Roots of the Civil War
Trace the roots of the Civil War. Why did sectionalism ultimately result in violence in the United States? Was the conflict inevitable or could it have been avoided? Explain.
I believe that the Civil War began with the debate over the future of slavery. That very issue led to secession, and secession caused a war where the Northern states fought for the ground of the Union, and the South for their independence as a new confederation of states under its own constitution. It seems to me that any disagreement leads to some form of resentment. We tend to not like what we don’t understand, and it was hard for the North to understand why the Southern states were itching for freedom from them. It seems from a broader point of view that the North has gone through so much just for the Southern states of America to exist. It only makes sense that Northern leaders would feel angry and betrayed by hearing that those states that they have worked so hard to establish now want their own sense of independence. At the same time however, the South had more of a need for slaves than the north did. The agricultural part of the South employed slaves to tend the large plantations and perform other duties. Slavery was a natural part of the Southern economy even though very few of the population actually owned slaves. Slaves could be rented or traded or sold to pay debts, making them very useful to ranchers. The North didn’t seem to have much use for slaves due to their poor soil; therefor they could not understand why the South was against abolishing slavery. I don’t believe that this war could be avoided due to the issue of slavery. If America didn’t stand against slavery, then the slaves themselves would have eventually done so. As said before, we don’t like what we don’t understand. Fighting with “each other” as opposed to fighting with who we then knew as “them” had more hope for success and peace in the end.
I believe that the Civil War began with the debate over the future of slavery. That very issue led to secession, and secession caused a war where the Northern states fought for the ground of the Union, and the South for their independence as a new confederation of states under its own constitution. It seems to me that any disagreement leads to some form of resentment. We tend to not like what we don’t understand, and it was hard for the North to understand why the Southern states were itching for freedom from them. It seems from a broader point of view that the North has gone through so much just for the Southern states of America to exist. It only makes sense that Northern leaders would feel angry and betrayed by hearing that those states that they have worked so hard to establish now want their own sense of independence. At the same time however, the South had more of a need for slaves than the north did. The agricultural part of the South employed slaves to tend the large plantations and perform other duties. Slavery was a natural part of the Southern economy even though very few of the population actually owned slaves. Slaves could be rented or traded or sold to pay debts, making them very useful to ranchers. The North didn’t seem to have much use for slaves due to their poor soil; therefor they could not understand why the South was against abolishing slavery. I don’t believe that this war could be avoided due to the issue of slavery. If America didn’t stand against slavery, then the slaves themselves would have eventually done so. As said before, we don’t like what we don’t understand. Fighting with “each other” as opposed to fighting with who we then knew as “them” had more hope for success and peace in the end.