NOAH FELDMAN ON HOW LINCOLN BROKE THE CONSTITUTION

In this episode, John Burnham Schwartz speaks with Noah Feldman, Harvard Law professor and renowned Constitutional scholar, whose groundbreaking new book, The Broken Constitution: Lincoln, Slavery, and the Refounding of America, takes us inside one of the more surprising realities of American History: in abolishing slavery and preserving our union, Abraham Lincoln was not adhering to the original Constitution of 1787, but rather tearing it up in order to save it through transformation. Feldman calls not only for a reassessment of Lincoln himself but also for a new look at America’s founding document and its place in our law, our politics, and ourselves.

This episode is now available and can be played from the SVWC website on our Podcasts page or from other public podcast platforms, including Apple, Stitcher, and Spotify.Hosted by SVWC Literary Director John Burnham Schwartz, and in partnership with LitHub, the SVWC Beyond the Page podcast explores past conference talks and catches up with our writer alumni, weaving together writers’ ideas in a half-hour episode twice a month.

Photo credit: Steve Dondero