The Reconstruction was the period of time, after the Civil War, that attempted to reunite the Confederacy back into the Union under its new laws. During this time, tensions between black slaves and white Southerners were severely heightened due to the change in order and social standards. In the essay “An Insurrection That Never Happened: The ‘Christmas Riots’ of 1865,” the author, Stephen Nissenbaum, highlights a different perspective about the Reconstruction Era. He argues that the events that took place during the “Christmas Riots” exemplify how the freedmen had their hopes of being independent crushed. In doing so, he provides convincing evidence to support that the Reconstruction did not fulfill its purpose of giving freedom to the newly
…show more content…
The riots are not mentioned in many textbooks and is, therefore, looked over as a major historical event. Most people have not heard of times where slave owners gave their slaves presents or allowed them slacked freedom for the holidays. The new perspective is refreshing and allows the reader to view this time in history in a new light for better understanding of the historical …show more content…
The times during the Christmas Riots mirrored the crushed and heightened hopes of the newly freed slaves by comparing it to the relationship between the slaves and their owners. First, the hopes were raised during the Christmas Riots, a time of rebellion as an attempt for freedom, were metaphorically the Civil War with the end results of gaining freedom for slaves. Then, Christmas itself was the time for hope and radical changes, represented by the changes of political, social, and economic power, when the most freedom was given by the slave owners. The author represents the loss of hope by the ending of the Christmas season when restrictions were put back in place and life went back to normal, even though they had just been given freedom. This showed the lost reforms of the Reconstruction, like work contracts, Ku Klux Klan, and lack of economic freedom. All in all the piece allows for a deeper understanding of a complicated time in history, letting the reader connect to the era in a new way.
Stephen Nissenbaum’s piece incorporates an old lesson in history with a new perspective. He credibly shows the faults of the Reconstruction and how, in the end, no solid changes were made. Therefore Nissenbaum convincing wrote about the Reconstruction era in a simplistic fashion and in a way for his audience to clearly understand his
The riots are not mentioned in many textbooks and is, therefore, looked over as a major historical event. Most people have not heard of times where slave owners gave their slaves presents or allowed them slacked freedom for the holidays. The new perspective is refreshing and allows the reader to view this time in history in a new light for better understanding of the historical …show more content…
The times during the Christmas Riots mirrored the crushed and heightened hopes of the newly freed slaves by comparing it to the relationship between the slaves and their owners. First, the hopes were raised during the Christmas Riots, a time of rebellion as an attempt for freedom, were metaphorically the Civil War with the end results of gaining freedom for slaves. Then, Christmas itself was the time for hope and radical changes, represented by the changes of political, social, and economic power, when the most freedom was given by the slave owners. The author represents the loss of hope by the ending of the Christmas season when restrictions were put back in place and life went back to normal, even though they had just been given freedom. This showed the lost reforms of the Reconstruction, like work contracts, Ku Klux Klan, and lack of economic freedom. All in all the piece allows for a deeper understanding of a complicated time in history, letting the reader connect to the era in a new way.
Stephen Nissenbaum’s piece incorporates an old lesson in history with a new perspective. He credibly shows the faults of the Reconstruction and how, in the end, no solid changes were made. Therefore Nissenbaum convincing wrote about the Reconstruction era in a simplistic fashion and in a way for his audience to clearly understand his