Race And Reunion Sparknotes

In his work Race and Reunion, David Blight examines how Americans chose to remember the Civil War during a period of time following the conflict. This period, roughly 50 years in length, extends from the turning point of the war in 1963 to its semi centennial in 1915. Blight narrows his focus on two themes of this era: race and reunion. He suggests that these themes created competing memories with vastly different interpretations of the Civil War. In search for a reunion, many white American’s chose to obscure the Civil War’s racial demonstrating how the effort toward racial Reconstruction ultimately gave way to racial segregation. Blight identifies three overall versions of the Civil War memory: the reconciliationist, white supremacists, and emancipationist. Then he focuses on topics like decoration days, literature, and politics to explore how memories changed over time. Drawing on a wide variety of primary sources of literature, speeches, and memoirs directly related to the study he was able to reinforce his work. From an article from Charleston Daily Courier to the hearings from the KKK, he conducts research in every detail. Secondary sources were also popular such as in the prologue one can find an excerpt from
He doesn’t simply state that racism continues after the Civil War as history books do but explores why it still exists and how Americans coped with such a tragic experience. He is historical accurate and that is seen through the use of sources and the detail put in to this novel. Blight argues that this desire to reconcile is how the nation had abandoned the emancipationist legacy and demands for racial equality. This argument is well thought and provides many good points that a country could’ve rebuilt and had foundations of equality but after such a long state of decay, one has to recognize the need for a reunion is not without