Journal: Lies My Teacher Told Me (Ch. 6-John Brown and Abraham Lincon)

Sanne Bergh
Professor Lankford
Eng. 48A
Sept. 30, 2011

Author Quote
"Quite possibly textbooks should not portray this murderer [John Brown] as a hero, though other murderers, from Christopher Columbus to Nat Turner, get the heroic treatment" (180).

Internet Quote

"He [James W. Lowen] concluded that no one textbook does a decent job of making history interesting, memorable nor does any single textbook provide accurate documentation.

He believes that history should not be taught as straightforward facts and dates to memorize, but rather analysis of the context and root causes of events. Loewen recommends that teachers use two textbooks, so that students may realize the contradictions and ask questions, such as, "Why do the authors present the material like this?"

Brief Summary

Historians have often referred to John Brown as a crazy, fanatical, insane man who simply did not have all his nuts and bolts. This derives from the fact that he was zealous and passionate about the abolition of slavery, which was controversial at the time considering he was a man of no color. A man of religion, he is compared Nat Turner and other martyrs who gave their life to end slavery. However, Lowen argues that John Brown did not receive the credit nor the appreciation he deserved in textbooks written thus far. On the contrary, Loewen claims that Lincon receives too much credit when it comes to his views and opinions on slavery; it was not the sole reason why the Civil War was initiated. Although slavery was a main issue that depended heavily on the results of the war, the soldiers were, in fact, fighting for different reasons. The North and South fought for reasons that did not concern slavery. The North wanted to fight for the preservation of the Union, while the South wanted to make decisions for themselves.

Reaction/Criticism

This chapter in Lie My Teacher Told Me, changes my mind on what the Civil War constituted. My ideas about what John Brown and what he actually did for the cause of abolition of slavery were impacted because I was kept in the dark. Nat Turner was the one who had the "visions" and was probably more insane than John Brown. Turner also committed murder, yet, as a black man he is considered to be a martyr for his people. It's a great shame that because John Brown is white, historians cannot commiserate with his motives. Loewen writes that only a few words were published in the eighteen textbooks that he studied. How can historians make such criticisms about a man without giving opposing views, such as from John Brown himself.

I feel that this book does a good job of exploring all the possibilities within history that students do not necessarily have the opportunity to read about. 

I always believed that Abraham Lincon deserved his nickname of "Honest Abe", this chapter sheds light on his true intentions of the Civil War. The country was in chaos and as president, he needed to bring equality to both the country and to the people. The segregated populations in the South were rebelling against the President, which in itself, is enough reason to start war. In my opinion, the abolition of slavery was a side benefit to the North's success in the Civil War.