Fighting Means Killing : Civil War Soldiers and the Nature of Combat

Publisher ‏ : ‎ University Press of Kansas Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 24, 2018 Print length ‏ : ‎ 336 pages ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07D3CW7WH ISBN 9780700626281 (hardback) ISBN 9780700626298 (ebook) (/tor/viewRequest.php/1628300921.07776) Request. php /1628300921.07776 “ War means fighting, and fighting means killing. ” Confederate cavalry commander Nathan Bedford Forrest famously declared. The Civil War was fundamentally a matter of Americans killing Americans. This undeniable reality is what Jonathan Steplyk explores in Fighting Means Killing, the first book-length study of Union and Confederate soldiers’ attitudes toward, and experiences of, killing in the Civil War. Drawing upon letters, diaries, and postwar reminiscences, Steplyk examines what soldiers and veterans thought about killing before, during, and after the war. How did these soldiers view sharpshooters? How about hand-to-hand combat? What language did they use to describe killing in combat? What cultural and societal factors influenced their attitudes? And what was the impact of race in battlefield atrocities and bitter clashes between white Confederates and black Federals? These are the questions that Steplyk seeks to answer in Fighting Means Killing, a work that bridges the gap between military and social history—and that shifts the focus on the tragedy of the Civil War from fighting and dying for cause and country to fighting and killing. "Steplyk has produced a salutary, lucid, and absorbing contribution to the scholarly literature on his subject. Fighting Means Killing will strongly appeal to anyone interested in the military history of the Civil War and of warfare more generally."—Michigan War Studies Review"Steplyk's study brilliantly blends military history and social history, pioneering an interpretation of how Civil War soldiers understood fighting and killing, war's most important, inescapable element." --Journal of Southern History "Steplyk makes an important contribution to the body of Civil War combat scholarship by delving into areas of this subject others formerly touched upon or have not covered at all." --Journal of Arizona History "To the experienced Civil War reader, the battles, occurrences and number of the soldier accounts Steplyk examines are familiar. The conclusions that he draws relative to the subject matter of his study, however, are fresh." --Civil War Book Review "Through a judicious use of primary and secondary sources, Steplyk contributes to the discussion of the motivations and recollections of the Civil War soldiers and provides an in-depth examination of the attitudes toward killing in combat." --H-Net Reviews "Initiates a vital discussion on the psychology and meaning of killing for nineteenth-century soldiers." --Journal of Military History "Steplyk has employed extensive research in primary sources to offer insights into how citizen soldiers reacted and adapted to the reality of deadly combat in all of its Civil War forms. this is simply a brilliant book." --Civil War Monitor "This work breaks new ground in understanding how civil War soldiers managed the problem of killing, and is certainly important reading not only for those interested in the Blue and Gray, but also in experience of combat in any war." --New York Military Affairs Symposium "Drawing on diaries, letters, and other reminiscences, this is military and social history of the first order." --Choice **Publisher****Publication date****Print length****ASIN****ISBN****ISBN**[**Request.**php/1628300921.07776](/tor/viewRequest.php/1628300921.07776)**“__War means fighting, and fighting means killing.__” Confederate cavalry commander Nathan Bedford Forrest famously declared.**The Civil War was fundamentally a matter of Americans killing Americans. This undeniable reality is what Jonathan Steplyk explores in Fighting Means Killing, the first book-length study of Union and Confederate soldiers’ attitudes toward, and experiences of, killing in the Civil War.Drawing upon letters, diaries, and postwar reminiscences, Steplyk examines what soldiers and veterans thought about killing before, during, and after the war.* How did these soldiers view sharpshooters? * How about hand-to-hand combat? * What language did they use to describe killing in combat? * What cultural and societal factors influenced their attitudes? * And what was the impact of race in battlefield atrocities and bitter clashes between white Confederates and black Federals? These are the questions that Steplyk seeks to answer in Fighting Means Killing, a work that bridges the gap between military and social history—and that shifts the focus on the tragedy of the Civil War from fighting and dying for cause and country to fighting and killing.__"Steplyk has produced a salutary, lucid, and absorbing contribution to the scholarly literature on his subject. Fighting Means Killing will strongly appeal to anyone interested in the military history of the Civil War and of warfare more generally."—Michigan War Studies Review"Steplyk's study brilliantly blends military history and social history, pioneering an interpretation of how Civil War soldiers understood fighting and killing, war's most important, inescapable element."__**--Journal of Southern History**__"Steplyk makes an important contribution to the body of Civil War combat scholarship by delving into areas of this subject others formerly touched upon or have not covered at all."__**--Journal of Arizona History**__"To the experienced Civil War reader, the battles, occurrences and number of the soldier accounts Steplyk examines are familiar. The conclusions that he draws relative to the subject matter of his study, however, are fresh."