The book, “Confederates in the Attic” has various themes, but a few major ones can easily be pointed out. First, it would be how the civil war seems to have an impact on every single person in the south in some way. Which ultimately shows how people like to feel as if they’re unique in some way, or special, hence why many southerners like to point out their famous ancestors in the Civil War. The other running theme in the book is the need to escape the fast pace reality of the modern world. The people who like to reenact, known as “reenactors”, and their obsession with being “hardcore” is the main example of this strong need for escape, as the simple life of the Civil War era can provide such escape. It 's like a hobby for them, but I doubt …show more content…
Tony Horwitz is the author and crucial character that is a Jewish American living in Virginia with his Australian wife Geraldine. He has an interest with the Civil War, which this story revolves around. He joins up with Robert Hodge and becomes a "Hardcore" reenactor of Civil War battles. Robert Hodge is A 28 year old American reenactor and Tony 's companion throughout; Tony has fully embraced the "hardcore" lifestyle. He takes reenacting very seriously, and calls those who don 't "Farbs." The activities that Robert and his fellow reenactors do are strange to me because I’ve never been exposed to this type of activity before and plus it’s kind of funny to see people dress up from back in the days. The term "Farbing out" is a derogatory term referring to a lack of commitment; if Horwitz sleeps, he is shaming the people who marched day and night by refusing to fully immerse himself in the moment. The goal is to become "in the moment" and achieve a sort of exhausted, relaxed, spiritually aware enlightenment of the people, places, and times. In the first chapter, tony guessed that the term farb was short for "far-be-it-from-authentic". Robert and Tony share a common interest in the Civil War and visit many battle sites dressed in a Confederate uniform for what is known as "Civil Wargasm”. Wargasm is the term used for an intensive journey through Civil War battlefields and locations, keeping you in tune with …show more content…
For example, the terms that they use when they are reenacting a scene most people would not be able to know what the definition is unless if they are historians or people who have an interest in historic things so the author gives examples for the terms. Since they have to stay in their character for the whole time that they are reenacting the war, they do not speak in modern dialect. I have never participated nor known someone who participated In a Civil war reenactment, so my understanding of the civil war vocabulary is limited. Even with the limited vocabulary that I have for the dialect that was spoken during the civil war, I am able to understand the book so in conclusion it’s a readable book. “Confederates in the Attic” is an interesting book that follows the author, Tony Horwitz while he journeys to civil war landmarks. What happens during his adventure is partly a history lesson, part social experiment, and mostly just a mixture of fun and the peculiar. I have never been to the Southern part of the United States, but there are many unique characteristics associated with it and its people and culture. Horwitz does a good job examining this culture. He is sometimes serious, but he also can also toe the line between pointing out the bizarre, while still paying reverence to the
The imagery used in this writing makes it seem as if you were there alongside Watkins at the time of the Civil War. It’s specific details factors into making this writing a strong primary historical source, however the inaccurate dates and names take a toll on the memoir as reliability is considered. Although on the contrary, the dates and names are minor inaccuracies, which doesn’t cause a major impact that hinders the books dependability as a primary historical source. Samuel Rush Watkins, one of seven survivors of Company H of the First Tennessee Infantry Regiment, certainly wrote an excellent primary historical source. As he spent his leisure time writing this memoir he had no clue that it’d become such a remarkable writing, and for that many people thank him for his point of view and his
More than 25,000 letters and 250 private diaries from men on both side of North and South. Talking about the soldier's ideals for which they fought over conflicts and beliefs of each side. McPherson took all of the soldier’s ideas and beliefs and made this powerful and important book on an often-overlooked aspect of the Civil War. Also, it brought great honor and powerfully moving account for the men that fought in the civil war.
The book “For Cause and Comrades: Why Men Fought In The Civil War” by James M. McPherson examines the motivations of the soldiers who fought in the Civil War. McPherson wanted to understand why the men fought in the Civil War and why they fought so ferociously for such a large amount of time even though there was a huge possibility of death, disease and injurys.To answer the question regarding the reasons why men fought in the Civil War so viciously, and for such a long period of time, James McPherson studied countless amounts of letters, diaries and other mails that were written or sent by the soldiers who fought in the Civil War.
The book begins with an in-depth explanation of what happened in the latter stages of the Civil War. Major battles like Sayler’s Creek, High Bridge and Richmond are described through detailed language. For instance, at High Bridge, “Each man wages his own individual battle with a ferocity only a life-and-death situation can bring. Bullets pierce eyes. Screams and curses fill the air. The grassy plain runs blood red.” (page 61). All of these iconic Civil War battles led up to the Confederate surrender at the Appomattox Courthouse and the inescapable rebuilding of a new nation Abraham Lincoln had to deal with. Next, John Wilkes Booth is introduced and his pro-Confederate motives are made clear. His conspiracy to kill the president is described and his co-conspirators like Lewis Powell, David Herold, and George Atzerodt who also attempted to kill Secretary of State Seward a...
