The Unknowns of the Death of Abraham Lincoln

Gavin Willingham

November 27, 2005

Mr. Ward

American History H

The Unknowns of the Death of Abraham Lincoln

In the book The Day Lincoln Was Shot by Jim Bishop the accounts of the before and after are explained in a gripping suspense novel. Lincoln meets with his cabinet and lifts the blockade that has been enforced on the South. John Wilkes Booth and many conspirators plan the kidnap of Abraham Lincoln to regain the control of the South. Once Richmond fell and Lee was forced to surrendered plans were immediately changed. John Wilkes Booth felt there was nothing left to do but kill the president to restore power to the South. Abraham Lincoln plans to attend a new play, Our American Cousin, with his wife. A point is brought up in the book that Lincoln might have known about his assassination before it happened. Lincoln may have had a dream of him getting murdered and known before it ever happened. The book goes on to explain that the plot was not to just kill Lincoln but also the Secretary of State as well as the Vice-President. The Characters in the book included characters that were involved with Lincoln when he was killed. The characters include Lincoln, himself, John Wilkes Booth, Lincoln's different cabinet members, Lincoln's wife Mary Todd, and Booth's coconspirators who include, Samuel Arnold and David Herold. The obvious theme of the novel is to showcase the events that took place before Lincoln's death and to make the reader aware that the murder was a planned out event.

There were many different things going on during the time Lincoln was assassinated. The United States was separated and just ended a Civil War between the Union and the Confederacy. The year was 1865 social unease between the North and South still lingered from the war. Lincoln had earlier departed from his cabinet members after removing the blockade from the South. Lincoln planned on attending a play with his wife and General Grant but Grant had since left town. The President is later killed that night sending the south in a uncontrollable spiral of depression and reconstruction.

The book was written greatly and injected with hard facts in the intense and suspenseful novel. The book contained hard facts and a suspenseful plot that keeps the reader interested