Download or read book Lincoln s Sense of Humor written by Richard Carwardine and published by SIU Press. This book was released on 2017-10-23 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Abraham Lincoln was the first president consistently to make storytelling and laughter tools of office. This book shows how his uses of humor evolved to fit changing personal circumstances, and explores its versatility, range of expressions, and multiple sources"--
Download or read book Lincoln s Sense of Humor written by Richard Carwardine and published by SIU Press. This book was released on 2017-11-02 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner, Abraham Lincoln Institute Book Prize, 2018 Winner, ISHS Annual Award for a Scholarly Publication, 2018 Abraham Lincoln was the first president to make storytelling, jokes, and laughter tools of the office, and his natural sense of humor has become legendary. Lincoln’s Sense of Humor registers the variety, complexity of purpose, and ethical dimension of Lincoln’s humor and pinpoints the political risks Lincoln ran in telling jokes while the nation was engaged in a bloody struggle for existence. Complete with amusing anecdotes, this book shows how Lincoln’s uses of humor evolved as he matured and explores its versatility, range of expressions, and multiple sources: western tall tales, morality stories, bawdy jokes, linguistic tricks, absurdities, political satire, and sharp wit. While Lincoln excelled at self-mockery, nothing gave him greater pleasure than satirical work lampooning hypocrisy and ethical double standards. He particularly enjoyed David R. Locke’s satiric writings by Petroleum V. Nasby, a fictional bigoted secessionist preacher, and the book explores the nuances of Lincoln’s enthusiasm for what he called Locke’s genius, showing the moral springs of Lincoln’s humor. Richard Carwardine methodically demonstrates that Lincoln’s funny stories were the means of securing political or personal advantage, sometimes by frontal assault on opponents but more often by depiction through parable, obfuscation through hilarity, refusal through wit, and diversion through cunning. Throughout his life Lincoln worked to develop the humorist’s craft and hone the art of storytelling. His jokes were valuable in advancing his careers as politician and lawyer and in navigating his course during a storm-tossed presidency. His merriness, however, coexisted with self-absorbed contemplation and melancholy. Humor was his lifeline; dark levity acted as a tonic, giving Lincoln strength to tackle the severe challenges he faced. At the same time, a reputation for unrestrained, uncontrollable humor gave welcome ammunition to his political foes. In fact, Lincoln’s jocularity elicited waves of criticism during his presidency. He was dismissed as a “smutty joker,” a “first rate second rate man,” and a “joke incarnated.” Since his death, Lincoln’s anecdotes and jokes have become detached from the context that had given them their political and cultural bite, losing much of the ironic and satiric meaning that he had intended. With incisive analysis and laugh-inducing examples, Carwardine helps to recapture a strong component of Lincoln’s character and reanimates the good humor of our sixteenth president.
Download or read book Lincoln Tells a Joke written by Kathleen Krull and published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This book was released on 2010-04-01 with total page 45 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Poor Abraham Lincoln! His life was hardly fun at all. A country torn in two by war, citizens who didn’t like him as president, a homely appearance—what could there possibly be to laugh about? And yet he did laugh. Lincoln wasn’t just one of our greatest presidents. He was a comic storyteller and a person who could lighten a grim situation with a clever quip. This unusual biography of Lincoln highlights his life and presidency, focusing on what made his sense of humor so distinctive—and so necessary to surviving his tough life and times.
Download or read book The National Joker written by Todd Nathan Thompson and published by SIU Press. This book was released on 2015-07-08 with total page 195 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Index -- About the Author -- Back Cover
Download or read book Lincoln s Gift written by Gordon Leidner and published by Sourcebooks, Inc.. This book was released on 2015-04-01 with total page 284 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Simply the best book that has been published on this great president's humor and stories...Everyone interested in Abraham Lincoln will want to read this."—William C. Harris, author of Lincoln and the Border States Abraham Lincoln has long been admired for his leadership, honesty, and eloquence. But despite his somber reputation, the sixteenth president was quite funny. With an uncanny ability to mimic others and an irresistible midwestern twang, Lincoln, in fact, could be downright hilarious. Brimming with his funniest quips, jokes, and stories, Lincoln's Gift explores the crucial role humor played throughout his tumultuous professional and private life. Perfect for history buffs and Lincoln enthusiasts alike, this clever and captivating biography reveals how America's greatest president used his lighter side to lead the country through one of its darkest times, the Civil War. "Gordon Leidner ingeniously blends a study of Lincoln's humor with an account of his life, showing how our sixteenth president was not always a 'man of sorrows' but often a man of laughter, capable alike of enjoying as well as telling a good story."—Michael Burlingame, author of Abraham Lincoln: A Life
Download or read book Abe Lincoln s Legacy of Laughter written by Paul M. Zall and published by Univ. of Tennessee Press. This book was released on 2007 with total page 172 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Abraham Lincoln's Legacy of Laughter, a substantial revision of P. M. Zall's 1982 classic, Abe Lincoln Laughing, consists of stories, jokes, and anecdotes on a wide range of topics by and about Abraham Lincoln before and after he became president. Establishing which tales are authentic and which are frauds and delusions, Abraham Lincoln's Legacy of Laughter includes stories derived from Lincoln's writings and speeches; writings by others up to April 1865; post-Civil War writings by those who knew him; and writings by others about Lincoln in later decades, including a sample from the twentieth century. Within each group, entries are arranged in the order they appeared in print. The volume contains notes, a bibliography, an index of the entries by section, and a subject index.
