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This course will introduce students to causes behind the American Civil War and its influence on nineteenth and
twentieth-century American politics, society, and culture. Topics will include: the role of slavery in pre-war America; the
origins and uses of the “States’ Rights” doctrine; the political crises that led to the conflict; why soldiers fought; military
tactics and battlefield strategies; the everyday lives of soldiers; slave emancipation; the war’s effects on the Confederate
and Union home fronts; Reconstruction; and, the commemoration and memorialization of the war that began in the
nineteenth century and continues up to present-day through literature, films, re-enactments, and politics. Students will
read selections from primary (newspapers, diaries, war correspondence) and secondary documents (selected scholarly
articles, book chapters, film documentaries, and Hollywood portrayals of the war). From these documents, students will
debate major historical issues, such as, “Was the war fought over states’ rights or slavery?,” “Which battle was the turning
point of the war?,” “Who freed the slaves?, ” and “Was the Civil War the first ‘modern’ war or the last ‘Napoleonic’
war?” Particular attention will be paid to the Red River Campaign, which took place in and around Natchitoches,
Louisiana. With this in mind, field trips may include (but are not limited to) a battlefield visit to Mansfield, Louisiana and
an excursion to nearby Melrose Plantation. |
