Language and Rhetoric at Appomattox (Lecture)
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- čas přidán 11. 01. 2015
- Ranger Troy Harman discusses "Famous Utterances on the Road to Appomattox: The Importance of Language and Rhetoric in the War's Final Hours" at the Gettysburg National Military Park Visitor Center. Topics include Lincoln's diplomatic re-appropriation of the song "Dixie" and Robert E. Lee's comment to Native American Ely S. Parker at the surrender that Parker was the "one real American here."
What a riveting presentation! Troy's passion is obvious & his intellect impressive. His insights will linger in my mind for some time indeed.
Well stated, I share your sediment. 2 years later has it lingered... ?
😊q
Lee had no choice. He was surrounded at gunpoint. Hd deserves no praise for waging war against the USA.
Excellent! Most interesting treatment of understanding the last part of this conflict through words
Another excellent, thought- provoking presentation - thanks!
Found this and absolutely loved this lecture!
Reading an INCREDIBLE amount of speculation into the reaction and depth of thought of those present to "The Silent Witness."
Excellent! I translate academic documents from Spanish to English, and this lecture has helped me understand better the way in which words become invested with meanings in academic settings.
this was Wonderful, Good job Troy..
The tree looks to me like a oak, and a oak is a symbol for enternity. A pledge given under an oak tree is holy and should last for ever.
If he had not started, then continued through, and ended this lecture with a Layman’s definition of this vocabulary, it would not of made sense to me. Thank you very much for helping this layman understand.
Love to see words actually have meanings & there were a few that understood that.
Well done! Inspiring. Touching!
Good heavens, this program is magnificent….
These lectures are so good and I've watched hours worth already. From Knoxville and I hope I can see one in person!
Absolutely perfect! This examination and presentation was nearly as beautiful as of the encounter u made me of, unaware...Lol! Maybe not that extraordinary, but certainly a performance worthy of merit. Not only was the presentation connecting and informative with the nuance in detail necessary to provide the appropriate recount of such a moment. I wish I could have experienced such in full color, but would fear the suffering required for the toll to gain access of such a glorious, yet humbling moment. Lastly, I too revel over the power of language as truly, you already know, is the foundation for nearly every institute of our understanding and moment throughout mankind's experience. It is invaluable and beyond comprehension as to the scope of its end or overall mastering. In light of your reflection as tothe account of those of that time, it has once become apparent to me, the validity of our sacred Scripture in which John1:1 eludes to the importance and underlying, profound implication in not simply relating the Christ to "the Word" but even surpassing such dictating the Christ as "the Word". The mysterious validity in how Christ is recorded to even say that "...heaven and earth will pass, but his words will never.." escape us.. Meanwhile, while this continues to prove remarkably true, honored both by friend and for of the faith, still yet, retaining extraordinary consistency and general popularity. Finally and again, I thoroughly enjoyed your presentation and not only received learning about and of the subject matter, but also, importantly, received a hidden message concerning virtue. Whereby, after thought, I would presume this was a measure calculated or if not, still worthy of honorable mention and would demonstrate your attachment to nobility and righteousness...Tho, I am sure you agree...."Soli Deo Gloria!". and also, I love you and Thank you! God Bless!
burp, next
Sorry! I had to get that off my chest! But the rest of the talk was excellent. I've been watching these videos all weekend.
I well remember reading Alexander's memoirs and his pleading with Lee to continue the fight and realising he (Alexander) hadn't thought it through and being somewhat shamed at his lack of foresight.
Alexander's memoirs of the civil war are amongst the finest and most insightful written. In particular I know of no finer description of daily life in the Petersburg trenches.
no shame on ole boy...none at all
Words are more important than actions according to the speaker.
Not "Tactic agreement with the future". He meant "Tacit agreement with the future".
Yes; talking about use of language...
Lucky we had two great men like this and hate didn’t rule the day.
True Fact:The dictator Antonio Lopez De Santa Anna surrendered to General Sam Houston under a Live Oak tree at San Jacinto on April 22st,1836.
That is in modern day Deer Park,Tx.
We may never meet like this again...
I was hoping for way more language and rhetoric breakdown.
excellent discussion....
Isn't it amazing that Ely Parker and Ira Hayes are two Native Americans, that appeared at the right moment! .........................There is a Road..in the Hearts of all of Us.
Hidden and Seldom Traveled
Which Leads To An Unknown Secret Place!
