The Killer Angels By Michael Shaara

The killer angels is a world acclaimed novel that was written by an author known as Michael Shaara. In the year 1975, it was granted the Pulitzer Prize for creative writing. It gives us in details the occurrences of the four days in the Battle of Gettysburg. This was during the American Civil War that occurred in the year 1863. At this time, troops that comprised of both the Union and Confederacy were at war in town called Gettysburg in Pennsylvania. This is a piece of story that is driven by disposition and narrated from the point of view of various heroes (Hartwig, 1996).

In the Pulitzer Prize winning civil war novel Killer Angels, Michael Shaara covers five days of the historic battle between the Northern and Southern United States at Gettysburg. Both the North and the South fought for freedom, although they did not have equivalent definitions of freedom. The North and the South were unwavering in their beliefs and their hope for a better United States, but what the two butted heads the most on was slavery. The South was a primarily agrarian region which relied heavily on the agriculture of crops like cotton and sugarcane, both of which required intense manual labor, unlike the North who was more so industrialized; however, as William Preston said, it was not cotton that was “the south’s king” but it was slavery that made them so prosperous. The South relied on slavery because having many workers to tend to these cash crops without having to pay them saved farmers and plantation owner’s money that they could use to buy more slaves that put out more work leading to more land for more crops, or to have more money to pay their taxes. Many Southerners like William Preston thought that owning other people was their divine right as white men. The Civil War was started over the North and South’s conflicting views on whether they had the “civil” right to own or not own slaves. The Northern and Southern states developed themselves much differently than one another because of their agrarian versus industrialized economy. As the states developed they

This is a brief thought of the events that came to unfold. Some say that Gettysburg was the battle that stopped the confederate advance to the north. In addition, that Lee only wanted to take the battle out the state of Virginia that had been hit rather hard by the unions Army . In this review of the Battle of Gettysburg, we will discuss the key events that people believed that allowed the Union Armies to cause the retrograde actions of the confederate forces. In addition, what each side wished to accomplish. And how the wished to accomplish these tasked the imagined

The three-day Battle of Gettysburg, starting on July 1st in 1863, would be known to be one of the most memorable and important battles in history. It would become the major outcome of the Civil War. The day of the outburst of the Battle of Gettysburg was a hot humid day on the first of July. It was between two sides. One side was the Union, which was the Army of Potomac Commanded by General George G. Meade, along with other notable commanders such as John F Reynolds, Winfield Scott Hancock, Daniel E. Sickles, George Sykes, John Sedgwick, Oliver O. Howard, Henry W. Slocum, and Alfred Pleasonton (“Battle of Gettysburg,” 2016). The other side was the Confederate Soldiers called the Army of Northern Virginia who was commanded by General Robert E. Lee, along with other notable commanders as well, which were James Longstreet, Richard S. Ewell, A. P. Hill, and J.E.B. Stuart (“Battle of Gettysburg,” 2016). Between these two sides, the Army of Potomac had a great advantage with 93,700 men and 372 guns, while the Army of Northern Virginia were outmanned and outgunned with only 70,100 men and 280 guns. The Army of Potomac’s mission was to defeat the Army of Northern Virginia as well as to make sure Washington, D.C. remained safe. It may seem like the Army of Potomac would be the clear winner at the Battle of Gettysburg yet the Army of Northern Virginia had a strategy that would help to attempt to beat the Union which was to go on the aggression and confront them. This would

The novel The Killer Angles, by Michael Shaara, gives a story like depiction of the American Civil War at the Battle of Gettysburg. In this novel we see the views of both Confederate and Union armies. The officers for both sides in this novel used to go to war with each other but are now on different sides according to their political views. In the end both armies realized the war had accomplished nothing but all the deaths of soldiers.

The Battle of Gettysburg brought the dueling North and South together to the small town of Gettysburg and on the threshold of splitting the Union. Gettysburg was as close as the United States got to Armageddon and The Killer Angels gives the full day-to-day account of the battle that shaped America’s future. Michael Shaara tells the story of the Battle of Gettysburg through the eyes of the generals and men involved in the action of the battle. The historical account of the Battle of Gettysburg gives the reader a chance to experience the battle personally and not the history book manner taught in schools. A historical novel gives the facts straightforward and provides no commentary by the people involved in history. The

In The Killer Angels, Michael Shaara fictionally illustrates the historical facts of the battle at Gettysburg. Shaara gives action and words to characters of another time, and then places these players on the stage of this great battle. Through the use of powerful biblical and non-biblical imagery and themes the epic nature of the battle at Gettysburg and its characters are enhanced. Such imagery and themes, combined with Shaara's fictionalization, help to contribute to why this single battle holds such monumental significance and influence upon the lives of Americans over a century removed from its occurrence.

The Killer Angels Novel written by Michael Shaara describes the Gettysburg battle from the perspective of Robert E. Lee, James Longstreet, various soldiers from both sides, and other men who fought in the battle. This author makes the reader go back in time and actually makes the reader depict the circumstances, and situations that soldiers and generals faced. This Novel makes the reader know that both sides were eager to win, and bring this bloodshed to an end. This amazing Novel shows how neighbor turned against neighbor, how friends were fighting each other, and brother against brother. This Novel, according Michael Shaara, has been told from the historical opinions and have gone primarily to the words of the men themselves, their letters and other documents.

