Why was Lincoln "great?"

[Eva Elisabeth]

(06-24-2013 11:43 PM)My Name Is Kate Wrote:  Can't he be somewhere in between, like (almost) every other human being who ever lived?

(06-24-2013 08:58 PM)J. Beckert Wrote:  Lincoln was the right man at the right time, given his lenient views on binding up the nation's wounds. How the wounds were inflicted is another story in itself.

This is exactly what I meant in my beginning.
We don't know if he would have become that famous if there hadn't been the CW, and we don't know what would be now if there had been another president then. Anyway, I was never so much affected by the hero worship since such is rather uncommon here. Still I think he had certain qualities which, as said above, served especially well at the right time.

Kate's example of Mozart and Beethoven is what I had in mind when I asked for a definition of greatness. It is easier to refer to certain abilities or character traits rather than to a person in general.

Most of you may know "Lincoln reconsidered" by David H. Donald, therein he takes a close look at the issue. (If I had to choose a favourite book about Lincoln, this one and Donald's "Lincoln" biography would share the #1 position.)