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Modern War Studies
Honoring the Civil War Dead: Commemoration and the Problem of Reconciliation
By the end of the Civil War, fatalities from that conflict had far exceeded previous American experience, devastating families and communities alike. As John Neff shows, commemorating the 620,000 lives lost proved to be a persistent obstacle to the hard work of reuniting the nation, as every memorial observation compelled painful recollections of the war.
Neff contends that the significance of the Civil War dead has been largely overlooked and that the literature on the war has so far failed to note how commemorations of the dead provide a means for both expressing lingering animosities and discouraging reconciliation. Commemoration—from private mourning to the often extravagant public remembrances exemplified in cemeteries, monuments, and Memorial Day observances—provided Americans the quintessential forum for engaging the war's meaning.
Additionally, Neff suggests a special significance for the ways in which the commemoration of the dead shaped Northern memory. In his estimation, Northerners were just as active in myth-making after the war. Crafting a "Cause Victorious" myth that was every bit as resonant and powerful as the much better-known "Lost Cause" myth cherished by Southerners, the North asserted through commemorations the existence of a loyal and reunified nation long before it was actually a fact. Neff reveals that as Northerners and Southerners honored their separate dead, they did so in ways that underscore the limits of reconciliation between Union and Confederate veterans, whose mutual animosities lingered for many decades after the end of the war.
Ultimately, Neff argues that the process of reunion and reconciliation that has been so much the focus of recent literature either neglects or dismisses the persistent reluctance of both Northerners and Southerners to "forgive and forget," especially where their war dead were concerned. Despite reunification, the continuing imperative of commemoration reflects a more complex resolution to the war than is even now apparent. His book provides a compelling account of this conflict that marks a major contribution to our understanding of the war and its many meanings.
Neff contends that the significance of the Civil War dead has been largely overlooked and that the literature on the war has so far failed to note how commemorations of the dead provide a means for both expressing lingering animosities and discouraging reconciliation. Commemoration—from private mourning to the often extravagant public remembrances exemplified in cemeteries, monuments, and Memorial Day observances—provided Americans the quintessential forum for engaging the war's meaning.
Additionally, Neff suggests a special significance for the ways in which the commemoration of the dead shaped Northern memory. In his estimation, Northerners were just as active in myth-making after the war. Crafting a "Cause Victorious" myth that was every bit as resonant and powerful as the much better-known "Lost Cause" myth cherished by Southerners, the North asserted through commemorations the existence of a loyal and reunified nation long before it was actually a fact. Neff reveals that as Northerners and Southerners honored their separate dead, they did so in ways that underscore the limits of reconciliation between Union and Confederate veterans, whose mutual animosities lingered for many decades after the end of the war.
Ultimately, Neff argues that the process of reunion and reconciliation that has been so much the focus of recent literature either neglects or dismisses the persistent reluctance of both Northerners and Southerners to "forgive and forget," especially where their war dead were concerned. Despite reunification, the continuing imperative of commemoration reflects a more complex resolution to the war than is even now apparent. His book provides a compelling account of this conflict that marks a major contribution to our understanding of the war and its many meanings.
342 pages, Hardcover
First published March 31, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 7, 2017
In 1865, military hostilities ended in the Civil War, but a separatist view continued with the handling of the Civil War dead. The Federal government collected and interred Union soldiers in what was to become the National Cemetery system, and yet held no regard for Confederate soldiers buried nearby. No where was this policy more apparent than Gettysburg, as Confederate soldiers were left on the field until the women's associations in the South made arrangements in the early 1870s to bring their dead home. Additionally, all across the South, the women gathered their soldiers and made separate arrangements for burials and commemoration.
While many invoke the Southern "Lost Cause" myth as being a driving force during this time, the author claims that the Northern myth that of the "Cause Victorious" also pervaded the social conscience of America during this era (and maybe still somewhat today), that the great cause of Union was met and achieved by the Civil War. The achievement of freeing the slaves was also accomplished (secondarily), even though providing these former slaves with the full measure of political and social equality was not achieved in this time period, and even less so as Southern men gained back their own political standings in the 1890s.
The author analyzes many events of this time era, including Lincoln's death, the death of Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee, burial of Confederates at Arlington - to try and give the entire picture of the climate of post war reconciliation through the framework of the dead. He also describes the death customs of the Victorian era and how they play into the issues that arise from handling of the dead - the good death and burial. His treatment of the topic is fairly middle of the road, neither pro south or pro north. Although he seems slightly more critical of the Northern myth of "Cause Victorious" which had a larger role in the National narrative of commemoration of the Civil War dead, and out of which the "Lost Cause" myth seemed to gain momentum.
Considering the times that we are in, this is an excellent read in understanding how the Confederate Monuments, now so under fire, grew out of the post war efforts of handling the Civil War dead and preserving the memory.
While many invoke the Southern "Lost Cause" myth as being a driving force during this time, the author claims that the Northern myth that of the "Cause Victorious" also pervaded the social conscience of America during this era (and maybe still somewhat today), that the great cause of Union was met and achieved by the Civil War. The achievement of freeing the slaves was also accomplished (secondarily), even though providing these former slaves with the full measure of political and social equality was not achieved in this time period, and even less so as Southern men gained back their own political standings in the 1890s.
The author analyzes many events of this time era, including Lincoln's death, the death of Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee, burial of Confederates at Arlington - to try and give the entire picture of the climate of post war reconciliation through the framework of the dead. He also describes the death customs of the Victorian era and how they play into the issues that arise from handling of the dead - the good death and burial. His treatment of the topic is fairly middle of the road, neither pro south or pro north. Although he seems slightly more critical of the Northern myth of "Cause Victorious" which had a larger role in the National narrative of commemoration of the Civil War dead, and out of which the "Lost Cause" myth seemed to gain momentum.
Considering the times that we are in, this is an excellent read in understanding how the Confederate Monuments, now so under fire, grew out of the post war efforts of handling the Civil War dead and preserving the memory.
August 1, 2011
I have started on this work but have not been able to finish. It is good in combination with other books on contested landscapes and material culture studies.
December 22, 2011
The topic is obscure and the writing is difficult, but Neff asks some tough questions and best of all he goes beyond the Lost Cause in examining Civil War memory.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews