Be Careful Not to Plagairize Essay - 666 Words

According to the Harvard Guide to Use Sources, it is considered plagiarism if you use a language or report and turn it in as your own without appropriately crediting the sources used. On the sources that you used to gather information, if you can not locate the author, make sure to scroll down and look everywhere for an author. If you cannot locate an author, make sure that you appropriately cite the website in your bibliography. Although it may seem obvious, while you use the Internet to gather information, you need to be extra wary about where you gathered your information because you can mistakenly plagiarize. Although it may have been a mistake, you still take the consequences because you DID commit plagiarism and there is nothing†¦show more content†¦An extremely helpful way to avoid mosaic plagiarism is by keeping track of your ideas and the ideas that you have gathered from your source(s). It is advisable to write down the ideas that belong to you and the ideas that y ou have gathered through your research on separate papers labeled differently. Inadequate paraphrasing is also an easy way to commit plagiarism. In order to paraphrase, you need to change more than just a couple of words. When you re-write it, if it is too close to the original, then you are plagiarizing. According to the Harvard Guide of Using Sources, while you write your paraphrased statement, it may help if you put away the source that you used. If you can not express the meaning you are intending to convey, you can write the authors statement in verbatim and put the statement in quotation marks and apply the appropriate citation. Next, you will learn about an Uncited Paraphrase. When you paraphrase another persons sentence or article, that information still belongs to them even though you paraphrased it. It is not adequate to just source your material, but you also have to cite the source even if you have paraphrased extremely well because the idea(s) still belong to the author (s). A rule of thumb is that if you did not come up with the idea(s) yourself, you need to cite the source because you were not the person who introduced that piece of article which means you need to use the appropriate citations. Very similar to an Uncited

My Experience At High School - 1120 Words

Currently, my academic journey has been filled with very difficult trials and tests of my resilience. During high school, I was not very motivated or responsible when it came to academics. I did not believe in my intellectual capabilities and did not consider college as an option for me. None of my friends or family had been to college; so I did not see it as a likely avenue for me as well. In my experience, graduating high school was a major accomplishment within my family and nothing more was expected of you. After graduation, I realized that I did not want to work at my physically intensive job anymore and discovered I should work with my brain instead of my back. Consequently, I enrolled at the local community college and took a full schedule. It was difficult, because I had very little guidance and had to figure everything out on my own. I had to motivate myself continue and not become despaired or frustrated by being unfamiliar with the process. I had to re-learn how to manage my time and study efficiently, since I worked full time and had to fit everything into a tight schedule. With the help of some very intelligent and caring professors, I found my academic potential and learned the necessary skills to compete in a university setting. Eventually, I received my Associate of Arts degree and immediately transferred to The University of Colorado Denver. Through my entire academic journey, I have displayed my intense motivation towards successfully completing my degree.Show MoreRelatedMy Experience In High School952 Words   |  4 Pages High school is a time where young minded teenagers are encouraged to explore their interests and what type of character they want to become when graduation rolls in. My high school experience was an interesting time with choices that have changed my life and some that I wish I could take back. Looking back at my high school career there were some moments where I made the correct choice and some that I wish didnt happen at all. A choice I made at the age of seventeen reminds me of how foolish andRead MoreMy High School Experience1016 Words   |  5 PagesHigh school is an educational and eye-opening place for adolescents and young adults, and is ultimately the last checkpoint some people have before they transition into the adult world. After high school, students are often expected to completely fend for themselves. The transition for many students is complicated and confusing. For this reason, one series of high school experiences I have had that stick out clearly in my mind as a step away from my childish behaviors to my more adult-like ones areRead MoreMy Experience At High School862 Words   |  4 PagesMy mom and I were driving home from my club volleyball practice when I broke down in tears due to stress. High school class registration was coming up and I still had no idea whether or not I wanted to do band or volleyball in high school. Being a 14 year old in 8th grade, I never thought that I would have to make such a colossal decision that would affect my life forever. I only had 2 more days to decide how I would present myself in the new world of high school popularity, and I had no idea whetherRead MoreMy High