In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

340CIVIL WAR HISTORY more out of the book, and it is indeed worth the effort. Cullen's work is a splendid review of the many different ways that people approach history in general and the Civil War in particular. All of these fields—music, the cinema, academic and popularhistory, and living history—are integral to ourhow ourpopular culture works. The book's endwrap image, showing a dozen reenactors gripped in hand-to-hand combat, all of whom are smiling in boyish enjoyment, perfectly sets the stage for the reader. Armed soldiers in combat salute their enemy colleagues with smiling assurances that there is a greater purpose to their theatrics . (And they are having great fun!) James E. Jacobsen Des Moines To Appomattox and Beyond: The Civil War Soldier in War and Peace. By Larry M. Logue. (Chicago: Ivan R. Dee, 1996. Pp. 168. $22.50.) During the past few years, historians have shown an increased interest in more deeply understanding the experience of soldiering in the Civil War. Several authors, including myself, have pondered the evidence in the letters, diaries, and memoirs produced by soldiers and veterans. No one has come up with a definitive understanding of how soldiers felt, thought, or were changed (or not changed) by their war experience. Larry M. Logue's short book enlightens us in some ways and frustrates us in other ways. It is a very uneven and idiosyncratic work. The first halfof the book deals with the Northern and Southern soldier during the war. Much of this discussion is based on very little research and very narrow interpretations. Logue focuses too single-mindedly on the urban, industrial labor force as the primary source of manpower for the Union army. This sets up his odd argument that self-control (a rather stoic and manly approach to trials and tribulations) was the main way that individuals dealt "with the demands of wage employment" (5), and therefore it was the way that they dealt with the challenges of combat. The Northern army was far too big and varied in its composition and men were too different in their thinking to make Logue's argument convincing. The fact that Logue cites only two soldiers' comments on this point makes it even less impressive. In contrast, Logue believes Southern soldiers were more open to expressing themselves in passionate terms, were less dedicated to the value of self-control, and that they joined the army out of economic security rather than to escape "an insecure world of work" (17), as did the Northern soldier. He believes Confederates dwelled more frequently on personal traits and on their feelings. Little of this is convincing, mainly because Logue does not have the space to develop or prove these themes. In addition, Logue's understanding of the details of military history is very weak. He relies too heavily on secondary studies that employ social science methodology and approaches his subject from a rather BOOK REVIEWS341 Marxian emphasis on class rather than immersing himself in the writings ofthe soldiers themselves. Yet Logue is much more interesting and convincing when describing the life ofthe veteran. Historians are onlyjust beginning to pay attention to the postwar experiences of Civil War soldiers, and Logue provides a very sound and helpful survey of the conclusions and lines of argument that have been developed to date. His discussion of the Southern veteran is by far the best part of his book, taking on a wide range of topics from marital difficulties to attitudes regarding segregation. His chapters on the veterans could easily serve as a starting point for those interested in further study of the subject. The primary purpose of this book, published as part of Ivan R. Dee's American Ways Series, apparently is to serve as a reading assignment in college-level courses. It would have to be used with discretion, for many ofLogue's interpretations fall very far short of doing justice to the varied experience of fighting the Civil War. Earl J. Hess Lincoln Memorial University Reconstructing the Household: Families, Sex & the Law in the Nineteenth-Century South. By Peter W. Bardaglio. (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1995. Pp. 335. $4500.) In 1970, in...

pdf

Share