Chief Luther Standing Bear
Sioux Nation [1868-1919]
Porter Alexander, I read it. He has a short chapter on Gettysburg, I wasn't there he says. Man Up.
To a novice audenice. The word "trained" audience means "smart" audience. I just had to go there LOL
I think the uniform was one made for him in early 65 by a lady in M aryland
My guess would be that a person, a soldier from the Confederacy would have no issue with the use of the word invasion to describe the Gettysburg movement. The rebel considered himself from another country moving on a foreign power with which they combating. The Federal forces would gave rejected that premise that the rebel was of a legitimate foreign government and country. The federal would only characterize the movement as a further proactive action by a illegitimate rebellious force within the United States as a whole, as they were used to seeing.
"Power is a loaded word." Ya, Firepower.
Is this john Hoptak??
Who made US GRANT'S HAT? ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S HAT? I KNOW
George Washington's HAT?
This guy's ticking is loaded.
The apple tree reminds me of the "True cross." There are bits of wood all over the world that are claimed to be pieces of the cross that Jesus was crucified on. If you add up all of the pieces, it adds up to TONs of wood. No wonder Jesus had trouble carrying it!
Sounds like someone slipped in and is trying to change language
And quit trying to seem like your the only one that understands unless you "train your audience to think so"
LONGSTREET "Not Yet" means we will, but later. More need to die so I can look AWESOME!!!
Thank God Lee did not decide to let the nation descend into permanent guerrilla war like the Middle East seems to be.
How would the rebs have conducted a guerilla war when they didn't have food, shoes or a supply of arms? Not to mention the fact that the rebs were deserting in record numbers; scating back to their hovels that General Sherman was kind enough to leave unburned.
Lee realized that a guerilla war would have been a continuation of the suicide movement the rebs embarked on in 1861.
@@willoutlaw4971 the army of north Virginia would head into the Appalachian mountains and be fed and supported by local inhabitants and recruit, then ask the British for support in arms and munitions. I for one believe they could have done it, thank the good lord Robert E. Lee was intelligent to stop the insanity. But it would have been a guerrilla war that could go another 10 years maybe they would have had to go into every holler and valley and hill to dig them out and arrest sympathizers. I would not under estimate people like Nathan Bedford Forrest (founder of the KKK) and General Longstreet. I am happy that it didn’t happen but it could have and it would have torn the country a new heart ache.
The only thing that saved the South after the war was the KKK!
Shelby Hughes - General Grant, and later President Grant, destroyed the Klan. The Klan was revived later, but never amounted to much compared to the original.
What saved the South was that unreconstructed secessionists grew old and died off. There are still some secessionist wannabes, but of course they weren’t alive in CSA times, so they are insignificant. All they can do is troll internet forums.
Two other things saved the South: The Warren Court and the Baby Boom generation. Our generation was the first to get past racism on a large scale. Boomers have been building a New South and a post-racial society nationwide. There are still a few racists, of course, but they mostly stay hidden and are insignificant.
Baumgardner
Tax dollars WELL spent.
Sadly, this will be heavily edited, or even deleted within 4 months. Sept. 2017. `your mileage may vary, but not by much..'
Weird.
slavery defeated the souths spiritualty.
Troy, Troy, Troy, ....you’re wierd, wierd, wierd.
Jay, Jay, Jay...you're childish.
Another poor speaker. spends the first 10 minutes talking about the definition of power? WTF
i tought this talk was very underwhelming ...applying a bit of common sense you can figure out what words (in our native English) mean
@prestonphelphs1649 and @sicnarf423: You are both products of the contemporary sound-byte, slang-ridden, surface-level understanding of, well...anything.
Belief in god is the reason Lee lost at Gettysburg. When you apply faith as your method to come to a conclusion, it's unreliable. Longstreet gave him sound logic but thought god was on his side. "Lee realized god was not on his side". How can you know what Lee realized? I doubt he ever doubted god being on his side ever. But what about the battles he did when? God must have been on his side right? Battles are nothing more than individuals that ultimately make a ripple effect. I'm sick and tired of these well educated men talk such good sense, and then talk this nonsense of god. This is what Romans, Spartans, Vikings etc. thought too! Were their gods real too? No! You win some and you lose some. Ultimately it comes down to chance and how you work with that opportunity. It's fine that these men believed this stuff but it's 2015 now.. Let's talk about this in an academic way.
