An intellectual call to arms -- The Confederate critique of northern culture -- The birth of Confederate literature -- The campaign for Confederate educational independence -- The high-water mark -- Searching for a Confederate "literature of power" -- Are we a highly civilized people? -- Conclusion: independent in nothing, neutral in everything
Summary
During the Civil War, some Confederates sought to prove the distinctiveness of the Southern people and to legitimate their desire for a separate national existence through the creation of a uniquely Southern literature and culture. Michael Bernath follows the activities of a group of Southern writers, thinkers, editors, publishers, educators, and ministers--whom he labels Confederate cultural nationalists--in order to trace the rise and fall of a cultural movement dedicated to liberating the South from its longtime dependence on Northern books, periodicals, and teachers. Bernath makes provocat
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 353-398) and index