School Experience1060 Words   |  5 PagesHigh school can be a difficult journey in one’s life. Teenagers create drama, teachers stress out students with an abundance of homework, and sometimes procrastination defeats the high schoolers will to get work done. Despite all of that, high school is great; one must look at the little momen ts, the fun times, and the friends throughout. Arnold Spirit, Jr. had an atypical freshman year in Sherman Alexie’s novel â€Å"The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian,† and taught many lessons throughoutRead MoreMy Experience At High School991 Words   |  4 Pagesimprovement throughout my school experience. I’ve learned how to break a lot of bad studying habits I had in high school and taught myself how to become a better student with new studying mechanisms, time management, and how to balance all my classes out equally. Every semester is a new chance to improve on how to become a more successful student. High school were four years of my life that I had a lack of motivation to do school work, I didn’t put as much effort into learning. My studying habits wouldRead MoreMy Experience At High School849 Words   |  4 PagesThe experiences I have gained during these long four years of high school have shaped me into the young adult I am. I have had to learn many lessons about myself and friends. Many failures have had to be taken in stride, and I am glad to say that I overcome and dealt with them all in the name of evolution. Many of the hardest lessons I have had to learn about myself, I learned them in Terry High School. I was used to being able to excel easily, and this was not the case all of the time in my highRead MoreMy Experience At High School1296 Words   |  6 Pagesgraduated high school and I was still seventeen. I had applied to colleges throughout my senior year just to show my parents that I was doing it. I honestly had no idea what I wanted to do after high school, which was my first change. There are unlimited paths to take once you graduate high school, I did not know which one was for me. I had friends who all had a path they wanted to go down and accomplish, and most of them to this day are still on that path. As for me, I have changed my mind overRead MoreMy Experience At High School Essay1726 Words   |  7 Pages Suddenly my senior year of high school was coming to an end, and I found myself looking for a job for the summer. College cost increase every year and I knew that if I w anted extra spending money, I would have to contribute. Summer employment is a great way to earn extra money plus, I am a person who likes to stay busy, and I realized having a job during the break would help accomplish both. Having played multiple sports in high school, I was always doing something throughout my day and I knew IRead MoreMy Experience At High School1012 Words   |  5 PagesThroughout my life, I’ve experienced periods of time where my interest in an activity would peak. Sometimes it was a television show, other times a game, and, on rare occasions a class I had at school. When I first got to high school, I was unsure how it would shape me as I grew into an adult. Before going to my first day at high school though, I had my first day somewhere else: Millstone trails, where I would spend much of my next four years after school running for cross country practice. I hadRead MoreMy Experience In High School1294 Words   |  6 PagesEach year of school you meet n ew people and experience new lessons. The school year comes with many hardships and downfalls, but it also comes with some good times. For me personally, freshman year was the not only the toughest year of school to get good grades, it also had some of my most traumatizing life experiences and lessons. Freshman year was not all bad though. For example, I met many new people that I cherish dearly in life and made solid relationships with new friends, teachers, and

Essay On Racism Example For Students

Essay On Racism As societies become more complex a complex change came about. The social system elevated entire categories of people above others, providing one segment of the population with a disproportionate share of money, power and schooling. To a considerable degree, the class system in the United States rewards individual talent and effort. But, our class system also retains elements of a caste system; Ascribed status greatly influences what we become later in life. Nothing affects social standings in the United States as much as our birth into a particular family, something, which we have no control over. Being born to privilege or poverty sets the stage for our future schooling, occupation and income. Research suggests that at least half of the richest individuals, those with hundreds of millions of dollars in wealth, received their fortunes primarily from inheritance. By the same token, the inheritance of poverty and the lack of opportunity that goes with it just as surely shape the future for those in need. People of both sexes are born into families at every social level. Yet, on average, women earn lower income, accumulate less wealth, enjoy lower occupational prestige, and place lower in some areas of educational achievement than men do. Households headed by women are ten times more likely to be poor than those headed by men. Women make $0.75 for every $1.00 that men make. Race is strongly connected to social position in the United States. Overall, white people have higher occupational standing than African Americans, and they receive