Essay about Music of The Civil War

Southern music known today as country music became popular in the 1920’s. This was music that was based on folk music of cowboys in the southeast (Collins English Dictionary, 2003). In most of the early music the artist played stringed instruments like fiddles, guitars, banjos and some were even playing harmonicas. When this type of music started some people called it

General Lee once remarked, “Without music, there would have been no army” (Kehoe). The New York Herald concurred with Lee in 1862 when a reporter wrote, “All history proves that music is as indispensable to warfare as money; and money has been called the sinews of war. Music is the soul of Mars...” (Bowman). It is evident from these quotes the important role music played in helping soldiers from both armies cope during the war. The Civil War would have been immensely different without the considerable influence that music had on both the Union and Confederate armies. Music played a significant role in motivating soldiers to overcome their hardships in both the Union and the Confederate armies by entertaining and comforting, bringing back memories of home and family, and strengthening the bonds between comrades and helping forge new bonds.

Soldiers on both sides interpreted the meaning of the War for Independence in differing ways. The Confederates thought they were fighting for their own independence from a tyrannical government, while northerners believed they were fighting to preserve the Union. The initial impulse of why men enlisted for war came from what the French called rage military, which according to McPherson is a sense of duty, honor, and patriotism for your country (McPherson, 16). For the North the initial anger and fighting spirit came right at the beginning of the declaration of war. For the original Confederate states, it was not the attack on Fort Sumter that sparked their enthusiasm, but the when they seceded from the union. The upper Southern states of Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee joined the Confederacy when Lincoln called for troops. The Confederates fought for liberty while the

There were many different Union Leaders and many Confederate leaders. Such as Jefferson Davis (Confederate) and Abraham Lincoln( Union )They both helped shape our country into what it is today. Both Leaders tried their hardest to command their troops as good as they could. They both made many different impacts on our country.

The Confederates tried to compare their goals too those of the Patriots in 1776. They said they were fighting for the “sacred right to self-govern”. Lincoln presented the secession as an attack on popular government. The Union at the start of the war tried to force rebellious states back into the Union through a military campaign after diplomacy had failed.

During the Civil War, there were two sides, the Confederate Army and the Union Army. While the Confederates fought for slavery, the Union fought for their freedom. While the

Civil war, four long years of war between the North and South, was fought from 1861 to 1865. The main purpose of the war was to preserve the Union, which later changed to ending slavery. Thousands of people volunteered for this war but everyone had a different belief and goal. The soldiers for this war consisted of a large number of immigrants, women and even African Americans. The union soldiers (northerners) volunteered to fight for the country, they fought the war to defeat the new confederation formed by the southern states. The African American joined the Union soldiers to fight against the confederate who were pro-slavery. After the election of President Lincoln, the southern states refused to stay under the wing of United States of

Both sides, the union and confederacy, had different opinions as to what honor for their country. The Union believed that should if they should fail in the fight for preservation of the union all that the original founders fought for would be lost. The Confederacy believed possessions, such as slaves, were part of the right to freedom. This is the main reason North wanted to separate from the confederacy. The division between the North and South were very apparent. The South was primarily fighting for “property and homes” (McPherson 117). On the other hand, the North was fighting for freedom of all men and unification.

In the Civil War the North had many advantages over the South. The South was outnumbered, out supplied, and pushed into a corner using military tactics. Many things changed because of the Civil War. The military tactics used by the North changed how war was fought from then on. Many changes were made politically; some were only temporary, while others were permanent. After the war was over, the country was reunited and the image of the soul and duty of our country redefined.

The Union letters were not by any means the only ones with nationalistic thoughts. The South wrote about nationalism and government as an inspiration for battling in the Civil War even more aggressively than the Union (McPherson, 99). Confederates thought that battling in the war would be the best way to protect their new Southern country and in the event that they

One of the most popular songs in the North and South was during the Civil War whih was “The Battle Cry of Freedom. It was written it 1862 by George Frederick Root, whom was an American composer during the era of the Civil War. The song possessed two versions in which it could be interpreted differently depending on the regions point of view. Both regions in the North and the South had lyrics that were modified when compared together. The Union and the Confederacy both demonstrates their mottos and their objectives.

I consider my favorite song to be, Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd and believe it has been my favorite ever since I could understand words. At first the song was only my favorite because it mentions my dads hometown, Muscle Shoals, and I just thought it was super neat. As I grew older my dad explained to me the meaning and the story of the song, and I only started to like it more. The song Sweet Home Alabama was written in the 1970’s as a response to two songs written by Neil Young. The two songs written by Neil Young were Southern Man and Alabama, and the songs essentially bashed on the southern people for slowing down the progress of getting rid of segregation. So Lynyrd Skynyrd decided to write Sweet Home Alabama strictly as a response

“Where Have All The Flowers Gone?” by Pete Seeger became a popular anti-war protest song during the 1960s. This song did not only protest against the Vietnam War but also made their generation more aware about the global problems. Songs like “Not Ready to Make Nice” by Dixie chicks about freedom of speech was written after they received death threats for singing against the Iraq war, protests against the violation of human rights. But music is not only used to protest, it is also used to give hope and optimism. “We Shall Overcome”, a song sung by Guy Carawan together with the Montgomery Gospel Trio and the Nashville Quartet, is perhaps the best known example of civil rights song. Instead of blaming the government, this song registered a feeling of hope and faith among African-Americans during the civil rights movement.

The songs from World War I range from dark humor to sarcastic attempts to bitter complaints about soldier’s lifestyles during war. Based on what I’ve heard and read, most of the lyrics are propaganda for young men to join the war. These songs usually portray the conditions of soldiers in the war in a good light. Another significant portion are love songs that soldiers sing to remind them of their wife that they left at home with their children. Finally, a very small portion is the the anti-war songs that are strictly prohibited in music halls, the most popular form of popular song, where music is played for the common folk who couldn’t afford their own gramophones.

The two songs we had listened to in class are “Masters of War” by Bob Dylan and “I Rag and Roll” by Clint Black. Both of them describe human feelings and conditions during wars and how they impacted people’s lives. While listening to the lyrics and the melody, the two factors that differ both of the songs are the tone and the style. On the other hand, the similarity of these two songs is the imagery.