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Disunion!: The Coming of the American Civil War, 1789-1859 (Littlefield History of the Civil War Era)

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For the definition of a word, we consult the dictionary and find the current acceptable definition of the word. Words can have much more than a definition. Words can have meaning and emotions that change with time and place. Disunion is a word with a definition that has not changed much in 200 years. However, the meaning, the emotions that disunion had are no longer available to us. These were unique to 19th Century Americans in the years leading up to the Civil War. Their reaction to the word disunion was much different and meaningful than ours. This book is a history of the meaning and emotions of one word during that time. The author has recreated the meaning and emotions of those times, giving us a real understanding of this highly charged word.
This book shows how disunion was the code for a "sublimely adaptable concept" that had a wide usage in politics. Disunion was at the same time, a prophecy or a threat, or an accusation and a process. Politicians used all to these tools to force an agenda on their opponents. At the same time, social groups made use of these tools to push forward their causes. From 1789 to 1859, when secession becomes fact, disunion is often spoken or considered by both Northerners and Southerners. The author states she is a firm member of the Emancipation Tradition and declares her sympathies are with the Abolitionists. However, she never lets this keep her from telling all sides of the story. She never allows this to descend into attacks on The South or to keep her from telling the full story. Her even handed treatment results in an excellent history that is well balanced and fairly presents all sides.
This can be a very revealing book to read. Consider the following:
Abolitionists were the biggest users of the word. Garrison wanted disunion and wrote that it was best for the nation.
Disunion petitions were common from people living in the Northern part of the nation.
The South had considered disunion a number of times prior to 1860. Pro-Union Southerners had always defeated this idea. Lincoln's hope that war could be avoided is not such a forlorn hope after reading the history of these conventions.
The history of the word "disunion" is a history of American from 1789 to 1859. The book covers each major political event and many minor ones at the right level of detail. We never get bogged down but we have the information needed to understand the causes and motivations involved. In addition, the reader gets a history of the Abolition Movement and race relations in the North and South. This is quite an amount of information for one book. The author's writing is for academia and can be somewhat difficult. I never found her boring and will state that any "work" involved in reading this book is going to pay dividends later.
I recommend this book to all Civil War readers as an essential foundation to understanding why the war came and many of the decisions of 1860 to 1862. On a personal note; this is my 300th Amazon review. I am very happy to have such an outstanding book in that position!

The observance of the sesquicentennial anniversary of The Civil War commences this year, and as patriotic Americans, we will be observing this epoch's milestones for the next four years. You should consider reading this book in preparation for these observances and your own personal participation. You will find that it is a very good exposition of the then-inflammatory word, 'disunion' and the issues surrounding it. Varon makes the case in a fast-paced account that this was the key word which galvanized the antagonists to drive a stake into the heart of the Union.

Although the term carries little emotional content with us now in the 21st century, the author redefines and reinvigorates the term, `disunion.' She points out that for the first 70 years of our existence as a country, it served as a convenient lightning rod to kindle a growing cry for separation and conflict within our land. She aptly demonstrates that all of the major players of the time evoked its essence and its antithesis. In addition to the usual voices of Jefferson, Adams, Buchanan, Lincoln, Davis, Webster, Calhoun, Quincy Adams, Clay, and Seward, we hear from the more obscure, the voices of the people like William Garrison and Robert Rhett. She also identifies the antebellum roles of white women and freed blacks.

Of course there are gross classifications and over simplifications of the complexity of the substance of the issue which divided our country, yet Varon makes it clear that ever since the signing of the Constitution, a troublesome, seething discontent and distrust was brewing between the agrarian south and the manufacturers in the north, between the abolitionists in the north and the slavers in the south, between the federalists of the north and the states-righters in the south. This book covers it all, and places you deep into the tone of the times. Reading her account, you cannot remain impartial. Believe it or not, 150 years later you will take a side, just as our forefathers did.

I recommend that you try to read it before April 2011; then you will be better prepared for the 150 year anniversary of the first volley upon Fort Sumter.

This is a really interesting and enlightening book on the history leading up to the Civil War. I recommend you read this book and then Gallaghers book on the Union. The two together really provide a better understanding of the Union's position on the war. I had always wondered what motivated the North to be so willing to engage in the Civil War. The South's motivations are quite clear, and whether you agree with them or not, they are understandable as reasons. The Unions reasons were never as clear. Given the North's racist views it doesn't make sense that the Union would fight so doggedly for four years to end slavery.The idea of Union was never completely clear to me. This book really provides an understanding of how important that idea was before the Civil War. Really good history helps us understand the past and gives us the ability view the events through the eyes of the participants, against the background of the culture. This book can be highly recommended both as great history and an enjoyable read.
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Elizabeth R. Varon (professor of history, University of Virginia) presents Disunion!: The Coming of the American Civil War, 1789-1859, a scholarly historical perspective of the political, cultural, and gender debates about "disunion" in America - that is, the specter of the republic's dissolution. Though a great many Americans perceived disunion as a nightmare to be avoided at all costs, others considered it a means by which they could achieve their partisan goals. From America's inception up to the dawn of the Civil War, chapters follow the advent of abolitionism, the role of mass party politics in the ongoing debate, the divisiveness concerning slavery's expansion, events and premonitions foreshadowing the horrendous toll of the Civil War itself, and much more. A handful of black-and-white illustrations enhance this well-reasoned study of the long war of words and ideas predating the open bloodshed of the Civil War.