Reconstruction: Eric Foner
Nina Stiener
Mr. Maynard
APUSH Period 3
10 January 2010
Reconstruction: Eric Foner The Reconstruction time period, 1865 through 1877, was a complex time for America. The southern part of the nation was in need of governmental, economical, and social repair after losing the Civil War. Radical Republicans, Democrats, and newly freed African Americans all were influential in the age of Reconstruction. Historians have struggled to put into words exactly what Reconstruction incorporates and precisely what the motives of the different groups of people were. Renowned American historian, Eric Foner, is a professor at Columbia University. He has written many books concerning the Civil War and Reconstruction eras. Eric Foner’s Reconstruction theory is correct in stating that, despite the northern Radical Republican's best efforts, the southern whites were more so focused on recreating the past society instead of renovating a new society. It can be argued, however, that reconstruction was a success and the South made an attempt to change, but was burdened with the freedmen. The historian W.E.B. Du Bois states that Reconstruction was already complicated because of the war and was further complicated with the addition of freedmen, or the freed blacks. He states that, “the moral effect of an unsuccessful war with all its letting down of social standards and quickening of hatred and discouragement” was already, “a situation which would make it difficult under any circumstances to reconstruct a new government and a new civilization. Add to all this the presence of four million freedmen and the situation is further complicated” (Du Bois). The South who had to fix their broken society saw the freedmen as a burden they had to support. The North was forcing this burden upon them. Du Bois does not blame the South for open hatred against blacks and comprehends their reasons for brutality. In spite of that, Foner’s opinions are still correct because instead of supporting blacks when
Mr. Maynard
APUSH Period 3
10 January 2010
Reconstruction: Eric Foner The Reconstruction time period, 1865 through 1877, was a complex time for America. The southern part of the nation was in need of governmental, economical, and social repair after losing the Civil War. Radical Republicans, Democrats, and newly freed African Americans all were influential in the age of Reconstruction. Historians have struggled to put into words exactly what Reconstruction incorporates and precisely what the motives of the different groups of people were. Renowned American historian, Eric Foner, is a professor at Columbia University. He has written many books concerning the Civil War and Reconstruction eras. Eric Foner’s Reconstruction theory is correct in stating that, despite the northern Radical Republican's best efforts, the southern whites were more so focused on recreating the past society instead of renovating a new society. It can be argued, however, that reconstruction was a success and the South made an attempt to change, but was burdened with the freedmen. The historian W.E.B. Du Bois states that Reconstruction was already complicated because of the war and was further complicated with the addition of freedmen, or the freed blacks. He states that, “the moral effect of an unsuccessful war with all its letting down of social standards and quickening of hatred and discouragement” was already, “a situation which would make it difficult under any circumstances to reconstruct a new government and a new civilization. Add to all this the presence of four million freedmen and the situation is further complicated” (Du Bois). The South who had to fix their broken society saw the freedmen as a burden they had to support. The North was forcing this burden upon them. Du Bois does not blame the South for open hatred against blacks and comprehends their reasons for brutality. In spite of that, Foner’s opinions are still correct because instead of supporting blacks when
Cited: DuBois, W.E.B. "Reconstruction, The Reconstruction Was Not a Failure." Reconstruction and Its Benefits. American Historical Review, 1910. 781-90. Print. Dunning, William Archibald. Essays on the Civil War and Reconstruction. New York: Harper & Row, 1965. Print. Foner, Eric, and Joshua Brown. Forever Free: the Story of Emancipation and Reconstruction. New York: Knopf, 2005. Print. Foner, Eric, and Olivia Mahoney. A House Divided: America in the Age of Lincoln. [Chicago?]: Chicago Historical Society, 1990. Print. Foner, Eric. Politics and Ideology in the Age of the Civil War. New York: Oxford UP, 1980. Print. Stampp, Kenneth M. The Era of Reconstruction: 1865-1877. New York: Vintage, 1965. Print. United States. A Proclamation. By Abraham Lincoln. September 22, 1862. 1995. Web. 9 Jan. 2011. .