Differences Between the North and South that Led to the Civil War
opinion Essay
1460 words
The Southern and Northern states varied on many issues, which eventually led them to the Civil War. There were deep economic, social, and political differences between the North and the South. These differences stemmed from the interpretation of the United States Constitution on both sides. In the end, all of these disagreements about the rights of states led to the Civil War. There were reasons other than slavery for the South?s secession. The manifestations of division in America were many: utopian communities, conflicts over public space, backlash against immigrants, urban riots, black protest, and Indian resistance (Norton 234). America was a divided land in need reform with the South in the most need. The South relied heavily on agriculture, as opposed to the North, which was highly populated and an industrialized society. The South grew cotton, which was its main cash crop and many Southerners knew that heavy reliance on slave labor would hurt the South eventually, but their warnings were not heeded. The South was based on a totalitarian system. Constitutionally the North favored a loose interpretation of the United States Constitution, and they wanted to grant the federal government increased powers. The South wanted to reserve all undefined powers to the individual states themselves. The South relied upon slave labor for their economic well being, and the economy of the North was not reliant on such labor or in need of this type of service. This main issue overshadowed all others. Southerners compared slavery to the wage-slave system of the North, and believed their slaves received better care than the northern factory workers received from their employers. Many Southern preachers proclaimed that slavery was sanctioned in the Bible. Southern leaders had constantly tried to seek new areas into which slavery might be extended (Oates 349). After the American Revolution, slavery began to decrease in the North, just as it was becoming more popular in the South. By the turn of the century, seven of the most Northern states had abolished slavery. During this time, a surge of democratic reform swept the North to the West, and there were demands for political equality, economic and social advances for all Americans. Northerners said that slavery revoked the human right of being a free person and when new territories became available i... ... middle of paper ... ...in opinion. We should remember the great sacrifices our fellow citizens made during this time and appreciate their actions or endeavors. Especially that of Abraham Lincoln. The best way to assess the value of Lincoln is to think what the condition of American would be in today if he had never lived or never been President (Whitman 262). Yes, slavery was the cause of the Civil War, half of the country thought it was wrong, and the other half just could not let it go or continue. The war was fought overall in different places, and the monetary and property loss cannot be calculated. Arguments about the causes and consequences of the Civil War, as well as the reasons for Northern victory, will continue as long as there are historians to wield the pen ? which is, perhaps even for this bloody conflict, mightier than the sword (Oates 388). The Civil War was a great waste in terms of human life and possible accomplishment and should be considered shameful. Before its first centennial, tragedy struck a new country and altered it for an eternity. It will never be forgotten, but adversity builds strength and the United States of America is now a much stronger nation (Oates 388).
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the southern and northern states varied on many issues, which eventually led to the civil war. there were other manifestations of division in america, such as utopian communities, conflicts over public space, and black protest.
- Explains that the north favored a loose interpretation of the united states constitution, while the south wanted to reserve all undefined powers to the individual states themselves.
- Explains that slavery began to decrease in the north after the american revolution, just as it was becoming more popular in south.
- Explains that the south wanted to protect their states' rights, and the right to own slaves. the missouri compromise regulated the extension of slavery in the united states for the next three decades.
- Explains that the union acquired a huge piece of territory from mexico, which opened new opportunities for the spread of slavery for southerners.
- Explains that many free states in the union passed personal liberty laws in an effort to help the slaves escape. the conflict over kansas generated bad feelings on both sides.
- Analyzes how the north was angered by the republican party, which nominated abraham lincoln on principles that opposed the further expansion of slavery.
- Explains that slavery was an issue on which compromise was impossible and because of this, the south began to leave the union through secession
- Opines that the american civil war was tragic in terms of human life. it was a war in which thousands of americans died in their home country.
- Opines that the civil war was a waste of human life and accomplishment and should be considered shameful.
Related
- explanatory
- analytical
- comparative
- argumentative
- Analysis of the American Civil Warexplanatory essayThe Northern states had a largely industrial economy. The coastal states were filled with port cities to ship out manufactured goods to other places around the world. Capitalism was in full swing, with all sorts of factories popping up everywhere. The industrial strength of the North ended up being its greatest strength throughout the entire Civil War. The labor supply of the North, and the amount of goods they produced, were unmatched by any other country in the world. The north tried to protect all of its newly acquired industries, especially the textile factories. So when the South attempted to trade its largest export, cotton, to Britain for textiles and other manufactured goods, the North, with twice the population and more influence in federal policy making, placed tariffs on the British goods being imported to the United States. The South felt this was a violation of their rights. The Southern States had a much smaller, rural economy, King Cotton. The South was built on a foundation of farming, plantations, and cotton production. They also had a smaller population, and as a result, a smaller labor force. With fewer workers and a more labor intensive farming economy, they were left only one option, slavery. In 1800 the South had around 1 mill...
