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Essay of the civil war
Perspectives from the american civil war
Critical perspectives on the american civil war
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The Civil War is said to be one of America’s bloodiest wars. Neighbors killed neighbors and brothers killed brothers; the entire nation was divided. Two opposing sides had formed, the North and the South, and each side was led into battle by a powerful general. The North was led by General Ulysses S. Grant and the South was led by General Robert E. Lee. These men were both alike and different. This is shown in Bruce Catton’s “Grant and Lee: a Study in Contrast”. Through Catton’s essay it is shown that during the Civil War America was divided and each side was living different lives with different perspectives, while at the same time both sides leaders, Grant and Lee, were equally matched and represented Americas division.
The differences between the backgrounds of the North and the South’s way of life created a difference in perspective that was shown through these two leaders. The North was focused on the idea of rebirth and of evolution. They had focused less on agriculture and more on manufacturing and the development of technology. This shift in life created opportunities for any man to potentially work their way up to owning their own factory. Grant, a Northerner from the Western Frontier, learned from this type of living and represented this idea that “life was a competition”. Everything that a person obtained was earned through hard work. On the other hand, the South remained agriculturally based. They believed that change was not needed because every white man could buy and make a living off of his own farm. Even further, social status was inherited through bequeathing of land. There was no need for competition, except perhaps the competition for land or for slaves. Hence, being a Southerner who believed life should rema...
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...nded on giving up before their enemy surrendered. However, both men leading these sides also had the capability to recognize when war was needed to turn to peace, and both had the ability to cease fighting when this recognition came. As a result of their ability to concede, peace was achieved at the Appomattox Courthouse and the Civil War ended.
Generals Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee were two equally powerful and matched generals that that showed, through themselves, how different each side of America was and in this, portrayed Americas division. While their convictions and determination to win were strong and similar, eventually the North’s strategy and resources gained the advantage and won the war. This conflict was arguably the most important war in American History because if the Confederacy had won, America would not be the “United States” it is today.
The American Civil War is one of the biggest turning points in American history. It marks a point of major separation in beliefs from the North and the South and yet somehow ends in a major unification that is now called the United States of America. It still to date remains the bloodiest war in American history. The book “This Republic of Suffering, Death and the American Civil War” by Drew Gilpin Faust better explains the change in thought from the American people that developed from the unexpected mass loss of soldiers that devastated the American people. Throughout this review, the reader will better understand the methods and theory of this book, the sources used, the main argument of the book, the major supporting arguments, and what the author did well and what the author didn’t do well.
The North had a very different opinion of the American way and made it exceedingly clear with the formation of numerous abolition societies, effectively abolishing slavery across the northern region and allowing blacks to live as productive members society, rather than its the property. Even one of the most prominent slave holders of that time was forced to rethink the legitimacy of slavery. “Seeing free black soldiers in action undermined [George] Washington’s racial prejudice and ultimately his support for slavery itself” (Finkelman 18). The productivity, societal and political benefits, and military empowerment made available by freed slaves challenged the South’s sense of racial supremacy, thus they began to establish a defense against the complete abolition of
Lee had supreme confidence in his army, and believed that it could accomplish whatever he asked of it. This confidence sometimes led him to ask too much, such as in the case of Picket’s charge during the battle of Gettysburg. In Lee’s mind he was first and foremost a Christian, and a gentleman. These facts, although not bad, certainly caused Lee to be less aggressive, and to fight the war in a very old-fashioned manner. This was not so with Grant, who seemed to believe in a more modern type of total warfare. Perhaps because this war, as many contend, was the first modern war, it was impossible for the South, and it’s leaders to adapt to the situation.
Union officer William Tecumseh Sherman observed to a Southern friend that, "In all history, no nation of mere agriculturists ever made successful war against a nation of mechanics. . . .You are bound to fail." While Sherman's statement proved to be correct, its flaw is in its assumption of a decided victory for the North and failure to account for the long years of difficult fighting it took the Union to secure victory. Unquestionably, the war was won and lost on the battlefield, but there were many factors that swayed the war effort in favor of the North and impeded the South's ability to stage a successful campaign.
Robert Lee makes bold moves to win victories. Lee was outnumbered two to one at Chancellorsville in May 1863; instead of just defending against the Union armies, he made an audacious move and split his army into two to encircle the enemy. Without Lee’s courageous move, the Confederacy might have lost another battle. But even if Lee was defeated, his performance would still stay on tract. When Lee was defeated at Antietam in September 1862, he quickly withdrew the remnants of his forces across the Potomac, reorganized his army, and res...
The Civil War that took place in the United States from 1861 to 1865 could have easily swung either way at several points during the conflict. There is however several reasons that the North would emerge victorious from this bloody war that pit brother against brother. Some of the main contributing factors are superior industrial capabilities, more efficient logistical support, greater naval power, and a largely lopsided population in favor of the Union. Also one of the advantages the Union had was that of an experienced government, an advantage that very well might have been one of the greatest contributing factors to their success. There are many reasons factors that lead to the North's victory, and each of these elements in and amongst themselves was extremely vital to the effectiveness of the Northern military forces. Had any one of these factors not been in place the outcome of the war could have been significantly different, and the United States as we know it today could be quite a different place to live.
