“This Republic of Suffering” Dr Drew Gilpin Faust, Harvard Universtiy President
An actor in the closing minutes of the movie ‘OPEN RANGE’ starring Robert Duvall said, “Go back now, I don’t want you to lose sight of your roof tops” and I thought of Harvard University President Drew Gilpin Faust’s new book THIS REPUBLIC OF SUFFERING. It is a trivial thought perhaps but to me the American Civil War exemplified that for it was a war largely fought by men who, until then, had never lost sight of their own roof tops. Faust’s book points out that until then, and mostly because of photographer MATHEW BRADY’S enduring works, Americans and for that matter few others anywhere or at any time, had seen war – any war, any time, any where. Often those few who had seen it first hand conveniently forgot and reported their best memories of camaraderie, valor and skylarking.
Dr. Faust contends that the Civil War was when Americans first “glimpsed the fear that still defines us.” Her thesis is liberally seasoned with the proposition that America is influenced by enduring fear, and she teases that as blame for other generations’ acts. That is preciously thin, and kowtows too much to political correctness. She makes the point that those killed, and who did the killing changed America’s view of the sacredness of life from a time when 85% died at home amid family. She says it changed the Victorian notion of the good death and others say survivors were “sentenced to life.”
For those interested in history of the Civil War and America THE REPUBLIC OF SUFFERING is worthy reading despite its political and secular undertone. Readers will benefit from perspective.
Six hundred and twenty thousand men were killed in the Civil War (1861-1865) mostly buried where they fell. By 1871 the Federal government sparked by activists embarked upon a reburying program establishing 74 national cemeteries where 303,536 men are interned. Until the McKinley administration (1897-1901) Confederate soldiers were banned and because of poor records 40% are forever listed as unknown.
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