The War That Forged a Nation: Why the Civil War Still Matters

Resumen del libro

Renowned historian James M. McPherson considers the legacy of the Civil War and its continuing relevance for America in the 21st century
More than 140 years ago, Mark Twain observed that the Civil War had "uprooted institutions that were centuries old, changed the politics of a people, transformed the social life of half the country, and wrought so profoundly upon the entire national character that the influence cannot be measured short of two or three generations." In fact, five generations have passed, and Americans are still trying to measure the influence of the immense fratricidal conflict that nearly tore the nation apart.
In The War that Forged a Nation, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian James M. McPherson considers why the Civil War remains so deeply embedded in our national psyche and identity. The drama and tragedy of the war, from its scope and size--an estimated death toll of 750,000, far more than the rest of the country's wars combined--to the nearly mythical individuals involved--Abraham Lincoln, Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson--help explain why the Civil War remains a topic of interest. But the legacy of the war extends far beyond historical interest or scholarly attention. Here, McPherson draws upon his work over the past fifty years to illuminate the war's continuing resonance across many dimensions of American life.

Biografía del autor

James M. McPherson es profesor emérito de Historia de Estados Unidos en la Universidad de Princeton. Ganador del Premio Pulitzer por Battle Cry of Freedom, del Premio Lincoln por For Cause and Comrades y del Pritzker Literature Award for Lifetime Achievement in Military Writing, fue miembro de la Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites y la Civil War Sites Advisory Commission. Activista por la preservación de los campos de batalla históricos, sus obras se centran en la Guerra de Secesión, la esclavitud, la figura de Abraham Lincoln y el periodo de la Reconstrucción.