Though morale became very low toward the end of the war, Watkins recounts the passion the privates felt for both the war and for their beloved South. He believed that the Confederate Army were “…trying to protect their homes and families, their property, their constitution and their laws, that had been guaranteed to them as a heritage forever by their forefathers.” Though slavery was an issue, it was not the primary concern and was rarely mentioned in the memoir. However, Watkins did write that any man who owned twenty or more slaves back home was allowed to leave the army, and he notes the war “…was a rich man’s war and a poor man’s fight”. The South and its inhabitants especially believed that they were fighting for the faith that each state was a separate sovereign government, as laid down by the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Many southerners felt that the North was invading their country and doing despicable things all under the name of the “Union”, and that the war was a necessary last resort after all efforts to conciliate the North had already been made.
Horwitz’s journey initially leads him to various historical events and locations in the Carolinas, such as Lee-Jackson Day in North Carolina, Fort Sumter in South Carolina, a Union Soldier monument in Kingstree, South Carolina. At each location, Horwitz sets the tone by detailing the history of the location and the people he meets on his travels in a very descriptive, yet nonchalant manner. His tangential experiences set the story in motion and captivates the reader. Horwitz’s developments in Kingstree intrigued me especially, considering my proximity to such historic locations. Much of Horwitz’s experiences were shrouded in mystery, which he details to a great extent. After his experiences in the Carolinas, Horwitz journeyed to the border of Kentucky and Tennessee, a hotbed of racial tensions over the recent Michael Westerman shooting. Horwitz lengthily discusses the polarization of the views in the locations he visits and begins to compare them to the locations he previously visited. Next Horwitz journeys to various battle sites, meeting with famed historian Shelby Foote in the
The novel The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara depicts the story behind one of the bloodiest, and highly significant, battles of the American Civil War, the battle of Gettysburg. The battle consisted of 51,000-casualties between the Union and Confederate army forces. Mainly focused on letters, journal entries, and memoirs, Shaara tells the story of Gettysburg by using characters from both sides of the war. The characters chosen grasp the divergent views regarding the impending days of the war, and countless numbers of those views develop throughout the novel. Such views come from the Confederates own General Lee and General Longstreet, and the Unions own Colonel Chamberlain and soldiers from both sides. From those depicted
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...
What can be learned about the Attica Prison Riot that can benefit society today? This riot began a chain reaction that changed the way the corrections department of this country works. Society should care about this uprising because it set a precedent that molded the way this country controls its prison population. New procedures and precedents were set that are still in place today and may not have been created had the riot never happened. First, we will learn about the conditions of the prison before the riot. Then, we will learn the demands of the prisoners and why some guards and prison workers were treated more harshly than others. Next, we learn whether or not the New York officials acted in “good faith” or not and how they finally reclaimed the prison. Finally, we will learn whether New York officials acted ethically in blaming and whether or not the guards should be compensated for the hardships they endured during the uprising. Despite the horrific acts that occurred during the uprising, we can learn to avoid another situation like this based on the information that we now know.
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.
In the historical narrative Redemption: The Last Battle of the Civil War, Nicholas Leman gives readers an insight into the gruesome and savage acts that took place in the mid-1870s and eventually led to the end of the Reconstruction era in the southern states. Before the engaging narrative officially begins, Lemann gives a 29-page introduction to the setting and provides background information about the time period. With Republican Ulysses S. Grant as President of the United States of America and Republican Adelbert Ames, as the Governor of Mississippi, the narrative is set in a town owned by William Calhoun in the city of Colfax, Louisiana. As a formal military commander, Ames ensured a
As Tony Horwitz illustrates in Confederates in the Attic, the Civil War is far from over. Horwitz, determined to find the answers to this conflict, treks through the South, seeking to explain man's longtime obsession with a war that divided the nation. Talking to historians and Civil War reenactors of all kinds, he finds that people are still divided today when it comes to the war and present issues in society. He collects a vast amount of data, which proves to make things very difficult in drawing a general conclusion. Horwitz learns how differently the south views the war, discovers the way in which people use history to suit their own needs, and explores issues of race.
First let us examine the cultural implications the Civil War had on us today. Today in America we are we are shaped as a culture by diversity, and dreams. By diversity I mean we are a culture that though, dominantly white, is full of many ethnicities of pe...
Imagine standing in front of the defaced statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee only to hear two sides of people curse, hurt each other. This situation is too familiar for people who visit Charlottesville, VA, the formerly peaceful town. The controversy between Confederate memorials never ends. Many people argue that Confederate monuments should be taken down because they become the flashpoints of unrest and violence. As far as I am concerned, confederate memorials should remain as these memorials are the legacy of history; history is value-neutral and innocent.
More confederates than unions were illiterate due to the fact that most held professional or white-collard jobs (36). To make the Union soldiers sample fair sense most blacks couldn’t read or write, 2 who could were included in the sample (36). The levels of patriotism differed from the upper and lower south given to the fact that the upper south were mainly cotton states. The confederates felt as if it was a “rich mans woar but the poor man has to do the fifting” (16). The confederates were mainly fighting for “independence, property and way of life” (27). Some characteristics the soldiers had in common were McPherson’s calculations for the Union. He came to seeing that out of 562 Union soldier’s letters read only 67 percent voice strong patriotic motives. This is the same as the two-thirds of Confederates. As a result from reading McPherson’s book, research showed that the Union and Confederate soldiers expressed about the same degree of patriotic and ideological convictions. Even though they both had different reasons for fighting the levels of sincerity and dedication in their notes were