more schooling, especially at the college level and beyond. These differences are evident in median income: African American families earned $26,522 in 1998, which is just 59 percent of the $44,756 earned by white families. Higher income is a key reason that 77 percent of white families are more likely to own their own home, than black families, 49 percent. Another reason for the racial disparity involves family patterns. African American families with children are three times more likely than their white counterparts to have only one parent in the home. Single-parenthood is a strong predictor of low family income. Ethnicity, as well as race, shapes social stratification in the United States. Throughout our nations history, people of English ancestry controlled the most wealth and wielded the greatest power. The rapidly g rowing Latino population in the United States, by contrast, has long been relatively disadvantaged. In 1996,a median income Hispanic family was $26,179, which is 58 percent of the comparable figures for all white people. Religion has a bearing on social standing in the United States. Among Protestant denominations, with which almost two-thirds of individuals identify in the U.S., Episcopalians and Presbyterians have significantly higher social standing, on average, than Lutherans and Baptists. Jewish people too, have high social standing, while Roman Catholics hold a more modest position. Families in the upper class, 5 percent of the U.S. population, earn more than $100,000 annually and may even earn ten times that much. Many members of the upper class work as top corporate executives or senior government officials. Typically, upper class people attend the most expensive and highly regarded schools and colleges. Historically, though less so today, the upper class has been composted of white Anglo-Saxton Protestants (WASP). The upper class often describes as society or blue bloods, included less than 1 percent o the U.S. Population. Members of the upper class are set apart by their wealth and live in a world of exclusives neighborhoods. Women of the upper-upper class often maintain a full schedule of volunteer work for chartable organizations. Most upper class people actually fall into the lower-upper class. Lower0upers are the working rich who depend on earnings rather than inherited wealth as the primary source of their income. There are the new rich who can never sa vor the prestige enjoyed by this with rich and famous grandparents. For example the Rockefellers would tend to look down upon someone like Bill Gates. The American Dream has been to be successful enough to join the lower-upper class. The color of money is the same for everyone, but black and white affluence differs in several respects. First, well-off people of African decent are not a rich as their white counterparts. Also, affluent people of color contend with social barriers that do no restrict whites. Even African Americans with the money to purchase a home, for example, may find that they are unwelcome as neighbors in certain neighborhoods. .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 , .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 .postImageUrl , .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 , .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1:hover , .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1:visited , .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1:active { border:0!important; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1:active , .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1 .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u5a61a70dd7de536a23537dfc4aac97f1:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Health Fitness EssayEncompassing 40 to 45 percent of the U.S. population, the large middle class exerts a tremendous influence on U.S. culture. Television shows middle-class people, and most commercial advertising is directed toward these average consumers. The middle class contains for more racial and ethnic diversity that the upper class. The top half of this category is often termed the upper-middle class, based on above-average income in the range of $50,000 to $100,000. This income allows them to have a comfortable house in a fairly expensive area, several automobiles, and investments. Two-thirds of upper-middle class children receive a college education. The upper-mi ddle class often plays an important role in local political affairs. The rest of the middle class fall close to the center of the U.S. class structure. People in the middle-class typically work in less prestigious white-collar occupations or in highly skilled blue-collar jobs. Household income is between $35,000 to $50,000 a year. Middle class men and women are likely to be high school graduates, but just four in ten young people at this class level attend college. About one third of our population is working class. They have less income and little or no accumulated wealth. The blue-collar occupations of the working class produce a household income of between $15,000 and $35,000 a year, somewhat below the national average. About half the working class families own their homes, usually in less sought-after neighborhoods, and college is a goal that only about one-third of working class children realize. The remaining twenty percent of our population make up the lower class. A lack of work and little income makes their lives unstable and insecure. 