Bruce Levine -- The Fall of the House of Dixie: The Civil War and the Social Revolution That Transformed the South
====================================================================================================================

This is actually several books, and when reading it, you can get
multiple things out of it.  Yes, there is history about the U.S.
Civil War.  But, there is also a good deal of information and
description of the society out of which that war and the necessity
of that war came.  I use the word "necessity" purposefully.  Given
the social conditions and structure of the antebellum South in the
U.S., there was really no way that the institution of slavery could
have been given up voluntarily.  This was especially true of the
elites in the South (the Master class) that depended on slavery for
the maintenance of their lifestyle.  Giving up that lifestyle and
the institution of slavery on which it was based, after having been
raised with those benefits and attitudes would have been such a
radical change as to have been unimaginable.

And, of course it is a book about slavery.  There is some good
explanation about how brutal and punishing slavery as practiced in
the South before the Civil War actually was.  This was not just hard
work at low wages, or even at *no* wages.  It was forced labor
driven by physical pain and punishment to extract the most labor at
the least cost.  That has several implications.  (1) It inflicted
severe suffering on those enslaved.  (2) It was in support of an
economic system that depended on that cost/benefit ratio, an amount
of benefit that could be delivered at that cost *only if* it was
driven by physical punishment and using minimal food to keep it
going.

And, yet another reason why this war had to be fought and could not
be avoided in spite of the incredible and horrid costs and loss of
life and suffering was because those in the North feared the
advancement of slavery in new states as territories were made into
states of the Union.  That would tip control of the U.S. federal
government to the slave states.  And, those in the South feared the
converse.  There was likely no way to resolve this without fighting.

In addition, this is a book about the attitudes and mind set that
enabled a society to allow itself to keep such an inhumane
institution in place.  You'll learn about some of the justifications
and rationalizations used disguise that privileged position and the
suffering that resulted from it: (1) It's good for them (the slaves)
and their family structure.  (2) They are loyal and thankful for it.
(3) They would not be able to take care of themselves.  (4) This is
the only possible structure for a just society.  And, so on.  Those
justifications are transparently lies that were told to justify
something that these members of this society did not want to give
up.

But, even as history, this book has something extra to add.  It
traces the effect of various battles and of the news of victories
and losses (1) on the attitudes of Northerners and Southerners, and upon
the whether elections in the North would deliver the political
leaders needed to prosecute the war and (2) on attitudes in the
South and the efforts of political leaders in the South to maintain
support for a war that was essentially a fight to maintain the
benefits of the institution of slavery for a small slice of the
population.

One, of the very valuable and fascinating aspects of Levine's work
is the letters that he quotes, especially letters written by women
in the Master class in the South.  Learning about their attitudes
and about their ideas and feelings, as their way of life approached
its end, is very revealing.

Perhaps even more important for us here today in the U.S. are the
residual effects of the society and the mindset that enabled it.
Levine gives some description description of that mindset and
psychology, but it is way more complex than he has space for.  In
part it involves a master to slave relationship in which masters
refused to allow their authority to be challenged and in which they
met any perceived challenges with brutality and punishment.  There
was a code of honor and authority and dominance there, and I believe
that we are still living with the effects of that code and the
militancy that it entails.

Levine gives some help, though perhaps not enough, with demystifying
something that I've wondered about.  The institution of slavery was
a benefit to slave owners, so it is understandable why *they* would
be willing to go to war to save it.  But, what about non-slave
owners in the South.  Why were they willing to fight, suffer, and
die to save it?  Some of the answers that show through in this book
are: (1) White supremacy and a believe that the white to black
relationship must be maintained.  (2) The belief by those who did
not own slaves that freedom for blacks would put themselves down at
a level equal to blacks, something they could not face.  (3)
Southern patriotism and devotion to the South as a separate region.
(4) Belief that free slaves would cause turmoil, a breakup of social
order, and riots.  (5) A core belief that the South without slavery
was unimaginable.  (6) A fervent desire that blacks be kept
subservient and whites be supreme.

Giving up those beliefs and feelings is hard.  There is little
wonder that they were so difficult to give up.  I wonder whether
they have yet.

One side light -- Levine believes, if I interpret him correctly,
that there was a growing realization in the North that, not only
must the slaves be freed, but that (1) the support of freed slaves
was necessary for a successful war effort (both in behind the lines
support and in active battle) and that that support must be denied
to the Southern war effort.  And, Levine gives accounts by a number
of those who fought near them about how effective freed slaves were
in the fight.

More notes about the war: (1) Increasing and very high desertion
rates in the Southern army toward the end of the war helped lead to
the defeat of those armies even in the face of the willingness of
political (and military?) leaders to fight on regardless of cost and
lives lost.  (2) The treatment of black soldiers fighting for the
North by Southern soldiers was merciless; there were instances of
"take no prisoners" style slaughter of Northern black units by
Southern white units.

If you want to understand more about what the South was, about what
it became after the Civil War, and what it has become today, then
I'd recommend these:

- "The mind of the South", by W.J. Cash

- "Race and reunion", by David W. Blight

- "The new mind of the South", by Tracy Thompson

You will learn about the characteristics of the Old South and
about Southern culture from "Fall of the house of Dixie", but you
will get even more of that from the above three books.  Some of
those characteristics: (1) militarism, patriotism, and a tendency to
view violence as the answer; (2) religiosity, and also a belief that
"God is on our side"; (3) racism, identity defined by race, white
supremacy, and a belief or feeling that race and cast was needed to
maintain feelings of self worth.

It's a fascinating subject, though not always a cheerful one, and it
has consequences even now in the society and politics here in the
U.S.

06/18/2013

.. vim:ft=rst:fo+=a: