Aug 01, 2016 a list of 100 of the best civil war books, spanning several decades and genres. This book focuses only on women of the slaveholding south, those women who were brought up to be dependent on their men, women unused to hard physical work, and how the war affected them. In the first episode of mercy street, we are confronted with the gruesome injuries and carnage that men inflicted upon one another during the civil war. Faust looks directly at the past, with a daughters hard, steady gaze, and with a daughters generous heart.
For decades, historians have debated the meaning and significance of confederate nationalism and the role it played in the outcome of the civil war. Six books on the civil war these six histories of the civil war that are mustreads if you want to better understand the conflict a group of officers in culpeper, virginia reading. Death and the american civil war offers a look into the civil war that is truly unique the impact of death as a phenomenon upon individuals whose reactions ranged from horror and refusal of participating in killing to gleeful celebrations of killing, and upon america as a society and culture. Faust describes attitudes toward death prior to the civil war particularly the concept of the good death and dying well. Drew gilpin faust discusses her book, this republic of suffering. Like any good war history book, the civil war books on this list take a deep dive not only into the untold horrors of warfare, but also the perspectives, personalities, and motivations behind it, as well as the ramifications. A wonderfully researched chronicle of a largely unexamined social elite that enriches the fields of civil war and womens studies. I still assign this to graduate students as an example of historical writing at its best and for its deployment of the concept of irony to the sectional conflict. Morrison series in southern studies faust, drew gilpin on amazon. Schantz published a vital book on religion, death, and the american civil war.
During the civil war, 620,000 soldiers lost their lives equivalent to six million in todays population. Faust makes a major contribution to both civil war historiography and womens studies in this outstanding analysis. More than 600,000 soldiers lost their lives in the american civil war. An equivalent proportion of todays population would be six million. Faust takes a look at how both sides in the american civil war treated the issue of their dead. Death and the civil war excludes only one chapter from the book. May 15, 20 the program featured a clip from the pbs documentary death and the civil war, produced by burns and based upon fausts book this republic of suffering. From ancient history to our own time, war has centered on men, for they have controlled and populated its. Jan, 2008 women of the slaveholding south in the american civil war, faust is particularly qualified to identify and explain the complex social and political implications of the changing nature of death as. Woodworth, the vintage civil war library aims to collect the finest literature about the bloodiest war in u. Drew gilpin faust talked about her new book, mothers of invention. Confederate women and the narratives of war drew gilpin faust it is the men, hector tells andromache in the sixth book of the iliad, who must see to the fighting. It is one of the most admirable recent volumes of american social history.
Drew gilpin faust university of north carolina press. List of american civil war generals confederate wikipedia. Death and the american civil war, in which she explores the impact of the death toll of approximately 620,000 soldier during the. The civil war and americas culture of death ithaca. Fausts civil war history hailed as unexpected success. In the civil war, roots of carnage harvard gazette. Sep 21, 2012 drew faust on the shared suffering of the civil war in her book this republic of suffering. Alot of them get stymied by the lack of confederate information. This omission does not seem to stem from argumentative consistency. In suffering, faust says the civil war changed our idea of. With all the fanfare around drew gilpin faust being the first female president of harvard university, it was easy to forget that shes also a noted scholar on the civil war and the american south. Drew gilpin faust appeared with eminent lincoln scholar harold holzer at the national constitution center on april 9, 2012 to discuss her awardwinning book, this republic of suffering, and the enormous human toll of the civil war on 19thcentury america. A national book award finalist, fausts book traces the transformative effect mass carnage had on the nations institutions and psyche during and after the civil war.
A list of 100 wonderful, mustread books about the civil war era, spanning several decades and genres. The killer angels by michael shaara, gone with the wind by margaret mitchell, battle cry of freedom by james m. Death and the american civil war vintage civil war library faust, drew gilpin on. In suffering, faust says the civil war changed our idea. The civil war caused severe upheavals in the lives of millions of americans. Fausts points here are consonant with those in this republic of suffering overall. The tremendous change that swept the united states due to the horrendous number of war dead. In this republic of suffering, drew gilpin faust reveals the ways that death on such a scale changed not only. She is the author of six books, including mothers of invention.
The faust book is a godsend for my studentsthey just dont know it yet. Burns said the new film was inspired by harvard president drew fausts book this republic of suffering. These mustread books cover both fiction and nonfiction about the war. Women of the slaveholding south in the american civil war 1996, for which she won both the society of american historians francis parkman prize and the avery o. This republic of suffering is a strange book, at once bloody and bloodless. Drew faust on the shared suffering of the civil war. Drew faust on the shared suffering of the civil war in her book this republic of suffering. As faust makes clear, the scope of the carnage was sweeping. The best civil war books of all time analysis civil. In this republic of suffering, drew gilpin faust reveals the ways that death on such a scale changed not only individual lives but the life.
This republic of suffering civil war books and authors. Catharine drew gilpin faust born september 18, 1947 is an american historian and was the 28th president of harvard university, the first woman to serve in that role. Faust, president of harvard university and the author of five previous books dealing with the south or the civil war, starts with the 19th century concept of death. Blight examine the lives that were irrevocably changed by. Craven award from the organization of american historians in 1997.