In this essay, the author
- Explains that slavery was the most important cause of the civil war, because it divided the north and south to begin with. the election of 1860 led to economic differences, conflicts over newly acquired territories, disputes over the constitution, and political extremism.
- Explains that the industrial strength of the north was unmatched by any other country in the world. the north placed tariffs on british imports to protect its newly acquired industries.
- States that the united states war against mexico was an armed conflict between the us and mexico from 1846 to 1848 about the u.s. annexation of texas
- Explains how the south got popular sovereignty, tougher fugitive slave laws, and the kansas-nebraska act.
911 wordsRead More - Civil Waranalytical essayThe election of Lincoln, secession of the southern states and the Confederate States of America Constitution set the stage for the bloodiest and saddest war in American history. Before the Civil War even began the nation was divided into four very distinct regions; Northeast, Northwest, Upper south and the Southwest. With two fundamentally different labor systems, slavery in the south and wage labor in the North, the political, economic and social changes across the nation would show the views of the North and the South. The civil war was based on the abolitionists' ideas of emancipation and liberation of slavery the North wanted the war in order to create a society without slavery. The North's aggression to control the south lead to the where were it was no longer tolerable for the South. With the election of the anti-slavery Republican Abraham Lincoln, the southern states decided they had to take drastic action in order to protect their own interests. The south had been waiting for an excuse to secede form the union, the election of Lincoln by the North was their chance. The Northern abolitionists' states were mainly responsible for the Civil war in many political, social and economic aspects.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how lincoln's election, secession of southern states, and the confederate states of america constitution set the stage for the bloodiest and saddest war in american history.
- Analyzes how the northerners contributed immensely to the opening of the civil war. the dred scott case put another wedge in between the north and south democrat party.
- Analyzes how harriet tubman's fugitive slave law was a major contributor to the southerners' rebellion against slavery.
- Analyzes how the economy was unstable between the north and the south during the civil war.
- Analyzes how the northerners were the final straw that pushed the south over the edge on the issue of war and secession.
1425 wordsRead More - Events that Led to the Civil Waranalytical essayEvents that Led to the Civil War There were several issues that contributed to the split between the northern and southern states. Among these were the deep social, economic and political differences. The split could be traced as far back as the early 1800’s, just as the industrial revolution was beginning. It’s effects on the north and the south caused the economic split. As the north was becoming more industrialized; the south began to rely heavily on slave labor.
In this essay, the author
- Explains the factors that led to the civil war, including the deep social, economic and political differences between the northern and southern states.
- Explains that northerners began building factories for mass production, which created several opportunities for jobs. with immigrants flooding in from europe, finding employment was no problem.
- Explains that cotton, being a laborious crop, required the ownership of many slaves per plantation, unlike the immigrants of the north.
- Explains that in 1818, the balance of power in congress was equal. illinois became the eleventh free state to join the union, with alabama following as the next slave state.
- Explains that a disagreement over tariffs on imports and exports led to the war. the tariff was lowered to help new england manufacturers compete on the same level as foreign products.
- Explains that the missouri compromise of 1820 only dealt with the louisiana territory. david wilmont, of pennsylvania, proposed that any land received from mexico would be free land.
- Analyzes how the 1850 compromise delayed the war for 11 years, allowing the south to enact tougher fugitive slave laws in the new territories.
- Analyzes how harriet beecher stowe's novel, "uncle tom’s cabin," created an uproar. the south claimed that the slaves were treated much better than described in the book.
- Explains that the kansas-nebraska act of 1854 repealed the missouri compromise, which prohibited slavery in territories north of 36' 30', and said the inhabitants of the territories themselves should decide the legality of slaveholding.
- Explains that the republican party was forming after the splitting of the whigs. the republicans were not abolitionists, but southerners saw them as people out to destroy their way of life.
- Describes the conflict that led to succession: the presidential election of 1860, when the newly formed republican party nominated abraham lincoln on principles that opposed further expansion of slavery.
- Narrates how south carolina adopted an ordinance of succession, which outraged the north and sent the u.s. into a civil war.
- Explains how many efforts were made to save the union and prevent the war. james buchanan believed the constitution did not allow the north to take any action against the south.
- Explains that slavery was the central element of the conflict between the north and south. the only way to avoid the war was to abolish slavery, but this was not able to be done.
