Legacy of disunion : the enduring significance of the American Civil War / edited by Susan-Mary Grant and Peter J. Parish.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Grant, Susan-Mary.

Parish, Peter J.

Series:

Conflicting worlds

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Influence.

United States.

History.

Physical Description:

viii, 267 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Baton Rouge : Louisiana State University Press, [2003]

Summary:

Transatlantic views on the consequences of the central event in American history The conviction that the American Civil War left a massive legacy to the country has generally been much clearer than the definition of what that legacy is. Did the war, as Ulysses S. Grant believed, bequeath power, intelligence, and sectional harmony to America, or did it, as many have argued since, sow racial and regional bitterness that has blighted the nation since 1865? What, exactly, was the legacy of disunion? This collection explores that question from a variety of angles, showcasing the work of twelve scholars from the United States and the United Kingdom. The essays ponder the role of history, myth, and media in sustaining the memory of the war and its racial implications in the South; Abraham Lincoln's legacy; and the war's consequences in less studied areas, such as civil-military relations and constitutional and legal history. By juxtaposing American and non-American interpretations, this stimulating volume reveals aspects of the war's legacy that from a purely American viewpoint are sometimes too close for comfort. Contributors; Bruce Collins, Robert Cook, Richard N. Current, Susan-Mary Grant, Charles W. Joyner, Patricia Lucie, James M. McPherson, Peter J. Parish, Brian Holden Reid, Jeffrey Leigh Sedgwick, Adam P. Smith, Melvyn Stokes

Contents:

"Forget, hell!" : the Civil War in southern memory / Charles Joyner

Confederate identity and the southern myth since the Civil War / Bruce Collins

Unfinished business : African Americans and the Civil War centennial / Robert Cook

The Civil War in the movies / Melvyn Stokes

A contested legacy: the Civil War and party politics in the North / Adam I.P. Smith and Peter J. Parish

Abraham Lincoln and the character of liberal statesmanship / Jeffrey Leigh Sedgwick

Abraham Lincoln and American nationhood / Peter J. Parish

"For a vast future also" : Lincoln and the millennium / James M mcpherson

Civil-military relations and the legacy of the Civil War / Brian Holden Reid

The enduring significance of the Civil War constitutional amendments / Patricia Lucie

"The charter of its birthright" : the Civil War and American nationalism / Susan-Mary Grant

From Civil War to world power : perceptions and realities, 1865-1914 / Richard N. Current.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [223]-254) and index.

ISBN:

0807128473

OCLC:

50511456