A successful army requires discipline, but Confederate soldiers refused to concede authority to anyone they did not vote for, at least in the beginning. Confederate soldiers were also prone to shirking duties they deemed menial, and some even left the army without dismissal if they believed they had served long enough. In the uppermost chain of political command, Jefferson Davis proved deficient in quelling the media outlets which railed against his decisions at nearly every turn. Davis gave deference to the right of free speech no matter how damaging it was. Donald then uses these points to highlight the Union Army and Lincoln administration’s successes. The North had the advantage of numerous immigrant conscripts who were used to being ordered around, so the pecking order was easily established from the beginning. In the political realm, Abraham Lincoln did not let Constitutional rights obstruct his goals; Lincoln suspended habeas corpus and threw defamatory journalists into prison. The Union thus had the unity it needed to achieve victory in the face of the South’s
“All up and down the lines the men blinked at one another, unable to realize that the hour they had waited for so long was actually at hand. There was a truce…” Bruce Catton’s Pulitzer prize winning book A Stillness at Appomattox chronicles the final year of the American Civil War. This book taught me a lot more about the Civil War than I ever learned through the public school system. Bruce Catton brought to life the real day to day life of the soldiers and the generals who led them into battle.
The struggles of Grant and Jefferson share a common theme, man’s search for meaning. Grant has the advantage of a college education, and while that may have provided some enlightenment, he remains in the same crossroads as Jefferson. Grant sees that regardless of what he does, the black students he teaches continue in the same jobs, the same poverty and same slave-like positions as their ancestors. Grant has no hope of making a difference and sees his life as meaningless. Though Jefferson’s conflict is more primal, it is the same as Grant’s struggle. Jefferson is searching for the most basic identity, whether he is man or animal. It is this conflict of meaning and identity that bring Grant and Jefferson together.
During the American Revolution and the civil war, the North and the South experienced development of different socio-political and cultural environmental conditions. The North became an industrial and manufacturing powerhouse as a result of rise of movements like abolitionism and women’s right while the South became a cotton kingdom whose labor was sourced from slavery (Spark notes, 2011).
“Why did the North win the Civil War?” is only half of a question by itself, for the other half is “Why did the South lose the Civil War?” To this day historians have tried to put their finger on the exact reason for the South losing the war. Some historians blame the head of the confederacy Jefferson Davis; however others believe that it was the shear numbers of the Union (North). The advantages and disadvantages are abundant on either sides of the argument, but the most dominate arguments on why the South lost the war would be the fact that state’s rights prevented unification of the South, Jefferson Davis' poor leadership and his failure to work together with his generals, the South failed to gain the recognition of the European nations, North's superior resources made the outcome inevitable, and moral of the South towards the end of the war.
Book Title: The American Civil War: A Handbook of Literature and Research. Contributors: Robin Higham - editor, Steven E. Woodworth - editor. Publisher: Greenwood Press. Place of Publication: Westport, CT. Publication Year: 1996
Early described the winner general Ulysses Grant as an unskilled killer because it was his indecisiveness circumstances that him a winner, that he did not really truly deserved it. After the fight for generalship of Grant, the person who lost it was Robert E. Lee in an unjustifiable position to the South. Since Early has a big passionate interest of how people are going to judge the Confederacy and he is a huge fan of Robert E. Lee ever since the very beginning of the Civil War. These are many of the ideas that contribute in the Myth of the Lost Cause for explaining how the secession and the defeat of the Confederate were spread around throughout the years of the Civil War. Early has an important role in how he shaped history differently, he wanted to leave a legacy for the South and that they should not be
The American civil war is one of the historic dark moments that are in the memory of the country was lasted for 4 years, between the years 1961-1965. The conflict that existed was between the north and the south states of the U.S. The conflict led to mass destruction of property and man lives were lost during the war. The war had a great impact in creating awareness in the U.S despite the great tension it created, and was the greatest determinant of the way the U.S is currently in terms of the sovereignty and the liberty of the U.S citizens. It is estimated that over 600,000 lives were lost in the four years’ war most of them being soldiers who were fighting to defend their respective states. The war did not only touch the lives of Americans but whole world felt its effect. The war was purely American since no other country intervened in the war (James & Michael, 17).
...deration, and finally, the U.S. Constitution. However, a more philosophical analysis can be drawn about the Civil War. In essence, the War challenged the idea of whether self-government and democracy prevail over pandemonium. And in the words of James Buchanan “Our example for more than eighty years would not only be lost, but it would be quoted a conclusive proof that man is unfit for self-government.” The sheer legacy of the United States of America was imperiled and the Union was on a macrocosmic stage, with spectators seeing if the avant-garde idea of a democratic would draw to a close or perpetuate through onerous times. The Civil War was a test, and the tenuous America indeed passed it, knowing that more hurdles have been bound to come. But, there has been hope that success has always been possible and the American Dream has maintained for generations to come.