HIST 1103 – Honors Survey of United States History

Dr. Laura Belmonte

Spring 2002

Section 903

Book Assignment for James McPherson, For Cause and Comrades: Why Men Fought the Civil War

Read the entire book

Due in lecture on Tuesday, March 12^th – worth up to 100 points

Write a 5-7 page, typed, double-spaced, 12-point font essay summarizing MacPherson’s major arguments about how and why Union and Confederate soldiers fought in the war. Be sure to consider how and why their motives changed over the course of the war. You should support your arguments with quotations and illustrative examples drawn from the book. Be sure to include citations for any direct quotes. Simple parenthetical citations are fine. For example, (McPherson, p. 11).

THEN answer these questions:

-How has this book enriched your understanding of the U.S. Civil War?

-What is your opinion of this book? Should I assign it again?