Drew gilpin faust talks about her book this republic of suffering. Faust is the former dean of the radcliffe institute for advanced study. The program featured a clip from the pbs documentary death and the civil war, produced by burns and based upon fausts book this republic of suffering. The best civil war books of all time analysis civil war. A virginia native who grew up visiting civil war battlegrounds, faust wrote the book, her sixth, over the past decade. Historian drew gilpin faust writes that civil war deaths both their number and their manner transformed america. Death and the american civil war, a thoughtful study of the impact of the wars massive death toll on society and government.
Women of the slaveholding south in the american civil war fred w. Yet they have paid little attention to the actual development and content of this confederate ideology. This republic of suffering explores the impact of the enormous death toll from material, political, intellectual, and spiritual angles. A tough assignment but these books especially faust made the journey of writing like reliving the conflict up close and personal. In this republic of suffering, drew gilpin faust reveals the ways that death on such a scale changed not only individual lives but the life of the nation, describing how the survivors managed on a practical level and how a deeply religious culture. Women of the slaveholding south in the american civil war, published by university of north carolina press. Drew gilpin fausts powerful and moving answers to these questions provide an important new dimension to our understanding of the civil war. Faust, burns debut documentary news the harvard crimson. Not really a civil war book, but crucial to understanding all other civil war books. Sep 19, 2012 in a rare oncampus film premiere tuesday, harvard screened death and the civil war, a documentary by ric burns, coproducer of the acclaimed 1990 pbs series the civil war. Drew gilpin faust, the president of harvard, has written an extraordinary new book about the enormous loss of human life in the civil war.
Americans are no strangers to the destruction and horrific bloodletting that defined this nations civil war. Prior to the civil war, dying a good death fell within the domestic realm, where women were the primary. I used many of these to recreate my civil war ancestor story in first person. Death and the american civil war vintage civil war library faust, drew gilpin on amazon. Death and the american civil war, in which she explores the impact of the. We wanted to include a variety of volumes to appeal to many different tastes. Aug 06, 2012 the faust book is a godsend for my studentsthey just dont know it yet. In the creation of confederate nationalism, drew gilpin faust argues that coming to a fuller understanding of southern thought during the civil. Vintage civil war library found in civil war period the vintage civil war library is a defining collection of some of the most important works about the war between the states by preeminent authors and historians. The starting point for drew gilpin fausts new book rests on one of the most basic facts about civil war america. In a rare oncampus film premiere tuesday, harvard screened death and the civil war, a documentary by ric burns, coproducer of the acclaimed 1990 pbs series the civil war. As she notes in the book, killing, like death more generally, required workintellectual and psychological effort. Those in the book industry are divided over how much the harvard spotlight has boosted sales. Death and the american civil war 43008 two renowned civil war historians drew gilpin faust and david w.
Most civil war books are about great battles and specific generals. Jan 27, 2008 drew gilpin faust, the president of harvard, has written an extraordinary new book about the enormous loss of human life in the civil war 620,000 men, north and south. Death and the american civil war, historian drew gilpin faust writes that civil war deaths both. After four years of unprecedented slaughter, no one would be the same again. Faust briefly discusses how civil war combatants coped with the dissolution of this barrier. Drew gilpin faust delineates the ways death changed not only individual lives but the life of the nation and describes how a deeply religious culture.
See incomplete appointments section in list of american civil war generals acting confederate. Posts may contain affiliate links, meaning cwba might get a commission from purchases made through those links, at no cost to you. Drew gilpin faust, the president of harvard, has written an extraordinary new book about the enormous loss of human life in the civil war 620,000 men, north and south. A historian of the civil war and the american south, faust was the founding dean of the radcliffe institute for advanced study at harvard, guiding its transformation from a college into a wideranging institute for scholarly and creative enterprise, distinctive for its multidisciplinary focus and the exploration of new knowledge at the. More than 600000 soldiers lost their lives in the american civil war. Harvard administrators and faculty showed up in droves tuesday night at the premier of the pbs documentary death and the civil war, based on university president drew g. Death and the american civil war vintage civil war library. Dec 27, 2010 the top 12 civil war books ever written one great book for each month of 2011, the sesquicentennial of the war between the states. This was a fantastic book, though sometimes hard to stomach. One of the most poignant moments in the series comes when a young soldier is brought into the hospital literally attached to the union flag. It ends up that most all of it is from a northern perspective.
This republic of suffering vintage civil war library. Perspectives on the civil war during the civil war, death reached into the world of the living in ways unknown to americans before or since. Women of the slaveholding south in the american civil war, faust is particularly qualified to identify and explain the complex social and political implications of the changing nature of death as. Death and the american civil war penguin random house. From classic accounts by authors such as shelby foote and bruce catton, to chronicles by more contemporary scholars such as drew gilpin faust and stephen e. Death and the american civil war, historian drew gilpin faust writes that. Every year each students pick a civil war topic to research and every year several students choose womenrelated topic. Drew gilpin fasts book, this republic of suffering, covers something much more personal. From james mcphersons definitive history to tony horwitzs adventures among obsessives, here are the 11 best books on the civil war in time for the. It describes, in numbing detail, the lived experience of americans with the carnage of the civil war.
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