Download or read book Lincoln written by Richard Carwardine and published by Vintage. This book was released on 2007-01-09 with total page 662 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As a defender of national unity, a leader in war, and the emancipator of slaves, Abraham Lincoln lays ample claim to being the greatest of our presidents. But the story of his rise to greatness is as complex as it is compelling. In this superb, prize-winning biography, acclaimed historian Richard Carwardine examines Lincoln’s dramatic political journey, from his early years in the Illinois legislature to his nation-shaping years in the White House. Here, Carwardine combines a new perspective with a compelling narrative to deliver a fresh look at one of the pillars of American politics. He probes the sources of Lincoln’s moral and political philosophy and uses his groundbreaking research to cut through the myth and expose the man behind it.
Download or read book Lincoln s Melancholy written by Joshua Wolf Shenk and published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This book was released on 2006-10-02 with total page 538 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A nuanced psychological portrait of Abraham Lincoln that finds his legendary political strengths rooted in his most personal struggles. Giving shape to the deep depression that pervaded Lincoln's adult life, Joshua Wolf Shenk’s Lincoln’s Melancholy reveals how this illness influenced both the President’s character and his leadership. Mired in personal suffering as a young man, Lincoln forged a hard path toward mental health. Shenk draws on seven years of research from historical record, interviews with Lincoln scholars, and contemporary research on depression to understand the nature of Lincoln’s unhappiness. In the process, Shenk discovers that the President’s coping strategies—among them, a rich sense of humor and a tendency toward quiet reflection—ultimately helped him to lead the nation through its greatest turmoil. A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice SELECTED AS A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Washington Post Book World, Atlanta Journal-Constituion, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette As Featured on the History Channel documentary Lincoln “Fresh, fascinating, provocative.”—Sanford D. Horwitt, San Francisco Chronicle “Some extremely beautiful prose and fine political rhetoric and leaves one feeling close to Lincoln, a considerable accomplishment.”—Andrew Solomon, New York Magazine “A profoundly human and psychologically important examination of the melancholy that so pervaded Lincoln's life.”—Kay Redfield Jamison, Ph.D., author of An Unquiet Mind
Download or read book Abraham Lincoln in the Kitchen written by Rae Katherine Eighmey and published by Smithsonian Institution. This book was released on 2014-02-04 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Abraham Lincoln in the Kitchen is a culinary biography unlike any before. The very assertion of the title--that Abraham Lincoln cooked--is fascinating and true. It's an insight into the everyday life of one of our nation's favorite and most esteemed presidents and a way to experience flavors and textures of the past. Eighmey solves riddles such as what type of barbecue could be served to thousands at political rallies when paper plates and napkins didn't exist, and what gingerbread recipe could have been Lincoln's childhood favorite when few families owned cookie cutters and he could carry the cookies in his pocket. Through Eighmey's eyes and culinary research and experiments--including sleuthing for Lincoln's grocery bills in Springfield ledgers and turning a backyard grill into a cast-iron stove--the foods that Lincoln enjoyed, cooked, or served are translated into modern recipes so that authentic meals and foods of 1820-1865 are possible for home cooks. Feel free to pull up a chair to Lincoln's table.
Download or read book Humor That Works written by Andrew Tarvin and published by . This book was released on 2012-11-13 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author presents a collection of ways to reap the proven human and corporate benefits of humor at work, organized by core business skill and founded on his own work as a business speaker and coach with the consulting company, Humor That Works.
Download or read book Abraham Lincoln s Humor written by and published by Courier Dover Publications. This book was released on 2021-01-13 with total page 177 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of jokes and yarns reflects the homespun humor Lincoln developed as a traveling lawyer, which later proved an effective tool for negotiating policy, gaining influence, and imparting moral lessons.