13.7 percent of the population is defined as poor. Working-poor are just barely better off, working at low-prestige jobs that provide minimal income. Barely half of people at this class level manage to complete high school, and only one in four ever reach the college level. Today the burden of poverty falls most heavily on children. 20.5 percent of people under age eighteen were classified as poor. Two-thirds of all poor people are white; about 27 percent are African Americans. African Americans are about three times are likely as white people to be poor. The poverty gap between whites and minorities has remained essentially unchanged since 1975. Of the U.S. poor over age eighteen, 62.7 percent are women and 37.3 percent are men. Women who head households bear the brunt of poverty. Of all poor families, 54 percent are headed by women with no husband present, while just seven percent of poor families are headed by single men. White people usually in a more privileged position to begin with, have been more upwardly mobile than Africans or Hispanics in recent decades. Women also tend to have less opportunity for upward mobility as well, since the majority of women tended toward clerical or service positions. These positions tend towards little advancements. When a marriage ends in divorce (as roughly as 50% do) women commonly experience a downward movement, with the loss of income and a host of benefits, including health care coverage and insurance benefits. Social mobility is common in the United States. However there are only small changes from on generation to the next. Without an aristocracy, many people feel that they have a chance at the American Dream since Americans believe in the idea of All men are created equal statistics show, however, that not all men are created equal, but created unequal, especially minorities and women. Despite theses difficulties, there is home to climb the social ladder an d be a part of the American DreamWords/ Pages : 1,396 / 24

Honest Abe (Abe Lincoln) Essay Example For Students

Honest Abe (Abe Lincoln) Essay INTRODUCTION Abraham Lincoln, Honest Abe, is one of the greatest American Presidents. He is known today for his Presidency in which he fought the Confederacy during the Civil War and abolished slavery with the Emancipation Proclamation and later the Thirteenth Amendment. He was an intelligent, honest, and just leader who governed at a critical time in American history. PRE-PRESIDENCYLincoln was born on the twelfth of February 1809 in a cabin three miles outside of Hodgenville, Kentucky. He was later forced to move to Indiana. As a child Lincoln worked on his family’s farm clearing fields and tending crops. He liked to read but unfortunately received hardly any formal education. In fact, his entire schooling only amounted to about one year of attendance. (Brit. 23) In 1830 Lincoln’s family moved to Illinois. Lincoln didn’t want to be a farmer, so he tried other professions: rail-splitter, flatboat man, storekeeper, postmaster, surveyor, an army man, and a profession in Law. In 1932 Lincoln, at twenty-three years old, decided to run for the Illinois State legislature. Lincoln was to campaign for local improvements such as better roads and canals. However, a war with the Indians broke out before Lincoln’s campaign could get going. In response, he joined the Army. After his short wartime, Lincoln returned to politics and lost the race of Illinois Legislature. In 1834 he ran again and was elected- second of thirteen. At the age of 25 Lincoln was a member of the Illinois Legislature. After his term in the legislature, Lincoln found he needed more money. So, he started studying law on his own. He accepted a job in Springfield at John Todd Stuart’s practice. In the late 1830’s Lincoln found the love of his life, Mary Ann Todd, the daughter of a rich banker. She got engaged to Abe in 1840 and the two were married in 1842. They had thee children together, Willie and Tad Lincoln. In 1946 Lincoln won the Whig nomination for a seat in the House of Representatives for Illinois and sat in Congress in 1847. The major issues of the time were the Mexican-American war, which Lincoln opposed, and slavery. Lincoln was not an anti-slavery crusader. However, he did vote in Congress to stop it from spreading. Morally, Lincoln hated slavery and said slaver was â€Å"founded on both injustice and bad policy.† He wanted to abolish slavery over time because he thought dramatic actions to end slavery would lead to violence. Lincoln felt that Congress should not interfere with slavery in states in which it already existed. After his term in Congress, Lincoln left politics again for a full time law practice. In the early 1850’s Senator Stephen Douglas opened the issue of slavery in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. In 1854, Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska act, allowing the issue of slavery in Kansas and Nebraska to be decided by popular sovereignty. Lincoln was â€Å"thunderstruck and stunned.† This act brought him back into politics. He felt obligated to speak out against the Kansas-Nebraska act. So, after Lincoln left law he traveled across Illinois campaigning for anti-slavery Whigs. In his campaigning Lincoln called slavery a â€Å"cancer† and a â€Å"monstrous injustice.† He said he believed in the Declaration of Independence, which states â€Å"all men are created equal.