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BEFORE YOU WRITE: Consider and reflect upon what you have read in “Lincoln’s Dreams of Death, Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer, and “Serving the Lord and Abe Lincoln’s Spirit,” and Give Me Liberty! (especially Chapters 14-15) and any primary source documents that Dr. Barr has sent you either through D2L or given to you in class or provided links to in this review. Also, there are primary sources at the back of the book Manhunt – Booth’s Diary, for instance – that you should include in your response.
Each part below warrants one detailed paragraph, or 4 total.
Part I:
Discuss the significance of Abraham Lincoln’s dreams of death as explored in Jonathan White’s chapter “Lincoln’s Dreams of Death.” How do these dreams shed light on Lincoln’s – and Americans! – psyche during the Civil War?
Now, in addition to White’s chapter, examine how Swanson portrays Abraham Lincoln in Manhunt. How does he help the reader – you! – to know who Abraham Lincoln was as a person, both before and after his murder (I know that sounds strange, but how were people’s views of Lincoln changed because of the manner and timing of his death)? What effect do these methods of portrayal have on the book’s inherent themes and messages? Use concrete details from the text to support your claims.
Part II:
How is the theme of Booth’s performance portrayed within Manhunt? Examine James L. Swanson’s treatment of actors and their professions, the antagonist’s (e.g. Booth) acting career, and the theme of appearance versus reality throughout the book. Support your points with concrete details from the text.
Part III:
Discuss Swanson’s decision to include a variety of primary documents within the text (especially and at the end of the book in an Appendix with Booth’s diary and numerous photographs). What purpose did he have, do you think, in including these in the narrative? Did it strengthen his work? Explain. Back up your strong, specific claim about the author’s use of primary documents with concrete details from the book.
Part IV:
Analyze the role of religious faith and spirituality in the aftermath of Lincoln’s assassination, drawing from the insights provided in Manhunt and “Serving the Lord and Abe Lincoln’s Spirit.” According to Barr and Silkenat, how did the ex-slaves react to Lincoln’s life, and how did they “remember” him over the decades after the Civil War concluded?
How do all these readings shed light on how difficult it is to know what actually happened in the past? What do you need in order to write and even understand history?