ePub God's New Israel: Religious Interpretations of American Destiny by Conrad (ed.) Cherry in History

Description

If; as many have argued; the Civil War is the most crucial moment in our national life and Gettysburg its turning point; then the climax of the climax; the central moment of our history; must be Pickett's Charge. But as Carol Reardon notes; the Civil War saw many other daring assaults and stout defenses. Why; then; is it Pickett's Charge at Gettysburg--and not; for example; Richardson's Charge at Antietam or Humphreys's Assault at Fredericksburg--that looms so large in the popular imagination?As this innovative study reveals; by examining the events of 3 July 1863 through the selective and evocative lens of 'memory' we can learn much about why Pickett's Charge endures so strongly in the American imagination. Over the years; soldiers; journalists; veterans; politicians; orators; artists; poets; and educators; Northerners and Southerners alike; shaped; revised; and even sacrificed the 'history' of the charge to create 'memories' that met ever-shifting needs and deeply felt values. Reardon shows that the story told today of Pickett's Charge is really an amalgam of history and memory. The evolution of that mix; she concludes; tells us much about how we come to understand our nation's past.