Stefan Burns Can't find the words to say it better myself.
J Web Thank you. I appreciate that!
Stefan Burns Lee had a great chance to win at Gettysburg...his plan, that was made before Jackson's death, was sound. Do not be influenced by the movie version of what happened between Lee and Longstreet....it is based on Longstreet's account and is NOT entirely true. Lee was a man of action and a person who displayed the ultimate as far as "self - reliance " goes.
He had a deep faith and trusted his God....however, he put all he had into his duty to achieve victory. He did NOT sit back and "let the chips fall where they may" according to what "God" wanted !! The TRUTH is that his commanders on the field at Gettysburg let him down SEVERELY and they displayed a lack of nerve JUST WHEN it was needed the most.
Lee's plan was to march into Pennsylvania in a long arc to draw the Union Army out in a manner that would allow Lee to concentrate his army fast...from different directions....and then POUNCE on each Union Corps in detail as they came up. General Heth disobeyed Lee's orders and started a general engagement before Lee had finished positioning his army. Nontheless, Lee SAW the opportunity and immediately seized it....whipping the Union Army the first day. Then, two more blows fell on him that evening as Ewell FAILED to take all important Culp's Hill BEFORE it was reinforced AND Jeb Stuart FAILED to arrive with his cavalry and intelligence as to where the Union Army WAS !! So far, three major failures by commanders.
Next, on July 2nd, Longstreet was ORDERED by Lee to begin his attack in the MORNING, while the fighting at Culp's Hill was HOT.....so that Meade could NOT reinforce the area Longstreet was attacking. Well, "Old Pete" had the "slows"....he marched, turned around, and re -marched AGAIN because he thought his men could be spotted going by their ORIGINAL route....which HE was responsible for. He did NOT attack until 4 pm and FAILED because of the delay.
July 3rd had MANY commanders failing besides Longstreet. Jeb Stuart and his THOUSANDS of troopers were STOPPED by Custer and his 750 Michigan Wolverines. Stuart was to have had the glorious role of hitting the Union center in the rear...as a "pincer".....while Pickett and Pettigrew would act as the OTHER "pincer" attacking the center from the front . E. Porter Alexander committed one of the biggest blunders in the war that day. First, he FAILED to drive the Union artillery off of Cemetery Ridge with the cannonade....he sent his shells harmlessly OVER the heads of all the Union men who were NOW in the front lines and NOT in the rear because.....you guessed it.....Longstreet was LATE AGAIN !!! Then , as Pickett advanced, NO SUPPORTING ARTILLERY APPEARED as ordered by Lee to cover the advance.....Alexander, Pendleton, J.B. Walton all FAILED with the artillery while Longstreet watched.
The many accounts which outnumber and outweigh those of Longstreet and Alexander show that Lee CHAFED IN HIS SADDLE and rode frantically back and forth all morning of the second day in disbelief that Longstreet had not attacked before more Union reinforcements appeared....ruining his well thought out plan. The SAME occurred on the 3rd day as Longstreet WAITED for the slow moving Pickett to arrive, while the Union Army poured more men and corps onto the battlefield. Longstreet was NOT with Lee at his greatest victory at Chancellorsville,yet, he PRESUMED to know BETTER than the UNDEFEATED Lee how to conduct the battle !! It was a shame for the South that "Stonewall" was NOT THERE !!
+John Foster there's no doubt that he was superbly brilliant and also no doubt he wasn't only motivated by his faith, but the problem arises (for me) when intelligent men do illogical things motivated by their beliefs. But thank you for that reply because I learned a lot and I agree with you as well.
Stefan Burns My point is that Lee did NOT do anything "illogical", and it is a mistake for any historian to use Longstreet's account and unsubstantiated claims in determining what REALLY happened at Gettysburg.
Lee KNEW that he HAD to achieve a victory right then in order to possibly bring in foreign support for the Confederacy ! Especially with Vicksburg under siege. Most historians are not aware that Lincoln had the Russian fleet on its way to the east coast to help the Union at the time of Gettysburg. England and France were usually enemies,but, at the time of Gettysburg were FRIENDLY and were mutually disappointed at the losses of territory they had incurred in North America. They were BOTH pondering schemes to take advantage of the strife between Americans to possibly RETAKE some of their past possessions. There was a French army in Mexico and England was pondering loading troops into Canada, which was a BASE for Confederate operations already.
