Reading Fiction As an Act of Resistance: A Conversation with Azar Nafisi
We need fiction because fiction does not polarize. Fiction is based on understanding over judgment.
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Posts Tagged: Abraham Lincoln
Rumpus Exclusive: Excerpts from Execute the Office
I am standing at the entrance to American History.
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Reclaiming History from the Bigots: Jill Lepore’s This America
History itself is not so conveniently tidy, and neither is this book.
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Welcome to South Bend: The South Bend Fugitive Slave Case
You have shown no proof of your claim. This family may go free.
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Writing History
I was pretty sure I could produce a manuscript superior to anything [this editor had] ever published before by letting my cat walk over my keyboard a few times.
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Stitching America Back Together: A Long Late Pledge by Wendy Willis
It is late for our country. We must look back in dialogue with the founders, examine a patched-together country, an embattled flag, and consider how to stop floundering.
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A Way to Make Sense of the World with Suzanne Buffam
Poet Suzanne Buffam discusses her latest work, A Pillow Book, sleep remedies that don’t work, and the worries that occupy her mind and keep her from sleep.
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The Storming Bohemian Punks the Muse #19: Are YOU My Hero?
This week, I’ve found myself thinking about heroism. What makes a hero, anyway? Who should we choose for our heroes? When I was around fourteen, I developed a hero crush on W. C. Fields, of all people! I was delighted when I read about the time he and John Barrymore gave a ride to a […]
...moreThe Rumpus Interview with George Saunders
George Saunders discusses his new (and first) novel Lincoln in the Bardo, Donald Trump, and a comprehensive theory of literature.
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The Saturday Rumpus Essay: O Martyr My Martyr!
In most communities, teachers are compensated so poorly and afforded so little respect that in many cases the primary compensation is martyrdom.
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The Rumpus Interview with Robert Repino
Robert Repino talks about his debut novel, Mort(e), the publishing industry, science fiction and literary fiction, writing about religion, and how to write about complex chemical ant languages.
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The Rumpus Late Nite Poetry Show: Beth Bachmann
In Episode 8 of The Rumpus Late Nite Poetry Show, poet Beth Bachmann chats about her new collection, Do Not Rise, Dolly Parton, and the demands of lyric poetry.
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Anthony Trollope’s Controversial American Christmas
Trollope cheerfully turned up and enjoyed and a convivial dinner in the company of men who, that very morning, had been deciding whether to go to war with his country.
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“Congressman Lincoln,” by Chris DeRose
On August 3, 1846, the day Abraham Lincoln won election to his only term in Congress, the gangly, 37-year-old country lawyer was unknown outside his Illinois district. America was a country of 28 states, largely unsettled west of the Mississippi. Political divisions were framed by non-regional differences on economic issues—tariffs, the national bank, the federal […]
...moreAnd in This Corner…The Emancipator!
Previously, we blogged about how Abraham Lincoln grew his trademark beard partly because of a letter from a little girl. As it turns out, that’s not the only surprising biographical fact about Lincoln; he was also an avid wrestler, as this in-depth article on none other than WWE.com will tell you. A preview: “We know […]
...moreGreat Moments in Historical Cuteness
Let’s all take a moment to appreciate the fact that Abraham Lincoln grew that iconic beard of his because a little girl asked him to in a letter. “I have got 4 brothers and part of them will vote for you any way,” reads part of 11-year-old Grace Bedell’s note to the Republican presidential candidate, […]
...moreMary Todd Lincoln: The Controversial First Lady
Mary Todd Lincoln was no Jackie Kennedy. Although Mary Lincoln is often portrayed as being consumed by aristocratic airs, she hardly fit in with the upper-class. She spent hefty sums of money on custom tailored dresses to “look the part;” but her fashion choices were often scoffed at, and she is far from being remembered […]
...moreThursday, November 19, 1863
149 years ago today, Abraham Lincoln delivered a brief but monumental speech that would come to be known as “The Gettysburg Address.”
...moreWhen the Wall Between Church and State Fell
The Daily Beast has a fascinating post about a mostly forgotten moment in American history: the time General Ulysses S. Grant “wrote out an order banishing all Jews throughout his entire command.” It involves contraband cotton, Grant’s conflict with his own father, and an apocryphal appeal to Abraham Lincoln. But there’s a twist happy ending!
...moreAbraham Lincoln: Facebook Inventor
In 1845, Abraham Lincoln tried–and failed–to patent the The Springfield Gazette, a personal paper with striking similarities to our modern day Book of Faces. Here’s the full story. “He went on to propose that ‘each Man may decide if he shall make his page Available to the entire Town, or only to those with whom […]
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