Before Greatness
Abraham Lincoln routinely tops the list of the greatest American Presidents. This novel is a rarity in that it paints a portrait of the Great Emancipator well before he had become famous. The glimpse into the life of Lincoln before all the famous benchmarks in his extraordinary life illustrates what is always true but is too often forgotten.: nobody is born into greatness. Every single human being who ever performed great acts lived a measure of their life in relative anonymity and normality. The portrayal of Abe Lincoln as a young man experiencing all the anxieties about love and money and his future is an expression theme that there are no great people, but simply people who do great things.
Sexuality and History
The novel proposes the idea that Abraham Lincoln was romantically involved with another man. Rather than acting upon his feelings, he chooses to reject this homosexual relationship in favor of marrying Mary Todd for the explicit purpose of furthering his political career. Recognizing that he could not possibly pursue such a career if he were to remain unmarried and generate rumors about his sexuality, Lincoln makes the same decision that countless other ambitious men had made throughout history. The implicit thematic suggestion being made here is that all recorded history is inextricably linked to sexuality. Had Lincoln chosen to reject societal pressures and pursue the course of true love, the entire history of the United States would be substantially different.
Personal Sacrifice
Both Lincoln and Joshua Speed ultimately make the decision to sacrifice whatever relationship they may have had for what they view as the greater good of the country. After Lincoln is elected President, he offers Speed a Cabinet position which the other man rejects in the knowledge it would be too heavily scrutinized if he were to accept. The theme of personal sacrifice is especially resonant at the time of the novel's publication when nearly every member of Lincoln's own political party rejects any calls to sacrifice their own self-interests for the greater good of the country.
