"The Honor of Manhood:" Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and Notions of Martial Masculinity

Authors

Bryan G. Caswell, University of OxfordFollow

Class Year

2015

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain is perhaps best known as the commander of the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry during the Battle of Gettysburg. While depictions of Chamberlain's martial glory abound, little attention has been paid to the complicated motives of the man himself. This paper seeks to examine the unique ways in which Chamberlain interacted with Victorian conceptions of martial masculinity: his understanding and expression of it, his efforts to channel it, and his use of it as a guiding principle throughout the trials of both the American Civil War and his post-war life.

Recommended Citation

Caswell, Bryan G. (2016) ""The Honor of Manhood:" Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and Notions of Martial Masculinity," The Gettysburg College Journal of the Civil War Era: Vol. 6, Article 4.
Available at: https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/gcjcwe/vol6/iss1/4