History Or Tribute

One week in March, 2000, my family and I stayed in a cabin in northern Georgia near Blairsville and the North Carolina border. The terrain was very mountainous by eastern U.S. standards and our cabin rested at the top of a curved, steep climb. It didn't look too impressive from the outside, but once inside you could see that it was very attractive with two stories plus a basement and many of the amenities you'd expect from a good hotel (except cable TV and swimming pools). Everything in it was spacious, including a screened-in porch complete with a picnic table and rocking chairs overlooking the wooded valley below. In the master bedroom, resting on a large dresser were two large books about the U.S. Civil War. One was a nice picture-book account of the various stages of the war, something you might find in the discount large-book section of a Barnes and Noble or Books-a-Million store. The other book interested me in that, in discussing the performance of the various generals, political leaders and other participants in the war, only complimentary things were said. Every other account of the Civil War that I had read or watched or heard was full of stories of blundering and abject incompetence on the part of the same people who were portrayed in this book in such rosy terms. Even the greatest generals like Lee and Grant sometimes used incredibly bad judgement that cost their soldiers dearly. So, my first reaction to this book was one of indignation for this blatant whitewashing of history. I wondered whether or not the author had a hidden agenda. But after some reflection, I arrived at a totally different conclusion. The scope of this book was not to give a history lesson, but rather to serve as an impartial memorial for all of the participants in this tragic conflict. Just as a monument to a famous historical figure or a eulogy in a funeral service is a tribute and not an assessment, then so this book paid tribute while leaving analysis to the drove of material already out there. With this in mind, I was able to enjoy this book within its self-imposed limitations. And it did spur me on to a greater interest in the Civil War, too.