The Fifty Fourth Regiment Approximately 620,000 soldiers died from combat, accident, starvation, and disease during the Civil War (Nelson & Sheriff, 2007). The film Glory tells the story of an all-black volunteer infantry regiment known as the “54th”. This paper will provide a description of three key moments of organizational change during the movie, how did the leaders handle those situations, how did the environment affect how the leaders managed change, how the situations could have been handled differently, which characters resisted the changes the most, and concludes with how I would have handled those characters resistance to change. Glory is the finest civil war film ever made with central themes such as honor, bravery, and leadership. …show more content…
It shows great examples of many organizational changes within the entire movie. This film depicts the challenges and obstacles of tremendous change during the time of the civil war. Focusing on the role African Americans played in the Civil War with an all black regiment, led by a white Colonel named Robert Gould Shaw, the son of a wealthy Boston abolitionist played by Mathew Broderick. Other key cast members are Carey Elwes as “Maj Forbes”, Morgan Freeman as “Sgt Major Rawlins” and Denzel Washington as “Trip”. These amazing actors walk the viewer through all of the trials and tribulations of the 54th showing the steps of organizational change while telling the story of an all-black volunteer regiment. Starting with Colonel Shaw giving an inspirational speech and implementing his vision. This is the first of many organizational changes within this …show more content…
Starting with Colonel Shaw giving an inspirational speech and implementing his vision. This did not go over well at first, until Col. Show appealed to the values and emotions of his followers. This style of implementing a vision is described in an article written by Susan Heathfeild when she states, a fundamental necessity for a vision is to display and reflect the unique strengths of the followers such as culture, values, and beliefs (Heathfield, 2015). Immediately after his speech, Col Shaw began to instill common values and mentoring his junior officers when he reprimanded Maj Forbes for partaking in signs of fraternization with an enlisted soldier, ultimately instilling the knowledge and empowering others to act on his vision. Maj Forbes did not take to this reprimand very kindly, but in doing this Col. Shaw displayed traits of a transformational leader as Drew Hendricks explains in his article in Forbes, transformational leaders lead with vision (Hendricks, 2014). Col. Shaw handled the final key moment in a welcoming way when he ultimately led the 54th into certain death during the assault on Fort Wagner. Col. Shaw did not resisted the change the most of having a full collared regiment, but after the battle that he was injured in, he was reluctant not only to lead the 54th but also, to return to battle, suffering signs of what would now be PTSD. The white solders resisted this change tremendously
As students, studying battles such as this, we have the advantage of hindsight, knowing the outcome. Nonetheless, we can still learn valuable lessons from it. To do so, this analysis will explore some of the decisions of the leaders at Gettysburg, and how they were affected by the operational variables. This essay will scrutinize some of the leaders at Gettysburg, and the impact of their actions. The outcome of this analysis will show that what was true in 1863 is still true today.
Training began for Black volunteers at Camp Meigs in Readville, MA on February 21, 1863. Although some members of the community voiced opposition to the prevention of Black men from achieving the rank of colonel or officer, most community activists urged Black men to seize the opportunity to serve in the Union forces. The fear many Black volunteers had about the potential racism of White officers and colonels was calmed when Massachusetts Governor John Andrew assured Bostonians that White officers assigned to the 54th Regiment would be "young men of military experience, of firm anti-slavery principles, ambitious, superior to a vulgar contempt for color, and having faith in the capacity of colored men for military service." (Emilio 1990) Andrew held to his word, appointing 25-year-old Robert Gould Shaw as colonel and George P. Hallowell as Lieutenant. The son of wealthy abolitionists, Shaw had been educated in Europe and at Harvard before joining the seventh New York National Guard in 1861. In 1862, when Governor Andrew contacted Shaw's father about the prospect of commissioning his son as colonel of the soon-to-be organized fifty-fourth, Shaw was an officer in the Second Mass...
