The Cause of the Civil War

Paper Summary:

The paper provides an an analysis of James M. McPherson's "Ordeal by Fire: The Civil War and Reconstruction" that addresses whether slavery was the primary cause of the Civil War. The paper explains McPherson's thesis that the Civil War came about due to a number of compelling reasons, but most of those had at least some root in the institution of slavery. The paper therefore concludes that slavery, and the maintenance of the institution in the South, was the major cause of the Civil War.

From the Paper:

"The economic growth of both the North and South was truly remarkable during the first half of the nineteenth century. The industrial revolution provided growth spurts throughout the country, and brought more people to the Northern cities for jobs and opportunities. As the North industrialized, the South grew too, and became must more productive agriculturally, rather than industrially, and this would cost them greatly during the Civil War, since they did not have the ability to create many of the materials they needed to continually supply their fighting forces as the war dragged on."

Sample of Sources Used:

• McPherson, J.M. (2001). Ordeal by fire: The Civil War and reconstruction. New York: McGraw-Hill.

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