Anthony Tirone Mr. Campbell AP U.S. History 20 October 2014 Book Review: Killer Angels The novel Killer Angels by Michael Shaara portrays the battle of Gettysburg in all of its glory from the perspective of both the Union and the Confederate soldiers.

The rather grave period from 1861-1865 was known as the Civil War. The Civil War stands as an American phenomenon and important significance to the history of our country (qtd. in Stout, “Baptism in Blood”). One of the bloodiest and most notorious battles occurred in 1863, and was known as the Battle of Chancellorsville. The battle was fought from April 30 to May 6, 1863, and was considered one of the Confederacy’s greatest victories as well as, arguably, the best victory for General Robert E. Lee. Another significance of this battle is the death of the famous Stonewall Jackson, which devastated Lee. This essay will explain the events that happened during the 1863 Battle of Chancellorsville.

Based of Michael Sharra’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel, The Killer Angels, Gettysburg is a literary adaptation that popularized the bloodiest battle fought between the North and the South during the Civil War. Initially intended as a TV mini series, Gettysburg was produced as a full-length feature film. The film glorifies Union and Confederate soldiers in the historic bloodbath of Gettysburg. The film enables viewers to experience a first hand account of the spirit and battleground of the four-day battle. This permits for a more personalized account of the war. As viewers, we must keep in mind that the film is based off a fictitious book. What that means, is that the film should not be considered a documentary nor an actual account of

Abraham Lincoln was one of the key leaders that had determined the outcome of the Civil War. Despite his inadequacy with being a commander in chief of the Union, his job as a self taught lawyer permitted him to learn more quickly. He had read many different pieces and books about war and different strategies to better understand how to be a good war leader. He had patience, approached situations with caution (McPherson). Being the timid and soft spoken man that he was, most of his ideas given to military generals had been ‘brushed off’. Lincoln then found himself at a turning point. He started to take a more of a firm, assertive approach. After Lincoln’s adjustment in his style of leadership, The Union had a streak of victories, most prominently at the Battle of Vicksburg and Battle of Gettysburg, Gettysburg marking the turning point of the war.

After a brutal three day battle at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Robert E. Lee and his men retreated back into Virginia on July 4, 1863. The battle was a devastating loss for the Confederacy and a devastating victory for the Union. This battle may have proved the power of the Union army and destroyed every hope the Confederacy had of winning this war, but the loss of American lives could not be justified through this battle. When the fighting stopped over 50,000 casualties lay dead sprawled across the city and outskirts of Gettysburg. Eleven score and nineteen years ago our forefathers planned out a new nation based upon the principles that all persons should have. Seven score and twelve years ago as the reburying of thousands of fallen soldiers were taking place, Abraham Lincoln, The Union President, reminded approximately 15,000 people of that plan our forefathers architected for us. His brief address, lasting almost 2 minutes, became a national language that itself gave purpose to the Battle of Gettysburg and the sacrifice made here (Voelker). Lincoln 's speech can be summed up into many sacrifices and one powerful word; freedom.

The Killer Angels by Michael Shaara was not just a fiction novel, it was a story of a man who actually saw the battlefield of Gettysburg and learned about the battle and its importance. When he returned from the battle sight he decided to write a novel based on his experience there. Instead of creating fictional characters he used the names and experiences he had directly with the main characters of the novel. Not only did Shaara study and review letters, documents and journal enteries of the men for the interpretation, he made it more realistic and personal by the portrayal of his characters. In the paper we will address four of those main characters with their background and how they were relevant to the war. Shaara, gave us a look at each of their inner thoughts and emotions.

Queer Theory is the best approach by which to examine Angels in America because using Queer Theory allows us to see/ illuminates the difference between socially constructed gender and sexual acts based on sexual identity. Queer theory argues that gender is a cultural construct, that the social norms of men being masculine and women being feminine were manipulated as a culture to be seen as normal. In Angel in America, Roy Cohn is an attorney with power in his work place; he expresses a strong masculine character with “clout”, strong political power. He mentions that he is a powerful man and how with only a few phone calls he is able to get a hold of the president. These are expectations of how a masculine male is supposed to act, with power, confidence, and without fear. Being a man of politics, Roy lives up to the expectations of what society believes a strong man is supposed to be and how he is supposed to behave. When he goes to see his doctor and he is told that he has AIDS, Roy refuses to admit that he has AIDS and Homosexual. Roy tells his doctor, Henry, “You Think these are names that tell you who someone sleeps with, but they don’t tell you that.” (Pg. 51) He argues that his identity is not homosexual because they do not have “clout”; that he is a man of clout and has a lot of it. Roy states, “Homosexuals are men who know nobody and who nobody knows. Who have zero clout.”(Pg. 51) An example of Queer Theory, Roy tells his doctor that labels like Homosexual, Gay,