Killer Angels 2
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 historical account of the Battle of Gettysburg, as seen in Killer Angels, provides the facts of the battle as seen through the eyes of Generals Robert E. Lee, Joshua Chamberlain, James Longstreet, and John Buford. The feelings and inner-thoughts of each General and the conditions of the battle are seen, heard, and felt by the reader in the historical account. Shaara takes historical license with letters, the words of the men, and documents written during the three hellish days of the battle. Shaar
The Civil war shattered futures and broke the innocence of many young lives. Michael Shaara uses the horrific details of the Civil War to teach the reader that war is not as valiant and courageous as men make it seem. The vivid details included in the book help to draw and etch the gory pictures of war into one's mind. The generals each relay their feelings about the death and destruction of the war to the reader. The reader gets the feeling that the author is communicating only the negative aspects of the war and not too much of the glory. All the Generals, Colonels, and men involved cannot seem to stop talking about the lives they've seen lost and men wounded. General Lee and the other men explain that they've has lost many great comrades and officers in the battle. Shaara keeps sharp attention to all the blood and bullets' flying around the whole time so the reader feels that war is hell in essence. Robert E. Lee is the heart and soul of the South and people depended on him to lead the South into victory. The South admired him for the pride he brought and the North admired him for his military prowess. One man goes as far as to say, "Well maybe you are come from an ape, and maybe I am come from an ape, but General Lee, he didn't come from no ape" (Shaara 131). Robert E. Lee is the savior and leader for the people of the South, and they worshiped him. No man in the North or South doubted his military genius or ever went far enough to challenge what he said. Fremantle explained that Lee was a mythical hero even in England, he was a gentleman's man. "Well. They love him. They do not blame him. They do impossible things for him," says Fremantle (Shaara 162). Men would do anything make Lee proud. The Northern generals were afraid to go against him at times and respected his power. However, General Longstreet through the course of the book begins to doubt the old man's power to make decisions. Longstreet keeps to himself to not offend anybody, especially since General Lee was a loved man by all. Longstreet feels that Lee is too powerful and sometimes makes the wrong decisions without somebody being able to tell him he is wrong. "The men shield from blaming Lee. The Old Man is becoming untouchable," says Longstreet (Shaara 240). Longstreet feels that Lee's mythical status is getting in the way of the war and might end up hurting him. The overall impression of Lee is that he is a mythical and legendary person to most, but Longstreet quietly does not see him as the superhuman he is made to seem. "When men take up arms to set other men free, there is something sacred and holy in the warfare," said Woodrow Wilson, the 28th President of the U.S. and activist for world peace. General Robert E. Lee feels that the Civil War is very sacred and holy because he is fighting for the freedom of his kin and people. He believes in his cause and is willing to go against the country and maybe the will of God to protect the rights of his people. Chamberlain believes the actions of the Union army are very holy and the most righteous deed done in the history of the world. "This hasn't happened much in the history of the world. We're an army going out to set other men free; What has been done to the Black is a terrible thing" (Shaara 179). James Longstreet is a very technical man and felt there was nothing sacred and holy in the Civil War. He felt there were no ideals and fights only to win, "...The Cause was Victory" (Shaara 63). Buford is a professional and sees nothing sacred and holy either. He is in the war to serve and win. He has no ideals and freedom to protect. a avoids historical opinion and provides his own opinion towards the Civil War and the people. The historical account of the Civil War, the Battle of Gettysburg specifically, in Killer Angels conveys
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Approximate Word count = 2547
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)
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