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UnCivil Wars
Lens of War: Exploring Iconic Photographs of the Civil War
Lens of War grew out of an invitation to leading historians of the Civil War to select and reflect upon a single photograph. Each could choose any image and interpret it in personal and scholarly terms. The result is a remarkable set of essays by twenty-seven scholars whose numerous volumes on the Civil War have explored military, cultural, political, African American, women’s, and environmental history.
The essays describe a wide array of photographs and present an eclectic approach to the assignment, organized by Leaders, Soldiers, Civilians, Victims, and Places. Readers will rediscover familiar photographs and figures examined in unfamiliar ways, as well as discover little-known photographs that afford intriguing perspectives. All the images are reproduced with exquisite care. Readers fascinated by the Civil War will want this unique book on their shelves, and lovers of photography will value the images and the creative, evocative reflections offered in these essays.
The essays describe a wide array of photographs and present an eclectic approach to the assignment, organized by Leaders, Soldiers, Civilians, Victims, and Places. Readers will rediscover familiar photographs and figures examined in unfamiliar ways, as well as discover little-known photographs that afford intriguing perspectives. All the images are reproduced with exquisite care. Readers fascinated by the Civil War will want this unique book on their shelves, and lovers of photography will value the images and the creative, evocative reflections offered in these essays.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published April 15, 2015
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About the author
J. Matthew Gallman
19 books4 followersJ. Matthew Gallman, also known as Matt Gallman, is an American educator and author of books about nineteenth-century history, particularly relating to the American Civil War.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
April 10, 2015
Lens of War, edited by J. Matthew Gallman and Gary W. Gallagher, is both a book of beautiful pictures and haunting pictures. It is a book of history and present day and people's stories. It is a book that will bring those who haven't seen many pictures of the Civil War right into the action, but give those who have a deeper understanding of them.
Gallman and Gallagher have compiled essays written by people about one photograph from the Civil War that has some meaning to them, that has touched them in some way, or sparked curiosity in them. Each writer brings their own take of these photographs into their essay. This gives the reader a wide variety of photographs to look at and a bevy of information to read. And yet, it is not overwhelming and does not seem like too much. These snippets of the Civil War that come to us in each essay are informative, passionate, and interesting.
Lens of War is broken up into the following sections: Leaders, Soldiers, Civilians, Victims, and Places.
The first essay, in what seems quite fitting, is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln. This portrait seems to be the compilation of two pictures - the right half of the face different from the left half. Which draws the viewer right into the picture and sparks the imagination. Harold Holzer has been taken with this picture for most of his life and now investigates why the picture wasn't more widely circulated when it was originally taken. Though this we go down a path that link photography with paintings and sculptures.
In another essay, by Carol Reardon, we learn about the pensions that were given to fallen and injured soldier's families. $8.00 monthly to the families of fallen enlisted men. $8.00 that was hard to come by and hard to get. $8.00 for the whole family, regardless of if it was just a mother, or a wife, or a wife with 8 children to feed. For me, this was fascinating as it was a part of the war I had never learned about before.
Of course, the most haunting images come in the victims section. The pictures here strike right to the core. The reality of the war - which took a great toll on so many people. You want to skim through the section as quickly as possible, and yet, you can't look away. This is what war is. Even with abolition of slavery, there was a high price to pay. Worth it? Yes. But one we should acknowledge and these pictures and essays give us space and time to do that.
Overall, I felt this book was fabulous. I could stare at the photographs for hours. And yet the essays give me a chance to explore the photo deeper, to learn more about the Civil War and to get it from the perspective of quite a few people. I believe this book would be a great read for anyone: those who love to read about the Civil War and to study it more in-depth and those who just want a taste of it.
*Note: I was given an e-copy of this book through NetGalley with the express intent that I would review it. However, as always, all thoughts and opinions are my own!.
Gallman and Gallagher have compiled essays written by people about one photograph from the Civil War that has some meaning to them, that has touched them in some way, or sparked curiosity in them. Each writer brings their own take of these photographs into their essay. This gives the reader a wide variety of photographs to look at and a bevy of information to read. And yet, it is not overwhelming and does not seem like too much. These snippets of the Civil War that come to us in each essay are informative, passionate, and interesting.
Lens of War is broken up into the following sections: Leaders, Soldiers, Civilians, Victims, and Places.
The first essay, in what seems quite fitting, is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln. This portrait seems to be the compilation of two pictures - the right half of the face different from the left half. Which draws the viewer right into the picture and sparks the imagination. Harold Holzer has been taken with this picture for most of his life and now investigates why the picture wasn't more widely circulated when it was originally taken. Though this we go down a path that link photography with paintings and sculptures.
In another essay, by Carol Reardon, we learn about the pensions that were given to fallen and injured soldier's families. $8.00 monthly to the families of fallen enlisted men. $8.00 that was hard to come by and hard to get. $8.00 for the whole family, regardless of if it was just a mother, or a wife, or a wife with 8 children to feed. For me, this was fascinating as it was a part of the war I had never learned about before.
Of course, the most haunting images come in the victims section. The pictures here strike right to the core. The reality of the war - which took a great toll on so many people. You want to skim through the section as quickly as possible, and yet, you can't look away. This is what war is. Even with abolition of slavery, there was a high price to pay. Worth it? Yes. But one we should acknowledge and these pictures and essays give us space and time to do that.
Overall, I felt this book was fabulous. I could stare at the photographs for hours. And yet the essays give me a chance to explore the photo deeper, to learn more about the Civil War and to get it from the perspective of quite a few people. I believe this book would be a great read for anyone: those who love to read about the Civil War and to study it more in-depth and those who just want a taste of it.
*Note: I was given an e-copy of this book through NetGalley with the express intent that I would review it. However, as always, all thoughts and opinions are my own!.
December 31, 2021
This book is a series of essays written by different civil war historians who each chose a photo from the civil war to write about. Much of the focus is on particular photographs and what you can learn from those pictures. Certainly an interesting idea. I chose to read this as a companion to Battle Cry of Freedom to see more pictures of the civil war to help set the scene for the history I'm reading. I'd certainly recommend this for that purpose. There are pictures here I've never seen, and many of the essays have interesting insight into them.
April 11, 2021
Great book that takes a photo from the Civil War and pairs it with a modern essay. The one about the horse may have been the best.
Nice book to read chapter by chapter instead of all at once.
Nice book to read chapter by chapter instead of all at once.
October 4, 2022
I really enjoyed reading the critical scholarship accompanying each photo.
March 8, 2017
The photos are so sparse, there are even paintings thrown in. Most of the book is text anyway.
May 4, 2016
The editors of Lens of War put out an invitation to various historians of the American Civil War to pick one photo from the war and write a personal essay on it. The 27 essays contained in this volume are wonderful. The essays are divided into five different topics: leaders, soldiers, civilians, victims, and places. Some photos are familiar to most people, but others are obscure. No matter which category they fall into, the writers draw in their readers with their remarkable insight.
There were a couple of things that struck me when reading this book. First of all, it is rather amazing how many historians have selected a photo that they first saw when they were young children, perhaps in their older sibling’s history book. How fascinating that a photograph would stay with them for years, decades… and had the power to instill a passion in one particular subject and perhaps was the catalyst to propel them into their eventual career. Secondly, I found it interesting that all the essays in the “civilians” chapter were written by women. I think this shows how important social history is to women, and perhaps indicates how social history is still neglected by male historians who fixate more on the male leaders and military operations.
One of my favourite essays was the one written by Emory M. Thomas, who used a photo of a young “unknown” soldier in order to delve into a personal event in General Robert E. Lee’s life. The essay really succeeds in showing Lee as a real human with a wonderful sense of humour, even under stressful circumstances. That Lee would take time to write a letter to two young girls, and inject it with humour, says a lot about his character.
