Lincoln Movie

This is the first scene in "Lincoln" when two Union soldiers are speaking with Lincoln.

1. To what extent was Lincoln "uncompromising"?  To what extent was Thaddeus Stevens (leader of the Radical Republicans) "uncompromising"?  What were they willing to compromise on?  What were they not willing to compromise on?
     a. Lincoln was uncompromising in that he would not differ in his opinion toward the 13th Amendment. Thaddeus Stevens was uncompromising in that he strongly upheld the belief that all people are created equal no matter their race. Both of these men upheld similar ideals but Thaddeus Stevens was more radical and forthcoming about his ideals.
2. To what extent did the movie provide evidence of Lincoln's perspective as depicted in the Lincoln letters?
     a. The movie showed Lincoln's perspective when he was talking with the typer that was typing up his letter in order to send off to General Ulysses S. Grant. Lincoln shared his own personal opinions and even ended up revising the letter as he went along with the boy.
3. Why did Lincoln believe the 13th Amendment was essential?
     a. Lincoln believed that the 13th Amendment was essential in order to finally discourage slavery more so than the Emancipation Proclamation, and to keep the Union together after the war.
4. How did the film complicate the narrative that the North was against slavery and/or for racial equality, while the South was for slavery and against racial equality?
     a. I feel that the narrative was already very complicated in that you see the fight between Lincoln trying to gain followers and voters to pass his Amendment and on the opposing side you can see the southern States fighting to keep slavery because they know what this Amendment will bring.
5. For what reasons did people seem to resist the ending of slavery?  Did the film depict this as a matter of concern for property rights, or something else?
     a. Many of the characters in the movie are fighting for equality while there still are many that are fighting to keep the slaves rights below the slave owners rights. I feel that fighting for white supremacy is more of a Human Rights concern than a property rights.

Civil War Letters

American Civil War Letters

   
Each of the five letters are written from a soldier during the Civil War and are all addressed to the soldiers families and loved ones.

Letter 1 - This letter is written by Captain Watson Squire, and is addressed to his mother on August 7, 1861. This letter is written to his mother in order to bid her farewell before his excursion on this particular night.

Letter 2 - This letter is written by Captain William McMicken, and is addressed to his daughter (Nellie) and wife on July 31, 1864. The Captain is writing to his daughter and asking her about her life and how school has been while also mentioning the freed slaves that had been following the army since Mississippi. He hopes to one day bring back some of those freed slaves for his family when he returns.

Letter 3 - This letter is written by Captain Watson Squire, and is addressed to both his father and mother on May 21, 1861. The writer is writing to his parents to assure them not to worry about him and the "necessary evil" of war in politics.

Letter 4 - This letter is written by Captain Charles M. Scott, and is addressed to his wife (Anna) on April 7, 1862. Captain Scott is writing to tell his wife about the hours of battling at the Battle of Shiloh that he had just endured and to let her know that he was doing alright.

Letter 5 - This letter is written by Captain James A. Sayles, and is addressed to his sweetheart (Florence) on February 24, 1864. He is telling her about how he wishes to start a glee club for his battalion and how he plans to marry her someday.

Civil War Soldiers legacies are able to be passed down throughout generations with the use of letters. Stories and tales can be told through the sometimes shocking and in depth reviews of the soldiers at the time. From the battlefields of Shiloh to the political views of an active soldier, all of this information is useful for those outside in order to empathize with those soldiers and put themselves in the viewpoints of those who fought with such courage and valor.
- How do you think these letters can still have meaning to a person many generations down the road?
- Do these letters give you a better understanding of the Civil War and some of the thoughts that might have been crossing these soldiers minds?
- Are you able to empathize with these soldiers and their hardships?

Sources:
Washington University Libraries - This is the source that I used to locate all of the Civil War Letters.

13th Amendment

13th Amendment - Actual Text

This is an image of the real 13th Amendment from Britannica.

Section 1.
Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Section 2.
Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Passed by Congress January 31, 1865. Ratified December 6, 1865.

The Emancipation Proclamation helped to make rights and liberties to be available for the newly freed slaves. The 13th Amendment helped to completely and formally abolish slavery.

This is a political cartoon of President Lincoln opening an envelope of broken chains.

Flag Research

US History

This is an image of a flag flying on a beautiful summer day.

1. Most historians believe that the American Flag was designed by Francis Hopkinson, and sewed by Betsy Ross. The US Flag was established as an official flag on June 14, 1777.
2. January 1, 1776, The American Flag was raised by General Washington, with 13 red and white stripes, and a union jack. May 1776 Betsy Ross sews a flag with the same alternating stripes, but the stars are placed in a circle of the upper left hand corner of the flag. 1777-1960 the flags stars numbers changed in order to compensate for all of the new states being established. The flag has stayed the same since August of 1959 when Hawaii was announced as the 50th State in America.
3. White signifies purity and innocence, blue is the color of the Chief and signifies vigilance, perseverance, and justice, red is hardiness and valor. The stars represent the 50 states in America. The stripes represent the 13 British colonies that declared independence from Great Britain.
4. The American Flag is a symbol of freedom, equality, liberty, and human rights. I feel that the flag is looked at in a positive light when most people see the flag being raised because it has a sense of pride attached to it. Some names attached to the flag are, The American flag, The Stars and Stripes; Red, White, and Blue; Old Glory; The Star-Spangled Banner; US flag; United States Flag. The song is portrayed in many songs and music have been inspired by the flag such as "The Star Spangled Banner" being one of the most well known and popularized.
5. The flag is generally shown respect with the many rules and regulations surrounding it. The strict rules surrounding such as never pointing it directly at someone or something, and never disrespecting it by letting the flag touch the ground. I believe that in our culture there are many social standards that surround the flag that are very positive and call for the community to give the up most respect to the flag.
6. By disrespecting the flag it can be implied that you are directly disrespecting the soldiers that have fought and paid the price with their lives or who are fighting now for freedom to be able to rise that flag, and that can be looked at as controversial. The American flag its self was never really a symbol of disrespect but more of a symbol of pride for the American people throughout history. It helps to remind me what I stand for, and also remember those who have fought for my freedom and equality.

Sources
This source shows many facts about the American Flag and when where and why it was created.
This is the source where I found all of the nicknames for the flag.
This is the source that I used in order to find the rules and laws surrounding the American flag.

Annotated Works Cited/Bibiliography

US History Blog
Annotation - to make or furnish critical or explanatory notes or comments
- Merriam Webster
     I enjoyed using this source because the definition was clear and got to the point quickly. Annotating is a way for the reader to go back through and remind themselves of what they had read without actually having to re read the whole text. The dictionary gave me a good reference to the part of speech and the right way to use the word in sentences and phrases.
- Owl Purdue
     This source used the definition in sentences and showed me how to use annotations in a text and the general rules of annotating articles.

Fort Sumter

US History Blog
1. Chapter 12 Sectional Conflict and Crisis, and pages 391-396.
2. The topic can be found in the subheading, Secession Winter, 1860-1861.
3. The topic is talking about how Lincoln's election pushed the Deep South to have a reason to begin succeeding from the North and affirm their differing opinions.
4. The general consensus was that the South would back down and everything would solve itself although that is not what ended up happening. If the South had stayed firm they believed that the South would back down after seeing that the North would not give up.
6. History Textbook
7.

This is an image of Fort Sumter during the attack.

8. The purpose of this exercise was to learn more about our topic while learning about blogger and how to use the site.