Shaw envisions the loss he had at Tatum when he trains these men. These men have never experienced man to man combat before and are not prepared to handle most situations. Robert enforces all the same regulations that the other regiments go by in the Union. The pride of these black soldiers kept them from accepting the lesser salary offered and they chose for no payment as did their leader Shaw. Robert fights for his men’s dignity every step of the way from demanding decent shoes to threatening the Major with exposure to the President if he doesn’t allow his companies participation in the war.
The book ‘For Cause and Comrades’ is a journey to comprehend why the soldiers in the Civil War fought, why they fought so passionately, and why they fought for the long period of time. Men were pulling guns against other men who they had known their whole lives. McPherson’s main source of evidence was the many letters from the soldiers writing to home. One of the many significant influences was how the men fought to prove their masculinity and courage. To fight would prove they were a man to their community and country. Fighting also had to do with a duty to their family. Ideology was also a major motivating factor; each side thought they were fighting for their liberty. The soldier’s reputations were created and demolished on the battlefield, where men who showed the most courage were the most honored. Religion also played an important role because the second Great Awakening had just occurred. Their religion caused the men who thought of themselves as saved to be fearless of death, “Religion was the only thing that kept this soldier going; even in the trenches…” (McPherson, p. 76) R...
In James McPherson’s novel, What They Fought For, a variety of Civil War soldier documents are examined to show the diverse personal beliefs and motives for being involved in the war. McPherson’s sample, “is biased toward genuine fighting soldiers” (McPherson, 17) meaning he discusses what the ordinary soldier fought for. The Confederacy was often viewed as the favorable side because their life style relied on the war; Confederates surrounded their lives with practices like slavery and agriculture, and these practices were at stake during the war. On the other hand, Northerners fought to keep the country together. Although the Civil War was brutal, McPherson presents his research to show the dedication and patriotism of the soldiers that fought and died for a cause.
Black soldiers were among the bravest of those fighting in the Civil War. Both free Blacks in the Union army and escaped slaves from the South rushed to fight for their freedom and they fought with distinction in many major Civil War battles. Many whites thought Blacks could not be soldiers. They were slaves. They were inferior. Many thought that if Blacks could fight in the war it would make them equal to whites and prove the theory of slavery was wrong. Even though Black soldiers had to face much discrimination during the Civil War, they were willing to fight to the death for their freedom. In the movie “Glory“ the director focused on the African Americans in the north that fought in the 54th regiment led by Colonel Robert Gould Shaw. During the time of the Civil War, the African Americans that fought in the 54th regiment were often treated unfairly but there were always nice people that backed them up.
“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 Battle of Antietam on September 17th, 1862 was the single, most bloodiest day in American History, where more than 23,000 men became casualties of war. General George Brinton McClellan’s inability to use Mission Command, as a warfighting function was a key reason this battle did not end the American Civil War. An analysis of General McClellan’s Mission Command operational process will show how his personality, bias, and fear were detrimental to the outcome of the Battle of Antietam.
Black Hearts is a great example of the reality on how severe bad leadership skills can ripple throughout a unit and impact its overall mission. This book serves as a guide for future leaders of America and will set the examples of what not to do in leadership positions. The lessons we can take from these soldiers can help us as potential leaders to become more competent and effective. The fact that this book focused on the hardships, poor decisions and sound judgment of the soldiers it helped emphasize on what was not the best choice of action and leaves a moment for you as the audience to think how you would of done it better. So right or wrong there was a lesson to be learned and the book did a good job including the reader. This book puts you in the shoes of a small group of soldiers from the 502nd Infantry Regiment and gives you an up close and personal take on the experience of the soldiers, from the bottom of the the ranks all the way up to the commander. 502nd Bravo Company 1st platoon deployed in the fall of 2005 into one of the most dangerous battle zones in Iraq known as the “Triangle of Death”. Thrown into the heartland of a growing insurgency, with undefined goals and a shortage of manpower, Bravo Company began piling up casualties at an alarming rate. They suffered many losses, as well as mental anguish. Because of the long and tragic deployment, a collapse in leadership began to unfold causing one of the most tragic, brutal, and infamous deployments in U.S Army history. There were many reasons that caused the deconstruction of leadership, and eventually, the actions of the soldiers accompanied by the lack of control, lead to the rape and murder of an innocent Iraqi girl and her family. This is a story about character...