Download or read book Abe Lincoln s Yarns and Stories written by Alexander Kelly McClure and published by . This book was released on 1901 with total page 476 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Lincoln written by Gore Vidal and published by Vintage. This book was released on 2011-04-13 with total page 673 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Lincoln is the cornerstone of Gore Vidal's fictional American chronicle, which includes Burr, 1876, Washington, D.C., Empire, and Hollywood. It opens early on a frozen winter morning in 1861, when President-elect Abraham Lincoln slips into Washington, flanked by two bodyguards. The future president is in disguise, for there is talk of a plot to murder him. During the next four years there will be numerous plots to murder this man who has sworn to unite a disintegrating nation. Isolated in a ramshackle White House in the center of a proslavery city, Lincoln presides over a fragmenting government as Lee's armies beat at the gates. In this profoundly moving novel, a work of epic proportions and intense human sympathy, Lincoln is observed by his loved ones and his rivals. The cast of characters is almost Dickensian: politicians, generals, White House aides, newspapermen, Northern and Southern conspirators, amiably evil bankers, and a wife slowly going mad. Vidal's portrait of the president is at once intimate and monumental, stark and complex, drawn with the wit, grace, and authority of one of the great historical novelists. With a new Introduction by the author.
Download or read book The National Joker written by Todd Nathan Thompson and published by SIU Press. This book was released on 2015-07-08 with total page 195 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Abraham Lincoln’s sense of humor proved legendary during his own time and remains a celebrated facet of his personality to this day. Indeed, his love of jokes—hearing them, telling them, drawing morals from them—prompted critics to dub Lincoln “the National Joker.” The political cartoons and print satires that mocked Lincoln often trafficked in precisely the same images and terms Lincoln humorously used to characterize himself. In this intriguing study, Todd Nathan Thompson considers the politically productive tension between Lincoln’s use of satire and the satiric treatments of him in political cartoons, humor periodicals, joke books, and campaign literature. By fashioning a folksy, fallible persona, Thompson shows, Lincoln was able to use satire as a weapon without being severely wounded by it. In his speeches, writings, and public persona, Lincoln combined modesty and attack, engaging in strategic self-deprecation while denouncing his opponents, their policies, and their arguments, thus refiguring satiric discourse as political discourse and vice versa. At the same time, he astutely deflected his opponents’ criticisms of him by embracing and sometimes preemptively initiating those criticisms. Thompson traces Lincoln’s comic sources and explains how, in reapplying others’ jokes and stories to political circumstances, he transformed humor into satire. Time and time again, Thompson shows, Lincoln engaged in self-mockery, turning negative assumptions or depictions of him—as ugly, cowardly, jocular, inexperienced—into positive traits that identified him as an everyman while attacking his opponents’ claims to greatness, heroism, and experience as aristocratic or demagogic. Thompson also considers how Lincoln took advantage of political cartoons and other media to help proliferate the particular Lincoln image of the “self-made man”; underscores exceptions to Lincoln’s ability to mitigate negative, satiric depictions of him; and closely examines political cartoons from both the 1860 and 1864 elections. Throughout, Thompson’s deft analysis brings to life Lincoln’s popular humor.
Download or read book Abraham Lincoln as a Man of Ideas written by Allen C. Guelzo and published by SIU Press. This book was released on 2009-01-26 with total page 231 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite the most meager of formal educations, Lincoln had a tremendous intellectual curiosity that drove him into the circle of Enlightenment philosophy and democratic political ideology. And from these, Lincoln developed a set of political convictions that guided him throughout his life and his presidency. This compilation of ten essays from Lincoln scholar Allen C. Guelzo uncovers the hidden sources of Lincoln’s ideas and examines the beliefs that directed his career and brought an end to slavery and the Civil War.
Download or read book Lincoln s Smile and Other Enigmas written by Alan Trachtenberg and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2007 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Lincoln's Smile demonstrates why Alan Trachtenberg has been the leading scholar in American studies for more than four decades." --Casey Nelson Blake, Columbia University. Alan Trachtenberg has always been interested in cultural artifacts that register meanings and feelings that Americans share even when they disagree about them. Some of the most beloved ones--like the famous last photograph of Abraham Lincoln, taken at the time of his second inaugural--are downright puzzling, and it is their obscure, riddlelike aspects that draw his attention in the scintillating essays of Lincoln's Smile and Other Enigmas. With matchless authority, Trachtenberg moves from daguerreotypes to literary texts to subjects as diverse as Louis Sullivan's Auditorium Building, the Brooklyn Bridge, and the early works of Lewis Mumford.
Download or read book Why Lincoln Laughed written by Russell H. Conwell and published by The Floating Press. This book was released on 2015-05-01 with total page 88 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Though he would later achieve widespread acclaim as a popular minister and writer, when he was a young man serving in the Union army, Russell Conwell had a chance encounter with then-President Lincoln. Over the course of their conversation, Conwell was able to gain a great deal of insight into Lincoln's unique personality and sense of humor. His recollections of their chat are presented in this charming volume.
