IEW Advanced Communication Series

March 18th, 2020

Cost for Freedom

War is such a horrible oppression and produces major devastation on homes, lives,

and countries. The Civil War ended with many casualties and pain. All of this was a

result of a disagreement and lack of unity between the north and south. The main

issue that posed a threat to these contrasting political parties was politics and

slavery. But was this worth the fight? Worth the hundreds of lives lost? Worth the

devastation and suffering?

When many study the Civil War, they think of slavery and the fight for equality.

Although we commonly portray the south as supporters of slavery, not all

southerners encouraged it. 1/3 of southerners owned slaves and 80% of those were

owned on small farms. Southerners owning 1,000 acres of land typically owned a

numerous amount of slaves, while those who owned less than 200 acres were

mostly planters and owned few slaves. These owners living on smaller acreage often

treated Africans as humans and would accept them into their family, which favored

the covenantal view of slavery. Some southerners provided their slaves with

education, yet they still owned Africans. The ability to own a human being is

atrocious, and justifying slavery is pointless. The Constitution is clear, defending all

people as created equal. Slavery does not support equality, and there is no defense

that could prove it to do so.

 The Civil War was not only a result of the argument regarding slavery, but also a

very political and cultural war. At that time, the north was industrial and

mercantilist-minded with their abundance of factories and mass production

inventions. The south favored an agrarian lifestyle and the Southerners were

commonly planters. Meanwhile, the western culture was a mix of both industrial

and agrarian. They were both diverse and loose structured, but also revivalist and

progressive. Out of these three regions, the west was most diverse. So there was

obviously a pull in many directions regarding politics and agreements concerning

political matters. In fact, the war was “not intended to address the issue of slavery

but to address the issue of sharing power”. The Irrepressible Conflict proved this

greatly when specifically the Union and south’s cultures conflicted. This political

war was, in short, a fight for power and a debate over the distributing of authority.

Though politics played a large part in the dispute leading to the Civil War, slavery

did affect the disagreement as well. With hopes for the slave’s liberation, founding

fathers and select southerners sought a biblical agreement. But sadly, none was

found. One issue was that some who supported the African’s freedom didn’t know

what to do with the Africans once they were freed. Some feared they would revolt,

and many more shared that fear when the Nat Turner Rebellion transpired. Still

others supported the slave’s liberation, but didn’t appreciate the idea of having

them live in their towns and intermarry with whites. Racism was still an issue, and

even President Lincoln felt the same. Regarding politics, nationalism arose as an

alternative solution. Since unity of government and politics were being sought, this

idea sparked interest in many. As always, some disapproved. The south thought of
the government as a “negative force”. There were different views and opinions, such

as the Puritans and Dutch who supported three additional governments. These

issues were hard to resolve, which is why war broke out.

The north and south’s disagreement lead to a Civil War because no common

ground could be found. Perhaps it could have been obtained if the country had

attempted to unite. Although they desired unity, neither the north nor south wanted

to compromise their beliefs and give up what they thought morally true. The debate

on slavery and politics took a toll on our country that lead to the loss of many lives.

In the end, freedom was obtained, liberation that the African’s deserved, yet could

this debate have been ended more peaceably? Some things call for war, the

surrender of lives, and bloodshed. The cost for freedom was high, but praise God for

the unity the north obtained and for our country’s overall unity today.