In the movie Col. Robert Shaw, a union army officer, volunteer to lead the Civil War first all-black regiment. However, his task was not easy. He experienced prejudices of both his own Union army and the Confederates. Even with little support from his fellow peers, Shaw was able to train a regiment into a well discipline and cohesive team. Later on in the film, Shaw discovered that his regiment was not allowed to fight for their liberties, but later on in the movie, they were allowed to fight.
The movie's protagonist is Mel Gibson playing the role of Benjamin Martin. Benjamin Martin is a South Carolina planter who is still haunted by his notoriously brutal past as a soldier in the French and Indian War. When the American Revolution comes, he chooses not to fight for the Continental Army because he wants to protect his family. But when the British Colonel Tavington threatens their welfare and kills one of his sons, he chooses to enlist.
The story begins with Mel Gibson’s character, Benjamin Martin, following the events of the Battle of Lexington and Concord as he must help the Charleston assembly decide if a levy should be passed to help the newly formed Continental Army. Martin is a small plantation owner and father of several children. He decides that he has seen too much bloodshed in his years and returns to his family rather than going off to fight in the upcoming war. His eldest son, played by Heath Ledger, Gabriel Martin decides to join the Continental Army against his father’s wishes. Through unfortunate circumstances Gabriel returns home one day, as a battle erupts around the Martin Plantation between the British Regulars and the Colonial Militia. Benjamin Martin shows compassion by treating all wounded soldiers regardless of which s...
Glory Road is a 2006 sports film directed by James Gartner starring Josh Lucas and Derek Luke. The film portrays the story of how Don Haskins had the first all black starting lineup in the NCAA and led Texas Western to a national championship. Along the way, the players and Coach Haskins face great adversity throughout the season because of their all black starting lineup. As the season progresses, the threats continuously grow worse and eventually are directed towards the family of Coach Haskins. This problem continues to grow due to the fact that Texas Western’s team gains national recognition not only for being the first with an all black starting lineup, but for making i through the regular season with only a single loss As the movie progress the audience sees one of the players get beaten because of his race. Another scene shows a hotel room that has been completely trashed because it was where the black athletes were staying. I will prove that that this scene where the hotel room is trashed is racist towards the black athletes.
The American Civil war is considered to be one of the most defining moments in American history. It is the war that shaped the social, political and economic structure with a broader prospect of unifying the states and hence leading to this ideal nation of unified states as it is today. In the book “Confederates in the Attic”, the author Tony Horwitz gives an account of his year long exploration through the places where the U.S. Civil War was fought. He took his childhood interest in the Civil War to a new level by traveling around the South in search of Civil War relics, battle fields, and most importantly stories. The title “Confederates in the Attic”: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War carries two meanings in Tony Horwitz’s thoughtful and entertaining exploration of the role of the American Civil War in the modern world of the South. The first meaning alludes to Horwitz’s personal interest in the war. As the grandson of a Russian Jew, Horwitz was raised in the North but early in his childhood developed a fascination with the South’s myth and history. He tells readers that as a child he wrote about the war and even constructed a mural of significant battles in the attic of his own home. The second meaning refers to regional memory, the importance or lack thereof yet attached to this momentous national event. As Horwitz visits the sites throughout the South, he encounters unreconstructed rebels who still hold to outdated beliefs. He also meets groups of “re-enactors,” devotees who attempt to relive the experience of the soldier’s life and death. One of his most disheartening and yet unsurprising realizations is that attitudes towards the war divide along racial lines. Too many whites wrap the memory in nostalgia, refusing...
The movie “Glory” tells the history and the story of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry. It became the first black regiment to fight for the North in the Civil War. The Regiment was made up of black soldiers – some were Northern freemen, some were escaped slaves. The leader was General Robert Gould Shaw, the son of Boston abolitionists. The men of the 54th Regiment proved themselves worthy of the freedom for which they fighting, and the respect of their fellow white soldiers.