Glory: A Phenomenal Film

Why is the movie called Glory? Is it really glory? I strongly believe not only is the movie glory itself, but the characters represent the idea of glory throughout the movie as well. Glory is a high rank of honor, which involves tireless amounts of work to get to. Not only did the characters in the movie represent the movie well, but portrayed the Civil War in a proud manner as well. There are many characters that represent glory, but there are three that stand out among the rest. Those characters are Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, Corporal Thomas Searles, and Sergeant Major John Rawlins.

Eventually, the treatment of African Americans that Harper so vehemently is against in her poem and Whitehead writes about in his novel sends the United States into a Civil War. Eleven southern states formed the Confederate States of America in which they fought a devastating four year war against the United States. The Civil War drastically changed the treatment of African Americans. The movie Glory is evidence of this. Glory is a civil war movie about the first African American regiment in the United States military. Their commander-Colonel Robert Gould Shaw- is white. The movie details the triumphs and hardships of the regiment, who at first seem to have trouble with one another and their commander, but grow to form a bond of camaraderie. The movie shows just how much hope the African American men have for their country because while they were in the army they were given no good reasons to feel as if they were Americans. They were mistreated by the white regiments and subject to worse conditions. The white men don't’ believe their capabilities, so they do not fight. Eventually their commander tells army officials , “ There's character. There's strength of heart. You should have seen us in action two days ago. We were a sight to see!” (Zwick). This leads the military to ask the regiment to lead a charge on Fort Wagner, a charge they know to be a death sentence. The most touching part of this scene is that these men are not one bit afraid to die for their country. Their

Glory is the story of Robert Gould Shaw and his command over the 54th Massachusetts Infantry, which was one of the first all-black active duty regiments in the Union Army in November of 1862. The movie speaks of Colonel (Col) Shaw’s bravery, his pride, his empathy and love for his Soldiers. Col Shaw himself was from a wealthy Boston family with parents who were influential abolitionists. At 23 years old, Robert Shaw dropped out of Harvard to be commissioned in the Union Army to fight in the Civil War of the States. This movie is based on a true story and the letters that Robert Shaw wrote home and in his personal journal are currently located in the Houghton Library of Harvard University. The movie is based on the factual accounts of these letters. The manner in which Robert Shaw led the 54th Infantry was a direct result of his first experience in combat; it was the Battle of Antietam (Maryland).

There was never a bloodier war on American soil in history than the Civil War. Those short four year took the lives of thousands soldiers and destroyed many infrastructures of America. The war, however, was more than a battle between Lincoln and Davis, North and South, slavery and freeman. The Civil War was a war of ideals. The accounts told by the soldiers shown that, although the two sides did not agree on most topics, the North and the South did held certain ideals. In The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara, the eyes of James Longstreet and Joshua Chamberlain expresses the battle between the North and the South as an opportunity to show their major contributions, their loyalties to their troops, and their opinions of the war that shaped them.

Accepting relationships have the ability to allow individuals in society to deal with their inner conflicts. This establishes the beginning of transformation a feeling of belonging. The film Glory, directed by Edward Zwick, allows the audience to discover the significant American Civil War that raged through America for four years. In 1860 black people were treated unfairly and inhumanely. This film explores this along with the long lasting effects of racism and bigotry on relationships with others and society. Black slaves are freed in america and join the army. In the confrontation scene, Trip and rawlins, two black men from the army, confront each other. Zwick utilises the alternating close ups of the two men to allow the audience to experience the tension between them that enables Trip, the protagonist, to finally deal with his inner conflicts. This tough relationship seen in the colloquial language “But you ain’t gonna be anything to him but a ugly-ass chimp in a blue suit.” elucidates the derogatory reference of a chimp. This allows Trip to realise he is not the only black person treated unfairly, therefore he shouldn't take his inner conflicts out on others. Having relationships like Trips and Rawlins often gives individuals the ability to reflect upon themselves. In the next lake scene, a mid shot of Trip and Robert, the colonel, is utilised by Zwick to display the characters and also the water behind Trip that represents tranquility and the cleansing of his internal

Colonel Shaw body was thrown into a burial pit. Where his dead army men were put in there too. One of his final words before he was murder were "Forward, fifty-fourth!". Basically all this accidents add up to an action of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw where he left behind some letters were he explains all the events that occur. Especially, when the burning of the town occur and was shown in the film Glory. The colonel make sure and did a good job by adding all the details in the letters with enough facts. The accuracy of the film Glory with the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry story makes a connection between the two events together. And share some courage, anger and resentment

