"North and South"

Analytical Essay # 16670

English > Analysis
History > U.S. Civil War 1860-1865
Literature > American

"North and South"

A review of John Jakes' "North and South", focusing on issues concerning the American Civil War.

983 words () | 9 sources | MLA | 2001 United States

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the book, "North and South" by John Jakes. The paper provides a brief description of the vicious politics, people and the harsh institution of slavery in pre-secession America. The paper shows how the author uses fiction to illustrate historical facts. The paper outlines Jakes' novel, which adequately presents the prelude to the Civil War. The writer claims that "North and South" submits the reader to a dark, but important part of American history.

From the Paper:

"Starting in the 1830s, the reader comes upon two characters, George Hazard, the son of a Pennsylvanian iron maker, and Orry Main, the son of a wealthy South Carolinian plantation owner. The pair travels to West Point Military Academy; they train and wage the war in Mexico, staying very close friends throughout. They become heads of their families, who bond through love and hate. Through all the sectional tension of the 1840s and 1850s, the families stay closely knit and when inevitable war breaks out, George and Orry make a pact to never separate."