Class Year
2016
Document Type
Blog Post
Publication Date
6-27-2016
Department 1
Civil War Institute
Abstract
Perhaps it is because I have spent so much time with people for whom the Civil War is a life choice, but I confess, there are times when I wonder if we—myself included—sometimes get carried away by our fierce and noble passion for the past. The Civil War is, of course, incredibly important both in its own right and in the long context of American history. But I do wonder if an overly-zealous fascination with the Civil War, especially if it becomes too single-minded, can distract us from other important moments in history, as well as from other types of worthy understandings from other fields of study.
[excerpt]
Copyright Note
This is the author's version of the work. This publication appears in Gettysburg College's institutional repository by permission of the copyright owner for personal use, not for redistribution.
Recommended Citation
Lavery, Kevin P., "Understanding the Civil War and Its Place in the American Mind" (2016). The Gettysburg Compiler: On the Front Lines of History. 189.
https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/compiler/189
Comments
This blog post originally appeared in The Gettysburg Compiler and was created by students at Gettysburg College.