1792 wordsRead More - Was Slavery the Only Cause of the Civil War?analytical essayThe United States was a divided country long before the Civil War, while some people would argue that slavery was the only cause of the Civil War, it is much more complicated than that. There are many other factors involved, such as irreconcilable differences in terms of their economic, political, and social beliefs on a national scale. Many people including myself had a primitive and unsophisticated view of what caused the Civil War, post war propaganda and moral righteousness have caused many people to believe that the Civil War was simply a thing of moral impurity on the part of the South, however it is much more complicated than that. Although slavery played a major role in the Civil War it was not the only cause of it.
In this essay, the author
- Opines that slavery was the only cause of the civil war, but it was complicated because of irreconcilable differences in economic, political, and social beliefs.
- Explains that the north and the south were basically two different rival countries, and these differences were a factor in the civil war.
- Explains the differences in political parties that led to the civil war. the north wanted a government based loosely off of the constitution, while the south wanted to give all the power to states.
- Explains that the missouri compromise was successful in solving these problems, but it was only a temporary solution.
- Explains that the wilmot proviso was a proposed law that would have restricted slavery in all the territory that was gained from mexico in the mexican war.
- Analyzes the social factors that led to the civil war, including slavery, in harriet beecher stowe's uncle toms cabin, which divided the north and south.
- Explains that nat turner's rebellion against southern slave owners, which killed 60 white men, women, and children, could have made life worse for them as their owners held a tighter leash on them.
- Describes how john brown was an abolitionist and fueled the division between the north and the south. he took several hostages including george washington’s great grandnephew.
- Analyzes how the compromise of 1850 played a major role in the start of the civil war.
- Explains that the kansas-nebraska act and the border ruffians caused the civil war.
- Explains that tariffs and taxes played a major role in the civil war. the morrill tariff was levied to increase the revenue of the u.s.
- Opines that the civil war helped transform the united states into the world superpower it is today.
1295 wordsRead More - Civil War Dbq Essaycomparative essayDuring the 17th century life differed greatly between the north and south states. The civil war was the greatest divide between the north and south regions. Both, the north and the south states had farming but the farming in the northern region was very insignificant compared to the large plantations in the south. Sectionalism which was one of the main factors that divided the north and south, states rights, and slavey are all things throughout each region that caused a great amount of tensions between these two regions. All of these factors are causes that lead to the american civil war.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that the civil war was the greatest divide between the north and south regions during the 17th century. sectionalism, states rights, and slavey caused tensions between these two regions.
- Explains that the north and the south had different viewpoints on how to run each region. the mexican american war began over the unconstitutional annexation of texas.
- Compares how the south and the north have different views on how to go about having the best economy for each.
570 wordsRead More - Was Slavery The Main Cause Of The Civil War Essayargumentative essay...1There were more slaves in the Southern states of America, as the conditions were better for the slaves to work on a plantation to make cotton. Conflicts started between the “Slave” and “Free” states and increased more as religious groups such as the Quakers began to argue that slavery was a moral evil. As a result of this conflict slavery was abolished in the Northern states between 1774 and 1804. In the South slavery was an essential as they needed large amounts of unskilled labour for their cotton plantations.
In this essay, the author
- Opines that slavery was the main cause of the civil war.
- Explains that the westward expansions caused a lot of conflict which could have triggered the civil war.
- Analyzes how slavery increased dramatically after the invention of eli whitneys' cotton gin in 1793 and how the slaves were being treated was another massive problem for slavery.
- Explains that a slave entered the world in an old, one room, and dirty shack. work for slaves began at sunrise and ended at long as there was light.
- Explains that slavery was abolished in the northern states between 1774 and 1804. in the south, the conditions were better for slaves to work on cotton plantations.
- Concludes that slavery and the poor ways that slaves were being treated made the civil war come about.
740 wordsRead More - Sectionalism Versus Nationalism and the Era of Good Feelingscomparative essayThe United States began to dissatisfy some of its citizens and so the concerns of sectionalism, or the split of the country began to arise. There was a continuous riff between the south and the north over a few issues, a major one being slavery. The south argued that the slaves were necessary to support the southern economy. According to document A, the south were angry that the north was creating taxes that hurt the southern economy, thus increasing the need for slavery since they had to make up for the expense of the taxes. The south felt that the north was able...
In this essay, the author
- Explains that there was a strong sense of nationalism after the war of 1812, but the loss of thousands of southern slaves led both the north and the south to lament over the cost of war.
- Explains that sectionalism, or the split of the country, began to arise. the south argued that slaves were necessary to support the southern economy.
- Explains the nationalism that came about as a result of the war with britain.
- Concludes that the era of good feelings didn't deserve this title, as they only served to hide the feelings of division that arose from dissatisfaction.
627 wordsRead More - Sectionalism In The United States:explanatory essayThere were many problems, events, and situations that led to the Civil War. One of the major reasons for the outbreak of the war was sectionalism. Once the United States was split, many of the country's fundamental issues were disputed, with slavery being at the top of the list. Some of the other major issues in dispute were representation, tariffs, and states' rights. Sectionalism is defined as, the sharp socio-economic differences that divided the Northern and the Southern states in the U.S.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that sectionalism was one of the major reasons for the civil war. it divided the northern and southern states.
- Explains the difference between the north and south in terms of slavery. the south was primarily agricultural, while the south relied on cheap labor in the form of slaves to produce tobacco and cotton.
- Analyzes how slavery was abolished in the north when abraham lincoln signed the emancipation proclamation in 1863, which upset the southern states and sever their ties with the rest of the country.
- Explains that the case dred scott v. sanford was a hot political issue. the ruling on this case stated that scott was still legally bound to his master and must remain slave.
- Explains that many northerners were upset with this ruling because they felt that the arguments against black citizenship went against the constitution. they were also infuriated that slavery was legal in the free states if your master brought you there.
- Explains that representation in the government was a major cause of the civil war. the north and south wanted to pass laws that would benefit their section.
- Explains that the south resented tariffs because they relied on british imports for their everyday goods and needed other nations to purchase cotton from their plantations.
- Explains that sectionalism in the country was due to the south's fear that the north would pass laws that would hurt its lifestyle. the southern states believed that they were being cheated and believed the political officials were biased.
- Explains that reconstructing life in the united states after the war was a formidable task. three amendments came out to protect the rights of slaves.
- Explains that president grant was instrumental during the reconstruction period. he passed the force acts of 1870 and 1871 to regulate the violence in the south.
- Describes the compromise of 1877, when president rutherford b. hayes was running for election against samuel j. tildon.
- Explains that sectionalism, slavery, and other issues leading up to the civil war were disturbing aspects of our history. the reconstructive period was also volatile and violent.
1378 wordsRead More - What Were the Key Issues Leading To the Civil War?analytical essaySince the beginning of their new nation, the United States had many differences between the Northern and Southern states. During the Constitutional Convention they disagreed on how to determine their representation in the house based on population; the Southerners wanted to count their slaves and the Northerners did not, which lead to the three-fifths compromise. Later in the Convention there were concessions given to the South, which left the Northerners feeling uneasy, such as: a guarantee that the slave trade would not be interfered with by Congress until 1808 and slave owners were given the right to recover refugee slaves from anywhere in the United States. While many Northern delegates were disappointed with the rights given to the South, they felt it was necessary for the good of the Nation. This was necessary to form a strong central government and union between the states.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how historians and scholars overlooking the commissioners' speeches and letters were difficult to understand. dew believes that slavery was the key issue that caused the civil war.
- Explains that the united states had many differences between the northern and southern states. they disagreed on how to determine representation in the house based on population.
- Explains that the south feared racial equality and the possibility of a race war.
- Opines that slavery was the key issue in the sectional conflict leading to the civil war.
2033 wordsRead More - How Revolutionary Was The American Revolution?argumentative essayThe American Revolution was a “light at the end of the tunnel” for slaves, or at least some. African Americans played a huge part in the war for both sides. Lord Dunmore, a governor of Virginia, promised freedom to any slave that enlisted into the British army. Colonists’ previously denied enlistment to African American’s because of the response of the South, but hesitantly changed their minds in fear of slaves rebelling against them. The north had become to despise slavery and wanted it gone. On the contrary, the booming cash crops of the south were making huge profits for landowners, making slavery widely popular. After the war, slaves began to petition the government for their freedom using the ideas of the Declaration of Independence,” including the idea of natural rights and the notion that government rested on the consent of the governed.” (Keene 122). The north began to fr...
In this essay, the author
- Describes the american revolution as an attempt to overthrow a government to start new one.
- Explains that the american revolution was a "light at the end of the tunnel" for slaves.
- Analyzes how americans were motivated to foresee many social and political changes after the war was over. they wanted to see a change within their government.
- Explains that the declaration of independence was a public defense letter declaring independence from great britain.
- Concludes that the american revolution was a revolutionary milestone in american history. the war gave america independence from the most powerful country in the world and brought about many social and political changes.
886 wordsRead More