Lee was no idiot and knew that deviating from his plan, which provided a route for possible retreat and supplies behind South Mountain, could expose his whole army to immediate disaster. The "route around the right" which was suggested by Longstreet and CONSIDERED by Lee offered NO strategic high ground and no PARALLEL ROADS to move the whole army AT NIGHT over unfamiliar grounds and was a BAD idea.Contrary to conventional belief, Gettysburg was CHOSEN by Lee in advance as a possible battle location because of the CONVERGIANCE of so many roads into it. This claim of mine is supported by the large invasion map drawn by Jedidiah Hotchkiss of the proposed route which was completed while Jackson was still alive AND the actual spies that stayed in the town during the weeks prior to the battle. Additionally, Lee did NOT know where the remaining corps of the Union Army WERE because of the failure of Jeb Stuart....he could have marched STRAIGHT INTO THEM for all he knew....cut off from his escape route and base of supplies.
As I previously described above, his orders were NOT followed during the campaign and battle itself. The Confederate army did not have enough qualified leaders where he could replace the officers responsible, and , the damage had already been done. The noble Lee typically took ALL the responsibility himself and privately offered to resign in a letter to Jefferson Davis.
Lee had faced an entrenched " fish hook" arrangement of the Union army, on hills, BEFORE at the battle of Gaine's Mill, during the famous "Seven Day's" battles. He DEFEATED the Union army there, ironically with a CHARGE by Pickett in the center !!
At THAT battle, he had Jackson and his orders were OBEYED !!
It is probable that if Lincoln did NOT have Grant assume command of the Army of the Potomac , Lee may STILL have won...Gettysburg was NOT the "turning point " and "end" of the Confederacy by ANY means!
No other Union general was willing to accept the horrendous casualties that Lee inflicted on them time and time again. In 1864, Union Army commander General McClellan RAN against Lincoln on that basis !!....he wanted to STOP the bloodshed and make peace !
Before that election, Lee CRUSHED Grant at Cold Harbor, inflicting 10,000 casualties in 20 minutes even though he was outnumbered more than 2 to 1 !! The defeat was so horrible, the news was kept out of the Northern papers for fear it would cause Lincoln to LOSE the 1864 election !!
Lee's use of trenches that produced patterns of crossfire on the enemy were so admired that his ideas were employed and expanded a thousand fold during WW I by both sides.
Upon close study of Lee, one finds that he is one of the most admirable men in U.S. history. His personal character was almost flawless... he led a spartan life while constantly sharing the depredations of his troops in the field. His men and officers loved him and would follow him anywhere. he was personally brave to a fault...personally leading a charge of the Texans at Spotsylvania Court House amidst a hail of bullets and exploding shells !
A group of prominent Northern industrialists, led by Cyrus MacCormack , was so impressed with Lee that they urged him to run for President with their support after the War !! The humble Lee flatly refused...as he had refused a lucrative offer to use his name by an insurance company and other like offers. he quietly accepted the post of President of the small Washington College because he saw it as an opportunity to SET AN EXAMPLE for those in the South to accept the consequences of losing the war and to go forward in a peaceful manner with dignity.
This man could have accepted the command of the entire Union Army at the beginning of the war. As the son of " Lighthorse" Harry Lee, he could have used the massive tools at his disposal to crush the rebellion much faster than those that DID accept that command. He could have easily ascended to the White House, like Grant did, and achieved unrivaled personal glory in history, with HIS face carved on Mt. Rushmore ! However, he REJECTED all that.
Personally opposed to slavery and having dismissed those at Arlington already, Lee wrote that " any Union that has to be preserved at the POINT OF A SWORD is NOT for me ! "
He understood the horror of war and saw it as DISHONORABLE for a Federal Army to attack its own citizens. He saw the war as a failure of those responsible...the politicians...to do THEIR duty to the country and prevent it.
He wrote : " secession is nothing but revolution" and that he would sacrifice "all but honor" to preserve the Union. He could NOT lead an attack on his state, his family, his friends like OTHERS did....he CLEARLY saw this as dishonorable and saw that his state and its residents needed to be defended from this horrible onslaught. He was a SOLDIER and not a politician.
Lee should not be forgotten by Americans, he did all he could do in what he saw as an honorable struggle against an overbearing and invading Federal government...he was a hero, a true " gentleman", and an EXAMPLE of a courageous American who sought to do what was RIGHT !