Michael Shaara's The Killer Angels

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History 1001 - American History to 1877 Professor Phillips Paper Assignment The Killer Angels In 1975, Michael Shaara wrote one of the most classic Civil War books ever, The Killer Angels. In The Killer Angels, Shaara portrays the perspectives of many soldiers who fought in the Civil War including those from both sides, the North and the South. Civil War soldiers fought for something more than just manhood, duty, government, and their country. They fought for and against slavery, which for most soldiers was their primary motivation beyond defending their home. Slavery for many was more than just an institution, it was the fabric of their economic society that provided the wealth and opportunity to the South. Without slavery the South could not operate and prosper which made it impossible for the notion of emancipation. However, those in the North did not immediately rely on the institution of slavery in such dire manner. For Northerners, empathy was easier to practice. As the notion of emancipation became more widely discussed by politicians during the abolitionist movement tensions between the North and the South rose. The idea that the nation could eradicate the lifeblood of the southern plantations was deemed unacceptable and the southern states felt helpless. The South fought for state’s rights which is synonymous with slavery as that was the most important right they were fighting for, and the North fought to keep the South from seceding, largely due to South’s interest in maintaining slavery as …show more content…

He was beginning to feel very strange, stuffed and strange. “But we stood up to them. They couldn’t break us,” Tom said. “No.” “Well, nobody every said they wasn’t good soldiers. Well, they’re Americans anyway, even if they are