certainly was not a bad
individual. I respect Abraham Lincoln for his leadership during his time period
in office.
In conclusion, all of
Lincoln’s hard work and determination passed the 13th amendment and
changed many people’s lives in great ways. I believe although Lincoln made
mistakes we should all admire him for his strong leading role in the United
States of America. Him being a father, an abolitionist, a husband, and
president all at the same time showed his courage and persistence. Lincoln has
made a huge change for our generation and more generations to come in America.
He will always be remembered in American history as one of the most prominent leaders
ever.
