Address At Milwaukee, Wisconsin (pgs. 235-237)

In these few pages, Lincoln reflects on how needed education is.    He explains various subjects and how they aid the avid farmer in his daily tasks such as chemistry, botany, and natural philosophy.  Lincoln thinks an uncultivated mind is a dangerous thing.  He believes this will lead to a particularly grim existence.  He finishes his thoughts by explaining how reading aids this process.  Put together a civilized society he explains will have much less need for war.  Lincoln thinks if people are educated they are much less likely to be taken advantage of.  I think Lincoln was correct in his assumption.  Education has been and I believe will continue to be a key role in American society.  Thinking of a population of uneducated minds is a scary thing I think, as did Lincoln. 

First Inaugural Address

Lincoln’s first inaugural address starts largely with an attempt to ease the minds of Southerners.  Lincoln reassures Southerners that he is not an enemy to the institution of slavery.  He points out a slave who escapes from a slave state to a free state is not automatically freed from his duties.  He is to remain a slave until his duties are fulfilled.  I think most people respected Lincoln because he refused to construe the applicable laws in order to meet his political favor.  Lincoln was successful in part because of his ability to make political calculations without seeming dishonest.  Lincoln was aware of the volatile situation that could and ultimately did arise between conflicting parties.  While most other Presidents would have lost a great deal of respect after one of the bloodiest wars in history, Lincoln is able to convey his message in a way that allowed everyone to understand the deep consideration he gave to the situation.

Chp. 21, pgs 634-636

Chapter 21, Tocqueville explains “why great revolutions will become rare.”  His introducing thoughts explain why, although democracy is an ever changing entity, it does not mean radical changes.  Tocqueville explains that because each man has the ability to choose his path, the need for revolution becomes less necessary.  He says “almost every revolution which has changed the shape of nations has been made to consolidate or destroy inequality.”  Our nation’s history proves Tocqueville’s thinking was right on target.   It made me reflect on the events leading up to the Civil War.  In order for American’s to have this quintessential democracy Tocqueville speaks of, segregation needed to be abolished.  Our nation changed because of the Civil War, and it was sparked because of the desire to demolish the inequality between blacks and whites.  Tocqueville concludes his opening thoughts in saying there will always be the poor, rich, and somewhere in between.  The ability for every average person to better their circumstances will prevent the “great revolution” from beginning.

Chp. 17, Tocqueville

Chapter 17, in the reading today only made me think partly how ahead Tocqueville was in his thinking.  He talks about money being the driving force behind a man’s ambition.  If not the sole purpose for his work it definitely plays an immediate role not far behind.  If Tocqueville were alive today I am sure he would not be surprised at the way greed has taken over the American mind for some.  He displays America as passionless and driven by their desires to acquire wealth.  I have to wonder though if Tocqueville associated himself with any other men besides the rich he writes about.  I do not get the feeling from most historians everyone in America was prosperous simultaneously.  He paints this picture of a wealthy society in which people cannot seem to get satisfaction from anything but money.  But what about early American’s who would never know what it was like to possess enough money to get by let alone become rich.  I am sure they received satisfaction in other ways with their lives. Therefore, it is here I tend to disagree with the remainder of his thoughts.  Tocqueville says “Variety is disappearing from the human race; the same ways of behaving, thinking, and feeling are found in every corner of the world.”  Examining our world today this statement is only half true.  While most of the world is making feverish attempts at becoming more civilized I would have to argue America is still ahead of most.  We have advanced in areas of math and science for which I am sure Tocqueville could have never predicted.  Successes that may be in part driven by money but I would argue not the sole purpose of the pursuit.