Reconstruction and Black America According to Foner Book Review

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Reconstruction and Black America According to Foner

In spite of the fact that African-Americans were largely at the center of the ideals in conflict during the Civil War, history would largely overlook their experiences in the aftermath of this sustained and bloody conflict. The era known as Reconstruction would be far more frequently described according to White experiences in the succeeding years. Eric Foner's 2002 text Reconstruction: America's Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877, would be designed to contribute to an increased effort at redressing this oversight. As a thesis statement, the author asserts that his goal is to provide "a coherent, comprehensive modern account of Reconstruction. This effort necessarily touches on a mulititude of issues, but certain broad themes unify the narrative. The first is the centrality of the balck experience. Rather than passive victims of the actions of others or simply a 'problem' confronting white society, blacks were active agents in the making of Reconstruction." (Foner 2002; p. xxii)

SUMMARY:

The methodology is to approach the subject of Reconstruction both anecdotally and historiographically. The author extends equal time to providing memorable narratives on the period in question and to exploring the varying perspectives taken by different historians on the era. In order to accomplish this, the author draws a great deal of material from the historian's canon on the Civil War and Reconstruction periods as well as primary documents from this same period.

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The main component of Foner's work argument is the assertion that the Reconstruction period must be assessed equally according to the perspective of White and Black America if it is to be fully understood. Part of making this case would be also demonstrated the developing traditions of overlooking or diminishing African-American contributions in this postwar period.

CONTEXT:

That the text was written and published in 2001 is significant because it offers the author an opportunity to contribute to what is still an evolving discourse on race in America. As the author notes in his forward, the century that followed the Civil War offered a racially-clouded conception of the roles of blacks and whites during Reconstruction. This text, though, comes on the heels of decades of uncovering new evidence and shifting views.

Indeed, Foner's own credentials are built on contributing to this discussion. This is demonstrated by Foner's 1987 article "Rights and the Constitution in Black Life during the Civil War and Reconstruction." This seems to present some of the core ideas that would resurface in the author's full-length text. According to Foner's 1987 article, there is increased appreciation now for the role that former slaves would play in helping to hasten the end of the war. The Foner article observes that "it is….....

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