At a time when our nation is perilously divided, Erik Larson publishes "The Demon of Unrest" and sounds a note of warning. He authors another winning work of narrative nonfiction detailing the events following the 1860 presidential election that propelled Abraham Lincoln to the White House and ushered in America's cataclysmic descent into civil war. Additionally, he brilliantly animates the famous characters of this period (Buchanan, Lincoln, Seward, and Davis) and lesser names such as Edmund Ruffin, James Hammond, and Mary Chesnut of the Southern planter aristocracy. Strikingly, the latter, products of generational slave ownership and owning as many as 400 slaves, vociferously and unashamedly champion the cause of slavery. Larson’s narrative serves as a cautionary tale, reminding us of the dangers of division and the importance of unity in our current social and political climate.
From his extensive research, the author quotes from speeches, letters, diary entries, and other period documents revealing unapologetic pro-slavery sentiment. Through these Southerners' thoughts and comments, we learn just how, like Kudzu, slavery became wildly entwined with Southern culture. No matter how inexplicable or indefensible their position might be today, in the mid-19th century, these Americans believed it was their birthright to continue owning other human beings in the name of tradition and because slavery was so much a part of the Southern culture and rural economy. More importantly, with "The Demon of Unrest," Larson sheds light on how charged the issue of slavery was in the years leading up to Lincoln's election and, therefore, how inevitable secession would become.
As always, the author’s character development is first-rate. Perhaps best of all is his treatment of Major Robert Anderson, a career U.S. Army officer and one of the central characters appearing throughout “The Demon of Unrest.” Anderson, the Fort Sumter, South Carolina commander, and gallant American patriot of the first order, became one of the early heroes of this period. We witness his painstaking preparations to fortify Fort Sumter, a U.S. Army garrison and initial Union stronghold, key terrain in the middle of Charleston Harbor and the annals of U.S. history. He and his charges remain alone on an island, steadfastly defending American ideals. Their challenge becomes existential on April 12, 1861, when the Confederates bombard the fort and two days later force its surrender to start the war.
Claiming three-quarters of a million lives, the American Civil War, or the War Between the States, was a watershed event, the legacy with which we, as Americans, still live today. In addition to the author’s signature ability to capture the mood of a particular period or incident in history, Larson fans will recognize his trademark emphasis on meticulously mining historical documents to bring the story to life, for instance, capturing seemingly insignificant comments and minor actions of the characters so that we see that they, like us, were fully human. In detailing their activities, Larson transports us to an earlier age during which honor and chivalry in the Antebellum South held sway. Then, negotiations deadlocked, both sides determined not to move off their hardened positions, the nation tilts to war, and we readers have a ringside seat. The author helps us see firsthand how the Civil War, which resulted in more than 600,000 casualties over four years, was virtually a foregone conclusion.
Larson writes fluidly but concisely, some chapters only a few pages long, and his sturdy vocabulary challenges readers to be Merriam-Webster-ready. His strength is pacing; he allows events to unfold in a way that captures the reader's attention and holds it transfixed for page after page. Like all his books, “The Demon of Unrest” reads like the story is happening in real-time. Larson achieves his objective; he sounds the alarm that another collapse into chaos is not far-fetched. Unrest in America is mounting.
One reads "The Demon of Unrest" with his mouth agape, incredulous that these events happened and could happen again. Worry, anxiety, and fear grip the nation today just as they did in the deeply divided America of 1861. South Carolina, specifically Charleston, became ground zero for American turning on American and friend becoming foe. A charming U.S. city seemingly overnight morphed into a powder keg.
Indeed, 1861 brought us a national Hatfield-McCoy moment, the American family riven by disagreement and debate. When considering our shrill and uncompromising public discourse and eroding confidence in U.S. government institutions today, readers of "The Demon of Unrest" can appreciate how easily the situation could devolve into another armed conflict.
Above all else, Larson’s "The Demon of Unrest" reminds Americans that we must, in Abraham Lincoln's words, "appeal to the better angels of our nature."
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“No, sir, you dare not make war on cotton. No power on earth dares make war upon it. Cotton is King.”1,720 位 Kindle 读者已标注- Jilted at the altar of the Railroad Age, South Carolina had retreated into its own world of indolence and myth.1,720 位 Kindle 读者已标注
- The boat reached its wharf at twelve forty-five a.m., Friday, April 12, 1861, destined to be the single-most consequential day in American history.1,067 位 Kindle 读者已标注
- In those 113 days, this fortress, named for Thomas Sumter, a Revolutionary War hero, had become a profoundly dangerous place to invade and could have resisted attack quite possibly forever, but for one fatal flaw: It was staffed by men, and men had to eat. The food supply, cut off by Confederate authorities, had dwindled to nearly nothing.483 位 Kindle 读者已标注
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Excellent Narrative
Commanding account of the escalation of events the months preceding the attack on Fort Sumter, April 12, 1861. The “unrest” and division as it existed at that time can be well aligned to the differences in today’s politics. Erik Larson is a mastermind of research and documentation of the main characters of both the North and the South, the perspective of the people and the pro slavery, chivalrous planters of the South vs the Railroad Age and abolitionists of the North. The insight to the struggles of Abraham Lincoln before, during and following the Civil War and his decisiveness to “reassert the authority of US Law,”as well as the wealth of information, is certainly worthy of a second reading.