† However, he wasn’t sure of what to do with slavery in the states where it already existed in. In 1856, Lincoln switched from the Whig Party to the Republican Party because the Whigs were weak and could never unite against slavery. Lincoln felt that if he wanted t o make a point he would have to be with a strong party. In 1858, Lincoln won the Republican Nomination for the Illinois Senate seat. He wanted the seat of his long time rival, Senator Stephen Douglas. In Lincoln’s first speech for his Senate campaign Lincoln said, â€Å"I believe this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free.† Lincoln warned his opponents that the spread of slavery must be stopped or else it would become â€Å"lawful in all the states; old as well as new- north as well as south.† In July of 1958, Lincoln challenged Senator Douglas to a series of seven three-hour, public debates. Thousands of people showed up to watch the Little Giant (Douglas) vs. Long Abe. Douglas fought for white supremacy. He believed the country could endure half free and half slave. Douglas said whites made this country therefore they should run it. Lincoln wanted equality. During one debate Lincoln said:â€Å"There is no reason in the world why the Negro is not entitled to all the natural rights enumerated in the Declaration of Independence, the right of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. I hold that he is as much entitled to these as the white man.†In the end, Douglas won the Senate election by a hair. However, Lincoln did not give up. His debates with Douglas had made him famous across Illinois. Lincoln kept debating and got a lot of Republican support. Lincoln got so much support that the Republicans felt he could win the presidential election. So, they tried to get him nominated. The Lincoln-Douglas debates were incredibly crucial to Lincoln’s future career. It was this series of debates that made Lincoln well known throughout the country. In fact, Lincoln probably would not have won the Presidential Election in 1860 if he hadn’t debated with Douglas. Douglas was far better known than Lincoln was throughout the country and in Illinois. At the Lincoln-Douglas debates people from miles around wou ld come to watch the two men speak in the remote towns of Illinois. Reporters from around the nation came and jotted down what the two men said. What was said at the debates could be read in the newspapers of major cities the very next day. It was Lincoln-Douglas debates that first gave Lincoln nation wide publicity. Lincoln probably would not have ended up in the White House if it had not been for these debates. PRESIDENCY PRE-CIVIL-WAR At the Illinois Republican Convention in May 1860 Lincoln was chosen as the Republican’s favorite Presidential Candidate. One week later at the National Republican Convention, Lincoln was nominated on the third ballot. Lincoln was running against two Democrats Stephen Douglas of Illinois, and John C. Breckenridge, a southern Democrat from Kentucky. On Election Day—November 6, 1860—Lincoln won the election with 1,866,000 votes. He carried every Northern State. Southerners hated this â€Å"black Republican† and his name did not appear on any southern ballots. Douglas got 1,377,000 votes and Breckenridge received 850,000. If the Democratic Party had not split Lincoln would not have been elected. Douglas and Breckenridge’s votes combined were more than the total number of votes for Lincoln. So, if Breckenridge hadn’t run, almost all Democratic votes would have gone to Douglas. I also believe, that if Douglas were elected, a civil war would not have broken out. Douglas believed the nation could endure half-free half slave. He did not feel strongly about slavery. Unlike Lincoln, Douglas did not care if slavery spread through America. If it weren’t for Lincoln slavery could have spread into new states and territories. It was Lincoln’s boldness against slavery that created nation wide fr eedom in America. As soon as Lincoln was elected some southern states threatened to secede from the Union. The South hated Lincoln. An Atlanta newspaper said, â€Å"Let the consequences be what they may†¦ the south will never submit such humiliation and degradation as the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln.† And so, sure enough, in December, the slave state South Carolina seceded from the Union. During the next three months before Lincoln’s inauguration, seven more slave states seceded from the Union and formed the Confederate States of America with their capital in Richmond, Virginia. In February, Senator Jefferson Davis of Mississippi became the president of the Confederacy. On the 4th of March 1861, Lincoln was sworn into office. In his inaugural address Lincoln told the people he would not tamper with slavery in the states where it already existed. â€Å"I have no purpose, directly or indirectly to interfere with the institution of slavery in the states where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so.†Little did the people know what Lincoln was going to do. He later said in his address â€Å"In your hands, my dissatisfied countrymen, and not mine is the momentous issue of civil war.† Lincoln went on to say he would do everything he could to â€Å"preserve, protect, and defend† the Union. THE CIVIL WARLincoln believed the Union could be saved without any blood. However, On April 14, 1861 Fort Sumter, at the entrance to the Charleston Harbor in South Carolina, was taken over by the Confederacy. The long Civil War had begun. The Union had claimed the loyalty of 23 states, 22 million people. It was had an industrial economy which could produce rifles, cannons, shoes and everything else an army might need quickly. One thing, however, which the factories could not produce was good generals. Throughout most of the Civil War this would be a constant problem. The Confederacy had 11 states, 9 million people of which almost four million were slaves. Its economy was agricultural. Unlike the Union, the Confederacy â€Å"held a monopoly of military talent.