Introduction
The book “American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies” proposes an interesting narration and vision of American culture and its formation. Joseph J. Ellis underlines that the War of Independence and the Louisiana Purchase were turning points in American history and emotional identity. The course of the war and its outcome were shaped and determined by the governments of the USA as well as by their armies. Some of the problems confronting the leaders, both North and South, were similar in nature, The book consists of six chapters devoted to different problems and events during this historical period and analyzes these events from different points of view.
Discussion section
Ellis creates an interested and detailed narration about the causes of the Civil War and its beginning. He states that the American state was faced with the task of financing the war; political leaders met with internal opposition; and foreign relations were largely focused on gaining, or preventing, recognition of the Confederacy by European powers. “It suffers from the same fate as its European predecessors” (Ellis 101). Other issues were unique. The paradox of increasing the power of a central government in a nation established on the doctrine of States rights placed Jefferson Davis often in disagreement with State authorities.
President Lincoln’s great problem was to place and maintain the support of the war on as broad as possible; and his great home affair was the election of 1864, one of the most important in American history. Inextricably involved in the issues to be met was the overriding moral issue of human slavery (Ellis 113, 127). “Any recognition of federal jurisdiction over domestic policy placed slavery at risk” (Ellis 185). The main concepts of the book relate to injustices and inequalities faced by common citizens and soldiers who protected the US land and oppose slavery and segregation policies of the state. For many people, “great metropolitan empire also implied national identity” (Ellis 23).
I agree with Ellis that internal struggle and opposition had an impact on national values and principles. The Emancipation had vast and useful consequences. In Europe the people devastatingly approved Lincoln’s action, and their support effectively ended any chance of intervention by their states on behalf of the Confederacy, which, by its continued conflict, was placed in the untenable position of appearing to fight to preserve slavery. During the Civil War, within the South slaves flocked into the Federal lines as the armies advanced, depriving the Confederacy of much of the laboring force it so desperately needed to support its armies.
I am amazed by the fact that a Union soldier reading the proclamation to a group of slaves. It is possible to say that President Lincoln was denounced by many in the North because the Emancipation freed only those slaves within the Confederacy and did not permanently end slavery as an institution. The Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution abolished forever human slavery within the United States and its geographical boundaries. A Congressional resolution calling for the amendment failed to get ahead of the House of Representatives, and in a message to Congress delivered the following December Lincoln asked again for the legislation. It is evident that two of the most troublesome of the national problems which faced the Lincoln administration are reflected in this letter from Lincoln to Stanton. In both the Union and Confederacy, there were elements who opposed the war and sometimes worked against its successful prosecution (Ellis 93-94).
I believe that the strong point of the book is that it creates a vivid and impressive account of historical events and their impact on the American nation. Ellis describes soldiers’ conditions and political problems of this historical period in order to create a full picture of the historical age. It has been mentioned that without the soldiers’ vote in 1864, which went awesomely for Lincoln, he could not have been reelected. These political events, the first instances of absentee voting in the United States, were not held totally without confusion. It is possible to say that the Confederate railroad system was in a weak position by a lack of skilled labor and of supplies, especially nails, to repair lines and equipment as they deteriorated or were ruined (Ellis 28, 30). “Blacks and whites could never live together in harmony” (Ellis 237).
I suppose that the main weakness is less of maps and illustrations related to the period. Thus, Ellis vividly describes that In the early years of the war an inefficient logistic system, under which the Federal Government and the individual States bid against each other for supplies, led to notorious contracts and shameful consequences. Unscrupulous contractors, often abetted by corrupt officials, furnished the armies, at inflated prices, with worthless foreign guns; substituted sand for sugar and paper for leather; sold spoiled food; and supplied tents and blankets which rapidly disintegrated. Clothing, known as “shoddy,” was delivered to the soldiers, who had to pay for it themselves from their meager clothing allowance. Under the administration of Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton a exhausting effort at reform was made, but throughout the wartime the US army contractors were somewhat suspect. It is evident that it provided the Union armies with writing materials, reading rooms, and reading matters, gave assistance to transient soldiers, and arranged for religious services. This was a difficult period of time for the state and the people involved in the military operations and those who stayed at home (Ellis 223).
It is important that the author gives a special attention to p9litical leadership and career of Abraham Lincoln. For example, he mentions that at Gettysburg and at his second inauguration, Abraham Lincoln, in two addresses unique in their eloquence and insight, defined the rationale of the war and looked beyond it to a nation reunited. I agree with Ellis that “as a national we have national objects to promote and a national character” (Ellis 89). While others, influential in their opposition, demanded retribution and the complete subjugation of the South, Lincoln worked to establish a policy toward both individuals and States which would make the restoration of the Union as quick and as free from bitterness and cruelty as possible (Ellis 87).
It is not definitely known when and where Lincoln wrote this draft. Ellis believes that Lincoln wrote it in Gettysburg on the morning of the ceremony and that it is the manuscript that he held in his hand while he spoke. Ellis mentions that: “they would never sell Louisiana to another country” (Ellis 221). These beliefs may or may not be correct (Ellis 3-4). Ellis vividly portrays that the Civil War was a period of injustice and oppression against the civilian population and peaceful laborers. It is possible to say that it was an important process in social change and national formation of the state and its culture. Ellis criticizes the founding fathers because of their policies and strategies towards the Native population and politics of oppression against Native Americans. “The Life of Native Americans was doomed to extinction” (Ellis 237).
Conclusion
In sum, I would recommend this book to everyone interested in history of the USA and formation of the American nation. Historical events had a great impact on self-identity of the nation and its cultural values. Wartime and labor relations were the main factors that determined American identity and relations between people and the world. As part of the cultural conditioning process, society imparts and enforces ethnocentric values and beliefs on its citizens through the programs, policies, practices, structures, and institutions of the society. American identity was shaped by capitalist elations and the accumulation of wealth as the only possible tools to conquer the continent and prosper in foreign lands. The American Civil War was one of the most important historical events which had a great impact on all spheres of political, social and economic development of the nation. The Civil War was caused by a number of different factors that affected the South and the North. The Civil war influence national beliefs, ideals, and values coined in military operations, national struggle, and opposition against slavery and segregation.
Works Cited
Ellis, J. J. American Creation: Triumphs and Tragedies at the Founding of the Republic. Knopf; 1 edition, 2007.