This Hallowed Ground by Bruce Catton - Book Report/Review Example

This Hallowed Ground by Bruce Catton It is difficult to point out the real purpose of writing the book due to the fact that the author was a historian and a journalist. However, Bruce Catton wrote many historical accounts mostly based on war. As a retired navy soldier, Catton ambitions to document events of war may have been a prime motive of writing the book. One of the major pointers to this fact is the many books that Catton wrote detailing different wars in America. This Hallowed Ground book like many other of Catton’s books combines characters, facts and colorful imaginations to a form a historical narrative about the American Civil War. Catton’s love for writing and the intent to talk about the civil war can be seen as a major purpose of writing the book. By so doing the author introduces a new viewpoint to the war. The book presents a factual coverage of the American Civil War. Catton mode of narration provides a new insight into the development of the war. Unlike other authors and texts that narrate about the war, the book provides useful insights into what really happened during the war (Catton, 1956). As a narrative historian, Catton exposed the daily activities that preceded the war. In a story like encounter, the book narrates about the controversial viewpoints held by American politicians prior to the war. These viewpoints presented the making or breaking of a young nation. Further, the book integrates facts and narrative and weaves the occurrences of the Civil War, thus providing a new interpretation. The book is both a historical and a narrative account of the unfolding of the American Civil War. The broad manner in which the narrative is delivered leaves no space for the involvement of a thesis. The entire book weaves through different accounts of the war in a manner that may confuse a reader. Yet, it is this type of narration that makes the book interesting and makes it difficult for the inclusion of a thesis. The narrative manner in which the author delivers the happenings in the American Civil war relegates the book to the attention of laymen. The book provides a very colorful narrative much to the frustration of a scholar who would like to have direct access to facts. Further, the manner in which the author provides details about the lives of characters leaves a lot to be desired. Most of the stories within the book seem to be based on the author’s imaginations. Although, the author acknowledges the sources of much information used in the book from other numerous sources, it is hard to distinguish between the factual and imaginative information. The author lacks the direct approach that many scholars would look for in a book. The manuscript is more of a narrative than a representation of factual information about the American Civil War, much to the dismay of scholars. The book is very interesting. The way in which the author adds wayward narratives to the factual information about the main subject of the book makes it captivating. This addition makes the book more of a story book than a historical American Civil War script. In addition, the author weaves around the lives of influential people like senators in a manner that represents them as fictional characters (Catton, 1956). This colorful approach, coupled with pictures in the book makes it more interesting. War is a captivating phenomena and the author seemed to recognize this fact. However, it was the manner in which the representation of the facts about war in a narrative historical approach which made the book more captivating. It is apparent that earlier works by the author inspired him to adopt this unique writing method. Through creating suspense, exploring finer details and delivering the crucial aspects of the war, the author succeeded in making the book very interesting. Despite the fact that the book contains colorful characters and unimaginable precise presentations, the author presents facts about the civil war. These facts came from a well-researched exercise, which enables the author to give precise information about the unfolding events. In the bibliography section, the author listed all the sources that informed his work. Further, the book contains numerous paraphrases that were obtained from the primary sources (Catton, 1956). In addition, we can deduce that the author was in a better position to get adequate and reliable sources due to his past as a naval officer. This exposed him to numerous primary sources of information. Thus, it is crucial to conclude that there is adequate documentation in the book. The author relied on supporting materials to back his arguments. Maps are some of the supporting materials that have been extensively used to show the areas where the Civil War affected or took place. At the beginning of the book, the author included different maps that show the extent of division that existed prior to the war. These ancient maps depict the geography of America during the eruption of the Civil War. Further, the author used photos of soldiers who fought in the Civil war. Mostly, these photos appear to have been sourced from trusted primary sources. The uses of supporting materials help support the author’s facts and dispel the imaginative notion that may affect the reception of the book (Catton, 1956). Bruce Catton was an accomplished historian of the American Civil War. As a journalist and historian, the author captures both sides of the warring sides in the war. The narrative approach used in the book shows that the author was qualified. The author served in the military and this experience about war helped him to write the book. The author was not prejudiced. This is apparent in the interpretation of the purpose of the American Civil War as a fight against seceding and the unification of America. Unlike many other books that lack the finer details, the book offers a new insight into the war. The author fulfills his purpose of presenting the facts about the Civil War by giving a very detailed account of the war in the book. Not only is the book detailed, it also offers a new approach to understanding the war in terms of how individuals of the warring sides played their different roles. This is fulfilled through giving life accounts of the influential individuals who determined the course of the war. As a retired soldier and a pro-government journalist, the author’s philosophy aligns with other people who see the war as a necessary tool of uniting America. Although he does not directly express it, the author dwells longer on pro-American players than pro-secessation players. The author seems to agree with the fact that the war is necessary to prevent secessation efforts. The author delivers a forceful presentation about the American Civil War that detail more than any other written texts. The author concludes the book by expressing the ending moments of the war that represented a victory to the pro-American fighters. The conclusion is logical given the arguments presented in the book and the philosophical alignment of the author. However, the approach used in the book and the organization of the facts leaves no holes in the arguments presented in the book. References Catton, B. (1956). This Hallowed Ground. New York, NY: Vintage Books. Read More