Study Guide for James M. McPherson, For Cause and Comrades

Prof. Grimsley
History 582.01
Autumn Quarter 2001

Preface

In the preface, McPherson discusses the sample of soldiers’ letters and diaries on which his book is based. What groups are overrepresented? What groups are underrepresented or not represented at all?

Chapter 1. This War is a Crusade.

  1. What factors account for the abundance of soldiers’ letters and diaries that date from the Civil War?

  2. According to McPherson, why is better to rely on letters and diaries written during the war rather than on postwar reminiscences and memoirs?

  3. According to historian John A. Lynn, what are the three categories of soldier motivation? What does McPherson think of these categories as they apply to Civil War soldiers?

Chapter 2. We Were in Earnest.

  1. What factors principally motivated Northern soldiers to volunteer in 1861-1862?

  2. What factors principally motivated Southern soldiers to volunteer during the same period?

  3. How important were proslavery or antislavery beliefs to Civil War soldiers?

  4. What did the concepts of duty and honor mean to Civil War volunteers, and what was their relationship to Victorian ideals of manhood?

  5. In what ways were Union and Confederate soldiers similar in the values or concerns that motivated them? In what ways different?

Chapter 3. Anxious for the Fray

  1. Why were Civil War volunteers "spoiling for a fight" in the first months of the war?

  2. What images of combat did the volunteers harbor before their first fight? What was the reality like?

  3. How did Civil War volunteers regard the prospect of another battle after they had seen combat?

  4. According to McPherson, what factors (biological, ideological, social) helped soldiers cope with the pressures of combat?

Chapter 4. If I Flinched I Was Ruined

  1. What are the traditional means of motivating soldiers to fight? How well did these traditional means apply to the volunteers of 1861-1862?

  2. How important was the role played by discipline and coercion as a way of making troops fight? What forms did this discipline and coercion commonly take?

  3. How important was leadership in making troops fight? What qualities most helped an officer in gaining the respect of his men?

Chapter 5. Religion is What Makes Brave Soldiers

  1. Why is religion particularly significant as a source of motivation among Civil War soldiers?

  2. What does McPherson mean when he speaks of "optimistic" and "pessimistic" forms of religious fatalism?

  3. How did soldiers square their duty with the commandment, "Thou shalt not kill?"

  4. What was the significance of religious revivals on the motivation of Civil War soldiers?

Chapter 6. A Band of Brothers

  1. McPherson argues that many soldiers were profoundly concerned to avoid the stigma of cowardice. Why was this such an important consideration?

  2. What is meant by "primary group cohesion," and why is it considered so important in military motivation?

  3. What is the Bartov thesis? What is its possible relevance to the motivation of Civil War soldiers?

Chapter 7. On the Altar of My Country

  1. Why have some historians maintained that political beliefs or patriotism were not important sources of motivation among Civil War soldiers. Why did they think so, and why does McPherson disagree?

  2. What concerns motivated Confederate soldiers to fight? Union soldiers?

  3. How important was nationalism to Union and Confederate soldiers? Why does McPherson believe that nationalistic sentiment was more "abstract and intangible" among Northerners than Southerners.

  4. What role did class play in soldiers’ perceptions of the cause for which they fought?

Chapter 8. The Cause of Liberty

  1. Both sides drew on the legacy of 1776 to justify their cause. What key values comprised this legacy? In what ways did Northerners and Southerners interpret them differently?

  2. How important were patriotism and ideology in terms of combat motivation (as opposed to enlistment and sustaining motivation)?

Chapter 9. Slavery Must Be Cleaned Out

  1. Why were many Union soldiers convinced that reunion was unattainable without striking slavery? What experiences led them to think so?

  2. Why did other Union soldiers oppose emancipation as a war aim?

  3. How widespread was pro-emancipation and anti-emancipation sentiment, respectively, within the Union army?

  4. What factors gradually led many Union soldiers to accept emancipation as sound policy?

Chapter 10. We Know That We Are Supported at Home

  1. What effect did home and family life have on soldier motivation?

  2. Why does Gerald F. Linderman believe that soldiers came to feel a sense of alienation from the civilians they left behind? What does McPherson think of Linderman’s argument?

Chapter 11. Vengeance Will Be Our Motto

  1. How widespread was the desire for revenge among Civil War soldiers? What forms did vengeance take?

  2. What groups were most likely to be the targets of Confederate vengeance? Of Union vengeance?

  3. According to McPherson, what was the relationship between success or failure on the battlefield and the desire for vengeance?

Chapter 12. The Same Holy Cause

  1. What is combat stress reaction (post-traumatic stress disorder)? How common was it during the Civil War?

  2. According to McPherson, what explanation best accounts for the perseverance of Civil War soldiers under the stress of combat?