The men and women who shaped our world—in their own words.
The Wisdom Library invites you on a journey through the lives and works of the world’s greatest thinkers and leaders. Compiled by scholars, this series presents excerpts from the most important and revealing writings of the most remarkable minds of all time.
THE WISDOM OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN
“A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
—Abraham Lincoln
Politician. Statesman. Civil rights leader. Literary craftsman. For a century and a half, the life—and words—of 16th president, Abraham Lincoln, have been praised as a shining example of American leadership. But Lincoln’s path to greatness was a humble one. The son of a frontier farmer, Lincoln was largely self-educated. When he took the national stage as a politician, his simple, straightforward prose was revolutionary for its time—resonating with men and women from all walks of life. In fact, with his “jogtrot prose, compacted of words and phrases still with the bark on,” Lincoln almost single-handedly changed the way the English language is spoken in America. And while he will always be remembered as the man dedicated to restoring a shattered Union, and—with the Thirteenth Amendment—freeing slaves, Lincoln was also one of the greatest communicators this country has ever seen. Now, in this one essential volume, excerpts have been collected from all of Lincoln’s finest documents, letters, and, of course, speeches like his famous Gettysburg Address. The Wisdom of Abraham Lincoln pays tribute to the president and patriot who, through both his words and deeds, changed the course of history.