† (LPB 73) Soldiers also knew the land on which the war was fought and had acquired military skills from hunting. Lincoln decided he needed to keep other countries from helping the confederacy. So, he set up naval blockades in Confederate ports. Then, Lincoln launched three major offensives: One into Virginia, another into Tennessee, and a third to take control of the Mississippi River. He gave General George B. McClellan control of eastern armies. McClella n trained his men very carefully but took a long time doing it. Lincoln found relief from the pressures of the war in his home life with his wife Mary and his two boys: Willie and Tad. However, in February of 1862 both boys became ill. Tad recovered. Willie, on the other hand, was not as fortunate. On February 20, 1862 William Wallace Lincoln died. This devastated the Lincoln family. Mary was so disturbed that she could not attend his funeral. By the spring of ’62, the north had captured New Orleans and was gaining control of the Mississippi. Around June, McClellan led his troops to Richmond. He brought his troops there slowly and thus, the Confederates found out and had time to muster their defenses. While McClellan’s troops were waiting outside of Richmond, Lee launched a counter-offensive driving McClellan all the way back to the James River. More than 23,000 men were killed, wounded, or missing. McClellan’s long anticipated attack on Richmond had failed. Bipolar Disorder EssayTogether, Lincoln and Grant came up with a master plan to finally beat the Rebels. They planned to launch coordinate offensives against the Confederacy from all directions. In the East, Grant would attack Lee in Virginia, driving towards the rebel capital, Richmond. In the west General Sherman would go from Tennessee into Georgia, capturing Atlanta which was, at the time, a crucial railway center for the rebels. From there, Sherman would go towards Virginia, squeezing the Confederacy and eventually taking over their capital. Lincoln was hopeful. â€Å"Grant is the first general I have had. You know how it has been with all the rest. They wanted me to be the general. I am glad to find a man who can go ahead without me.†In May 1864 the offensive began. Grant marched down to Virginia but was met my Lee’s newly rebuilt army in a densely wooded area call the Wilderness. Grant fought three major battles near Richmond but still could not take the city. During Grant’s Wilderness campaign roughly 54,000 Union soldiers were killed or wounded. Things were better for Sherman. After a long siege at Atlanta the city fell and was evacuated. Sherman’s men then went into the city and destroyed everything that could be used by the South for war. Sherman then marched through Georgia ruining everything in his path: crops, houses, livestock etc. Meanwhile, Grant was slowly taking hold of Richmond. By November the end of the war was in sight for the Union. In the election of 1864 recent Union victories gave Lincoln much support and sure enough, Lincoln was reelected on November 8, 1865. He had won by almost half a million votes out of some four million cast. Lincoln felt he should now, after winning the election, push for a Constitutional Amendment permanently outlawing slavery everywhere in the United States. Lincoln pressured anti-abolition Congressmen who apposed the amendment in the winter of ’64. Finally, on January 31, 1865 Congress passed the 13th Amendment to the Constitution outlawing slavery â€Å"within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.† On March 4, 1865 Lincoln was sworn into office. In his address he denigrated slavery, calling it a hateful and evil practice. He said that now that slavery had been abolished it was time for healing. However, Lincoln said he did not feel â€Å"malice† towards Southerners. Even as Lincoln spoke, the Union victory machine was in action. Sherman marched up the coast capturing the city of Savannah. Then, he moved up towards Virginia and on his way captured Charleston, South Carolina. Then on April 2, after a long siege, the Confederate capital, Richmond, was evacuated and the Confederate government was moved to their new capital in Danville, Virginia. The next day Union troops moved in to officially take control of the city. Then, on April 9, 1865 Lee and Grant met with their armies at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia. There, Grant accepted Lee’s surrender. Lee’s men then lay down their weapons, thus, ending the long Civil War. The Civil War had lasted almost four years. More than 600,000 United States men had died. That’s more than the total number of lives lost from every war the U.S has fought in combined. Neither side had expected the war to last as long as it did or for the war to put an end to slavery. After the Civil War, many friends of President Lincoln were worried about the safety of his life. He had been receiving threats of assassination in the mail and everyone knew how much hate there was towards Lincoln, especially from the ex-Confederates. So, bodyguards, cavalry escorts, and even troops camping out on the White House lawn protected Lincoln as best they could. However, all the precautions failed. On, the