As the war continued, the north needed more bodies to fight. In the early 1863, the Union decided to allow African Americans to join the army once and for all. The blacks thought they won, but they were sadly mistaken, the black soldiers still had to be in separate regiments from the white officers. Many whites believed that the former slaves would not be brave enough to fight in battle, but the first regiment proved them mistakenly wrong. They fought with courage, dignity and bravery in the face of death and gruesome images they will never fail to

The film expands the knowledge of northern soldiers and their communities. During the Civil War, just like African-American soldiers depicted in the film, many white soldiers also had to be removed from their larger society (Mitchell, 2003: p.80). For example, Armies deliberately created distance between a soldier and his officers because officers were given legal sanction for their authority (Mitchell, 2003: p.81). This is shown in the film when Thomas tries to speak with Shaw. Although Thomas is a childhood friend, Shaw requires Thomas to use appropriate channels when he wants to speak with his commanding officer. Furthermore, in the last years of the Civil War, Northern soldiers demoralized Southern people by terrorizing Southern communities. (Mitchell, 2003: p.91). According to a Union officer during an Atlanta campaign, one Union officer said, “It is but right that these people should feel some of the hardships of war, they will better

The movie Glory is about a man by the name of Colonel Shaw leading the 54th Massachusetts Regiment, which was a all black male army. Through many hardships and trials they were tested in Colonel Shaw got his men ready for action and went to battle and won their first battle after a lot of hard work and dedication. Once they trained some more they went to Fort Wagner and fought against the Union Army and lost their battle with many casualties.

As stated, upon formation the 54th came under heavy and constant scrutiny from not only civilians and southerners, but also there own brothers in arms. White soldiers were not happy about the circumstances. They now had to rely on Negroes to fight either with them or fight ahead of them, as seen

It is at this point that then Captain Shaw meets abolitionist Fredrick Douglass. Captain Shaw is then offered a promotion to Colonel as well as his first regimental command. To his credit Colonel Shaw accepts the command of the first all-black regiment in the Union Army. The film spends a lot of time on the strained relationships between the white officers and black soldiers, between the black soldiers themselves, and between the black soldiers and other white soldiers. The film is focused on the point of view of Colonel Shaw and a diverse group of 4 black soldiers; Trip, Rawlins, Searles, and Sharts. As the film begins we see Colonel Shaw take command of the 54th Massachusetts and begin to prepare them for war. It appears that the Colonel knows, at least in the beginning, that his soldiers may not see actual battle. In general the prejudices of the higher ranking officers, more specifically Colonel Shaw’s commanding

He was concerned that using African-American soldiers would anger the bordering states who were not as steeped in the abolitionist mindset as the northerners. He needed to be persuaded to allow the 54th to be formed: “Black leaders continued to urge the necessity of enlisting black troops, realizing that if black man proved his patriotism and courage on the battlefield, the nation would be morally obligated to grant him first-class citizenship.” (Kashatus, 2000) This is why the courage of the men of the 54th infantry was so important not only to the soldiers themselves but to the generations that followed them. The men the characters in “Glory” represented had to find the courage to manage the inequality they experienced during their training and look death in the eye so the nation would be obligated to view African-Americans as citizens on par with white people. It wasn’t just about freedom, it was about proving to white Americans that African-Americans had the right to be equal citizens. They were not just victims in need of saving, they were willing members of the union. The movie “Glory” is a powerful reminder of an important facet of American

The film, Glory is shown in the point of view of Colonel Shaw, a white officer in the Civil War and his enlistment of black soldiers in the 54th colored regiment. This film shows accurate historical facts of several memorable battles the 54th coloured regiment had fought on for the Union army. In the film, one of the most favorable characters would be Sergeant Major Rawlins. Rawlins was at first, one of the enlistment soldiers during the first few months of his enlistment. Rawlins seems to be one of the most admirable characters due to his cool and calming nature rather than the other rambunctious, rebellious natures of other soldiers such as a black soldier named Trip.

The adoption of the Emancipation Proclamation on December 1862 provided the need for free black men as soldiers. Massachusetts would be the first state responding by forming the 54th Regiment. It was the first military unit consisting of all black soldiers to be raised in the North. The formation of the military brought questions and controversies. Many questioned a black man’s ability to fight in the war. Although many were filled with doubts, the men would go on to succeed due to their leader Colonel Robert Gould Shaw who showed everyone that blacks were fighting equals to their white counterparts.

Life during the Civil War was hard especially for a solider so far away from his family. This is related to the outcome because it digs deeper into the mind of a soldier, and gives the reader