Whether it is called Bull Run or Manassas, this battle was a great victory for the members of the Confederate States of America and an incredible learning experience for the United States of America. William C. Davis takes his readers on a journey through this battle in an enlightening yet challenging manner. For the newcomer to military writing this book would prove to be very challenging. To follow Davis, the reader would probably need to read through this at least three times because he constantly, seemingly in mid-thought, switches from commander to commander, region to region, and Confederate to Union. While his style is somewhat difficult to follow, he often adds drops of humor to provide comic relief for the strained reader.
Davis describes the events leading up to the battle and the battle itself somewhat chronologically. He writes two or three paragraphs about the actions of the Confederacy during a time period and in the next paragraph will begin describing what the Union did during the exact same time period. After finishing the discussion about the North he jumps over to the South and begins telling their story right where he left off several paragraphs before. During the first one hundred and sixty pages, Davis sets up the actual battle by describing the political situation in 1861 and by telling how these two armies began to organize themselves from militia/civilians to soldiers. Instead of taking the reader directly to the battlefield he allows them to understand the events leading up to it in order to better understand the battle and the motivation behind it. Along with political discussions and the organization of these armies, he also describes in great detail the strategic movements leading to Bull Run and detailed characterizations of the battle’s key players. This rising action is peachy, but Davis’ best writing begins as the battle approaches and he writes, “There was never again such a night north or south of Bull Run. It was the twilight of America’s innocence” (p. 158).
The Essay on American Foreign Policy Time America
Until the end of the twentieth century America's policy towards war was to stay neutral. We stayed out of other governments battles and we avoided war. The United States did not force our ideals on any foreign governments. The US did not want to be the bully who forces countries into having freedom and independence. This noninterventionist America, devoted to solving its own problems and ...
The author’s thesis is, “America, it seemed had gone mad and gone to war with itself. Four decades of compromise between the sections of the country had come to naught, largely because the lawmakers of Washington repeatedly chose to treat the symptom rather than the illness. It was a sickness that tore at the Republic’s very being and one that could only be dealt with in violence and pain” (p. 1).
A thesis by definition is a proposition to be proved and Davis begins this book by proving his thesis. He eventually drifts away into battle, never to return again. He begins to describe this sickness as he writes about the growing crisis in America. He contends the election of Abraham Lincoln as President, the paranoia of a “dwindling minority” (p. 1) in Congress, and the growing popularity of abolition in the North left the Southern states with two choices; either cave in on these important issues or secede from the Union. Shortly after supporting the opinion that war was inevitable because of the way America had “treated the symptom” (p. 1) he dives directly into military strategy and leaves behind the rationale propelling this war. His support of the thesis is overall weak, but overshadowed by his account of the battle. In order to understand why this book is well written even though the thesis is not effectively proven one must realize Davis’ intentions for writing this book. He did not intend to prove “A major clash of arms was inevitable” (p. xiii).
His purpose was to tell the story of how these men thought they had “Taken part of something special, the largest battle ever yet fought in North America” (p. 249) and how many thought this was “Surely the first and last battle of this war” (p. 249).
The Review on The Chocolate War book report 3444
The Chocolate War "The Chocolate War" by Robert Cormier is a realistic fiction book about one boy's struggles to fight for what is right in a school ruled by a group of sharp-witted, clever individuals. This group, known as the Vigils, play the largest role in the story. True, they're not exactly the people you want to be rooting for in the end, but they keep the story interesting. Because of this ...
While he does not directly support his thesis throughout the work it is the underlying precept of this entire struggle. Every tactical decision or personnel choice was important because of the implications on the overall mission, independence or reconciliation, which had roots from the sickness Davis describes in his thesis. While William C. Davis’ thesis is not, by definition, convincingly proven, readers must realize he never intended to. His thesis was merely used as an introduction, and thus irrelevant to the overriding purpose of the book.
This book does contain a fairly extensive index and is helpful when attempting to retrieve information about various events or people. Several illustrations were provided to help present a visual of what was being described in writing. These illustrations are not presented clearly and do not contribute to the audience’s understanding. They are drawn too small and with too much information to be considered helpful or decipherable.
Davis draws the wealth of his information from primary resources. He uses first hand accounts to portray to the audience the reality of the situation, and not merely his analysis of it. This is perfectly demonstrated when Davis cites Major Thomas Rhett, a member of General Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson’s staff, gives an account of Jackson receiving the most famous soubriquet of the Civil War (p. 197).
Rhett’s description comes from Ben Ames Williams, A Diary from Dixie, which is a collection of letters, diaries, and memoirs from participants of the Civil War. Rhett’s comments add insight to Davis’ description of how Thomas Jackson became Stonewall Jackson. Rhett infers that the nickname may have a negative connotation, saying Jackson stood like a stone wall on the hill reluctant to help his fellow Confederates, instead of fearlessly standing on the hill like most people think today. This primary resource exposes the audience to pertinent information they might have never known.
Overall, William C. Davis does an effective job describing the Battle at Bull Run and it’s surrounding events. Setting up the battle and using first hand accounts to add realism makes this a captivating book.
The Review on Stonewall Jackson, The Great Commander book report 3371
This book was about the Civil War and a certain hero named Stonewall Jackson. On January 21, 1824 Tom Jackson was born in a rural city in Virginia. When Tom was only 2, his father died leaving him, his three siblings, and his mother to fend for themselves. His mother made a living teaching and eventually they bought a cottage with their money and the help of charity. At the age of 7, Toms mother ...