I’m a lover of social history and old photographs, plus I’ve got more than a passing interest in the Civil War, so this book was absolutely perfect for me. Anyone who loves any of these subjects would enjoy this book.
There were a couple of things that struck me when reading this book. First of all, it is rather amazing how many historians have selected a photo that they first saw when they were young children, perhaps in their older sibling’s history book. How fascinating that a photograph would stay with them for years, decades… and had the power to instill a passion in one particular subject and perhaps was the catalyst to propel them into their eventual career. Secondly, I found it interesting that all the essays in the “civilians” chapter were written by women. I think this shows how important social history is to women, and perhaps indicates how social history is still neglected by male historians who fixate more on the male leaders and military operations.
One of my favourite essays was the one written by Emory M. Thomas, who used a photo of a young “unknown” soldier in order to delve into a personal event in General Robert E. Lee’s life. The essay really succeeds in showing Lee as a real human with a wonderful sense of humour, even under stressful circumstances. That Lee would take time to write a letter to two young girls, and inject it with humour, says a lot about his character.
I’m a lover of social history and old photographs, plus I’ve got more than a passing interest in the Civil War, so this book was absolutely perfect for me. Anyone who loves any of these subjects would enjoy this book.
June 5, 2015
I love the concept of this book: Having Civil War scholars write about their favorite photo from that era. You can imagine the editors having a beer after a scholarly conference and coming up with this idea, and then saying, “Can we pull this off?” The good news is that yes, they did pull it off. Gallman and Gallagher did a fantastic job of taking a seed of an idea and bringing it to fruition.
I particularly liked the varied perspectives from the many contributors (there are 27). It's fascinating to see what caught their imagination, because in many cases, this was what started them on a path to study and teach history.
I also liked the design and the attention to detail in the production of the book. The embossed lettering on the dust jacket and the stamped silver type on the cover are two external examples, but inside the use of all-black pages to introduce each photo has a sobering and timeless effect that the topic matter deserves.
This is a book that many will find fascinating. I highly recommend it.
I particularly liked the varied perspectives from the many contributors (there are 27). It's fascinating to see what caught their imagination, because in many cases, this was what started them on a path to study and teach history.
I also liked the design and the attention to detail in the production of the book. The embossed lettering on the dust jacket and the stamped silver type on the cover are two external examples, but inside the use of all-black pages to introduce each photo has a sobering and timeless effect that the topic matter deserves.
This is a book that many will find fascinating. I highly recommend it.
March 8, 2015
This is no ordinary photo collection of the Civil War- the editors have compiled some of the most iconic photos of the war that 27 scholars analyse, offering us their take on the story behind the images. The work of pioneer photographer Matthew Brady is of course evident throughout the book, as are some of his proteges who have ventured out on their own.
These photos are viewed through various lenses, offering the reader alternate narratives that many of us may not have even fathomed. This is an excellent collection that will appeal to Civil War buffs, photography and art enthusiasts, as well as students of history and Human Geography.
Read more in The Thugbrarian Review @ http://wp.me/p4pAFB-rC
These photos are viewed through various lenses, offering the reader alternate narratives that many of us may not have even fathomed. This is an excellent collection that will appeal to Civil War buffs, photography and art enthusiasts, as well as students of history and Human Geography.
Read more in The Thugbrarian Review @ http://wp.me/p4pAFB-rC
February 3, 2015
Having visited many sites of the Civil War this book of pictures with essays by Civil War historians is breathtaking. Pictures do tell stories, and many of these are haunting, fascinating and heartbreaking. I truly enjoyed these glimpses into a pivotal part of our history.
May 4, 2015
Amazing collection of civil war photos and thoughtful essays by civil war scholars that probe the particular photo's genesis, the background of the people and events depicted, and personal reflections on the power of pictures and history. Outstanding.
December 4, 2015
This was an interesting book on iconic photographs of the civil war.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews