Lincoln was an extremely complex man, in that he not only composed inspiring, insightful speeches such as the Gettysburg Address and the Second Inaugural Address, but he also told homely jokes and stories.
Much has been written on this subject, but it is commonly understood by historians that Mary Todd suffered from prolonged bouts of depression, and there is some conjecture that she suffered from bipolar disorder. Her depression was largely a result of the deaths of two children from sickness and four of her Kentucky half-brothers, killed in the war.
Although Lincoln was an extremely patient, generous individual and was extremely popular among his associates, Mary was frequently difficult to get along with. Lincoln's role as a father Lincoln was definitely an indulgent Father to his son, Tad.
While Robert was young, Lincoln had been away from their Springfield, Illinois home a great deal, travelling the 8th Judicial Circuit as a lawyer. When he was older, Robert had been absent from the home as well, attending either preparatory school or Harvard. After Robert graduated from Harvard, he did in fact pressure his parents to allow him to enter the army. Grant was happy to comply, and Robert became a respected, dutiful officer in the closing months of the war.
Incidentally, he was the only Lincoln son to survive to adulthood. There is one scene in the movie between Lincoln and Robert that is pure Hollywood, however. There is no documented evidence that Lincoln ever slapped his son Robert Todd, and to do so would have been very unlike Lincoln's nature. Lincoln, when a boy, was occasionally slapped by his own father.
Hence, Lincoln's aversion to what he called parental "tyranny. Spielberg's Lincoln movie was correct on Thaddeus Stevens in every aspect except one. Edit Lincoln Jump to: Summaries 5 Synopsis 1. The synopsis below may give away important plot points.
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Clear your history. His political capital, though great, is a deteriorating asset, and as the civil war grinds on, Lincoln begins his second term wishing to stake it all on rushing through a constitutional amendment abolishing slavery before defeating the South. To get it through the system, he must do business with truculent radical Thaddeus Stevens Tommy Lee Jones , and at the same time entreat conservative Republican Preston Blair Hal Holbrook for his faction's votes.
Blair's condition is that Lincoln must swallow his pride and accept, or appear to accept, some sort of secret, provisional peace mission from the rebels in Virginia, a risky gesture that the president must conceal from his trusted secretary of state, William Seward David Strathairn.
Dangerous evasions and compromises are made, but the rebels stay strong; they do not surrender as Lincoln hopes and the awful, unthinkable truth is that he may have to abandon his anti-slavery amendment as a sop to get them to talk peace, end the bloodshed and preserve the Union. Has he gambled and lost? There are some heartstoppingly good setpieces. The moment in which Lincoln has to raise the flag outside a naval building, after a short, self-deprecating speech that he has written on a piece of paper — kept in his hat — is a superbly managed scene: modest, undramatic, gently comic.
Sally Field is outstanding as Lincoln's wife, nursing rage and hurt that almost boils over as she must bandy words at a White House reception with Stevens, whom she detests: Spielberg shows Abraham in the background, chatting diplomatically but then noticing how Mrs Lincoln is about to damage his chances with a key ally. On two occasions, we see a flash of anger from the president, when his son Robert Joseph Gordon-Levitt wants to join the army against his parents' wishes, and when his wife confronts him about the unmentionable subject of their late son, and their unspeakable burden of grief and guilt.
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