night of April 14, 1865 Lincoln and his wife attended the theate r. Then, in the third act John Wilkes Booth came into the President’s box and shot Lincoln in the head. Doctors rushed to try and save the wounded President. However, on the morning of April 15, 1865 Abraham Lincoln died in his bed at the age of 56. Lincoln’s funeral was held in the East Room of the White House on April 19, 1865. After his funeral a long procession carried the President to the Capital Building. On the 21st a funeral train brought Lincoln to his final resting-place in Springfield, Illinois. A GREAT COMMANDER WHO HANDLED SLAVERY WELLIn the Civil War, Lincoln was a great commander. For most of the war he had trouble finding a good commander to run a campaign in the East. So, Lincoln was forced to almost single handedly head the Union campaign in the East. Early in the war, Lincoln could rely on the good strategic advice of his general in chief, Winfield Scott. Scott had proposed the â€Å"Anaconda Plan.† In his plan, Scott wanted to blockade the Southern coast and take control of the Mississippi squeezing the Confederacy and isolating them completely. Lincoln agreed with his plan but wanted to go further. He wanted the Union to take more of an offensive. So, he tightened the blockade and called for mo re troops. In this sense Lincoln was ruthless. Later, towards the end of the war, Lincoln, with the help of General Grant devised the plan that crushed the rebellion. Today, when we think of Lincoln, the fact that he was a good commander doesn’t stand out in our minds. However, after carefully looking over his bold, decisive actions in the Civil War I realized that he was indeed a great commander. Lincoln handled slavery very well. Even though he was morally against slavery he was careful in dealing with it. His handling of slavery suits Roosevelt’s saying, â€Å"Walk softly and carry a big stick.† In the election of 1860 Lincoln knew he had to have minimal enemies. So, as to not anger any pro-slavery voters Lincoln said he would not tamper with slavery in states in which it already existed. When Lincoln was inaugurated he said the same thing. He did this to try and keep America out of a Civil War. However, many slave states felt they needed to expand slavery. In order to do so they needed to get out of Lincoln’s domain. Once slave states started seceding Lincoln knew he had to crush the rebellion, but keep the border slave states loyal. So, Lincoln, once again, promised he would not take away their slavery. By doing this he kept a lot of Union support. Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation raised a lot of anti-war feelings. Before announcing his plan he consulted politicians from the loyal slave states to make sure they approved. In his original plan Lincoln was going to start emancipation in loyal states. However, after listening to the views of a Kentucky Congressman Lincoln found that the border slave states would be infuriated if they became free states. At that point, when Lincoln was writing the Emancipation Proclamation, the Union was being beaten right and left and could not afford to lose the loyalty of the border states. Throughout the war Lincoln had the support of Republicans. However, after the Emancipation Proclamation was released many neutral and pro-war people became critical of Lincoln and the war. To control these Copperheads Lincoln declared martial law in certain parts of the country. In this sense he carried â€Å"a big stick.† After Lincoln won the election of 1864 he decided it was time to push forward with emancipation. If his actions had been too strong before the election he would have lost a l ot of votes. So, that winter Lincoln started strongly pressing for the 13th Amendment, outlawing slavery permanently. Lincoln’s timing for the amendment was impeccable. Also, to ensure two-thirds vote in the house, Lincoln asked an Ohio congressman to get three doubtful Democratic votes for the 13th Amendment by bribing the doubtful voters with certain positions in office and other areas that Lincoln had influence over. The greatest thing Lincoln ever did was handle slavery so well. He appeased the border states by not taking away slavery in their states and in that sense he walked â€Å"softly.† He had to deal with the Copperheads with an iron fist and in that sense Lincoln carried â€Å"a big stick.† In general Lincoln is an American hero but he is most famed and rightfully famed for the freeing of slaves. IN CONCLUSIONLincoln was one of the best Presidents, if not the best, in American history. In his era, Lincoln was viewed by some as dictator and a tyrant. However, over time the American people have come to recognize and appreciate what Lincoln has done more and more to the extent of the Lincoln Memorial and his face on Mount Rushmore. He governed the country at possibly the most critical time in the United States’ history, a time when the very existence of America was at stake. We were lucky to have Lincoln in office during that time. He has affected the world today more than any other man in that century. He handled slavery extremely well and was a great commander. His speaking ability engrossed audiences throughout his career. He died because of what he believed in and he will never be forgotten. I personally, believe that Abraham Lincoln was the finest President this country has ever had. Final word count: 4,791 wordsBibliographyAbraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln: a photobiog raphyMAcropedia, britannica