Hello, I am Mike Perkalis. I am excited to get the chance to have these discussions with you all and can’t wait to see more of everyone’s final projects.
To discuss the reconstruction, it is important to be aware of the significant decrease of population due to deaths in the war (JSTOR). With 629,000 casualties, some of these casualties significantly injured people, there would not be a person unaffected. One in eight men of an age able to serve were now gone. I think it would be important to understand the effect this would have on the labor force. The continuing trauma of the country, and continued animosity and racism.
It is important to know the cause of the war. That the beginning of the coming conflict came as early as the moment we became independent of Britain while still allowing slavery (The Cause). Slavery was the premier cause of the war. In this, the state rights played a part, with the south wanting more of a say in how they operate without the Federal government having as strong of a hold (Digital History). Slavery was economically the biggest force for the south. With demands of cotton for the mills and the advancements of industry, the south relied on enslaved people to meet their economic expectations. Culturally, the north and the south had different values. While the North was pushing for the rights of all men, the south was pushing back. Though these were all pieces of the cause, the central cause was slavery. Economic fears from the loss of the labor of enslaved people, the state’s right to make decisions regarding slavery on their own, and the values related to the subject entirely.
Wills, Matthew. “An End to All Hell: 150th Anniversary of the Civil War’s End.” JSTOR, 9 April 2015, https://daily.jstor.org/end-hell-150th-anniversary-civil-wars-end/
The Cause. Directed by Ken Burns. Public Broadcasting Service, 1990, https://video-alexanderstreet-com.ezgc.ez.cwmars.org:3843/watch/the-cause,
Ladenburg, Thomas. “Chapter 17: Why do People Fight? The Causes of the Civil War.” Digital History, 2007, https://online.gcc.mass.edu/pluginfile.php/5313802/mod_resource/content/2/Digital%20History%20Article-%20The%20Causes%20of%20the%20Civil%20War%20Historiography%20Intro.pdf
To discuss the reconstruction, it is important to be aware of the significant decrease of population due to deaths in the war (JSTOR). With 629,000 casualties, some of these casualties significantly injured people, there would not be a person unaffected. One in eight men of an age able to serve were now gone. I think it would be important to understand the effect this would have on the labor force. The continuing trauma of the country, and continued animosity and racism.
It is important to know the cause of the war. That the beginning of the coming conflict came as early as the moment we became independent of Britain while still allowing slavery (The Cause). Slavery was the premier cause of the war. In this, the state rights played a part, with the south wanting more of a say in how they operate without the Federal government having as strong of a hold (Digital History). Slavery was economically the biggest force for the south. With demands of cotton for the mills and the advancements of industry, the south relied on enslaved people to meet their economic expectations. Culturally, the north and the south had different values. While the North was pushing for the rights of all men, the south was pushing back. Though these were all pieces of the cause, the central cause was slavery. Economic fears from the loss of the labor of enslaved people, the state’s right to make decisions regarding slavery on their own, and the values related to the subject entirely.
Wills, Matthew. “An End to All Hell: 150th Anniversary of the Civil War’s End.” JSTOR, 9 April 2015, https://daily.jstor.org/end-hell-150th-anniversary-civil-wars-end/
The Cause. Directed by Ken Burns. Public Broadcasting Service, 1990, https://video-alexanderstreet-com.ezgc.ez.cwmars.org:3843/watch/the-cause,
Ladenburg, Thomas. “Chapter 17: Why do People Fight? The Causes of the Civil War.” Digital History, 2007, https://online.gcc.mass.edu/pluginfile.php/5313802/mod_resource/content/2/Digital%20History%20Article-%20The%20Causes%20of%20the%20Civil%20War%20Historiography%20Intro.pdf