____"Through a judicious use of primary and secondary sources, Steplyk contributes to the discussion of the motivations and recollections of the Civil War soldiers and provides an in-depth examination of the attitudes toward killing in combat."__**--H-Net Reviews**__"Initiates a vital discussion on the psychology and meaning of killing for nineteenth-century soldiers."__**--Journal of Military History**__"Steplyk has employed extensive research in primary sources to offer insights into how citizen soldiers reacted and adapted to the reality of deadly combat in all of its Civil War forms. this is simply a brilliant book."__**--Civil War Monitor**__"This work breaks new ground in understanding how civil War soldiers managed the problem of killing, and is certainly important reading not only for those interested in the Blue and Gray, but also in experience of combat in any war."____"Drawing on diaries, letters, and other reminiscences, this is military and social history of the first order."__ "War means fighting, and fighting means killing." Confederate cavalry commander Nathan Bedford Forrest famously declared. The Civil War was fundamentally a matter of Americans killing Americans. This undeniable reality is what Jonathan Steplyk explores in Fighting Means Killing, the first book-length study of Union and Confederate soldiers' attitudes toward, and experiences of, killing in the Civil War. Drawing upon letters, diaries, and postwar reminiscences, Steplyk examines what soldiers and veterans thought about killing before, during, and after the war. How did these soldiers view sharpshooters? How about hand-to-hand combat? What language did they use to describe killing in combat? What cultural and societal factors influenced their attitudes? And what was the impact of race in battlefield atrocities and bitter clashes between white Confederates and black Federals? These are the questions that Steplyk seeks to answer in Fighting Means Killing, a work that bridges the gap between military and social history--and that shifts the focus on the tragedy of the Civil War from fighting and dying for cause and country to fighting and killing. "-- "War means fighting, and fighting means killing," Confederate cavalry commander Nathan Bedford Forrest famously declared. At its core the Civil War involved Americans killing Americans. Regardless of the moral lens through which one views the conflict, that truth remains. Relying heavily on the wartime letters and diaries and postwar reminiscences of soldiers and veterans, Jonathan Steplyk explores Union and Confederate attitudes about, and experiences of, killing in combat, and contends that the majority of soldiers positively affirmed and accepted killing the enemy as part of their military duty and a necessity for their respective causes to prevail. Steplyk examines the cultural and societal factors that influenced soldiers' attitudes toward killing prior to and during the war, the various ways soldiers experienced killing in battle, the terms and turns of phrase that soldiers used to describe killing in combat, killing that transgressed the laws of war, and the impact of race and racial attitudes on killing. Fighting Means Killing is the first book-length treatment of the nature of killing in Civil War combat, and bridges the gap between military and social history"-- "War means fighting, and fighting means killing," Confederate cavalry commander Nathan Bedford Forrest famously declared. At its core the Civil War involved Americans killing Americans. Regardless of the moral lens through which one views the conflict, that truth remains. Relying heavily on the wartime letters and diaries and postwar reminiscences of soldiers and veterans, Jonathan Steplyk explores Union and Confederate attitudes about, and experiences of, killing in combat, and contends that the majority of soldiers positively affirmed and accepted killing the enemy as part of their military duty and a necessity for their respective causes to prevail. Steplyk examines the cultural and societal factors that influenced soldiers' attitudes toward killing prior to and during the war, the various ways soldiers experienced killing in battle, the terms and turns of phrase that soldiers used to describe killing in combat, killing that transgressed the laws of war, and the impact of race and racial attitudes on killing. Fighting Means Killing is the first book-length treatment of the nature of killing in Civil War combat, and bridges the gap between military and social history"-- Provided by publisher "War means fighting, and fighting means killing." Confederate cavalry commander Nathan Bedford Forrest famously declared. The Civil War was fundamentally a matter of Americans killing Americans. This undeniable reality is what Jonathan Steplyk explores in Fighting Means Killing, the first book-length study of Union and Confederate soldiers' attitudes toward, and experiences of, killing in the Civil War. Drawing upon letters, diaries, and postwar reminiscences, Steplyk examines what soldiers and veterans thought about killing before, during, and after the war. How did these soldiers view sharpshooters? How about hand-to-hand combat? What language did they use to describe killing in combat? What cultural and societal factors influenced their attitudes? And what was the impact of race in battlefield atrocities and bitter clashes between white Confederates and black Federals? These are the questions that Steplyk seeks to answer in Fighting Means Killing, a work that bridges the gap between military and social history ... and that shifts the focus on the tragedy of the Civil War from fighting and dying for cause and country to fighting and killing." .. The Civil War was fundamentally a matter of Americans killing Americans. Fighting Means Killing explores the spectrum of soldiers' attitudes toward and experiences of killing, arguing that ultimately most Union and Confederate soldiers accepted and affirmed the necessity of killing in combat.