Children and Youth during the Civil War Era

Questions for Consideration

| 255 Questions for Consideration 1. How did the wartime experiences of children differ from the wartime experiences of adults? How did children perceive that their experiences differed from those of adults? 2. What does it mean to argue that children and youth were actors in the historical events of the Civil War era rather than simply victims or observers? 3. What lessons or meanings did young Americans—North and South, black and white—take away from their experiences during the war? 4. Northern and southern children were obviously affected differently by the sectional conflict and Civil War, especially in terms of the material effects of the war. But how did the war affect the ways that northern and southern youngsters thought about themselves? Their families? Their nation? 5. Children naturally try to fit unusual or even frightening experiences into their lives. They like to maintain routines and believe that familiar assumptions remain in force. How did children during the Civil War era integrate the war into the “normal” facets of their lives? 6. Americans have tended to see the results of the Civil War as a clear-cut ending to slavery. How do the experiences of former slave children challenge that straightforward interpretation of history? 7. In what ways did children and youth experience the war differently? Of course, to answer this, one needs to define those terms. During the Civil War era, where did Americans draw the line between childhood and youth (which might be called adolescence today)? 8. How might the war have changed the ways that adults thought about their roles as parents? How might the war have changed the ways that Americans thought about what a “normal” childhood should be? 9. Studying the points of view of children and youth is supposed to expand our traditional understanding of historical events. How is that true for the Civil War era? 10.What elements of the lives of children and youth remained unchanged by the war? This page intentionally left blank ...