Historical accounts of major events have almost always relied upon what those who were there witnessed. Nowhere is this truer than in the nerve-shattering chaos of warfare; where sight seems to confer objective truth and acts as the basis of reconstruction. In The Smell of Battle; the Taste of Siege; historian Mark M. Smith considers how all five senses; including sight; shaped the experience of the Civil War and thus its memory; exploring its full sensory impact on everyone from the soldiers on the field to the civilians waiting at home. From the eardrum-shattering barrage of shells announcing the outbreak of war at Fort Sumter; to the stench produced by the corpses lying in the mid-summer sun at Gettysburg; to the siege of Vicksburg; once a center of Southern culinary aesthetics and starved into submission; Smith recreates how Civil War was felt and lived. Relying on first-hand accounts; Smith focuses on specific senses; one for each event; offering a wholly new perspective. At Bull Run; the similarities between the colors of the Union and Confederate uniforms created concern over what later would be called "friendly fire" and helped decide the outcome of the first major battle; simply because no one was quite sure they could believe their eyes. He evokes what it might have felt like to be in the HL Hunley submarine; in which eight men worked cheek by jowl in near-total darkness in a space 48 inches high; 42 inches wide. Often argued to be the first "total war;" the Civil War overwhelmed the senses because of its unprecedented nature and scope; rendering sight less reliable and; Smith shows; forcefully engaging the nonvisual senses. Sherman's March was little less than a full-blown assault on Southern sense and sensibility; leaving nothing untouched and no one unaffected. Unique; compelling; and fascinating; The Smell of Battle; The Taste of Siege; offers readers way to experience the Civil War with fresh eyes.
#1035093 in Books Steven Casey 2010-03-17Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 6.10 x 1.00 x 9.20l; 1.55 #File Name: 0199738998488 pagesSelling the Korean War Propaganda Politics and Public Opinion in the United States 1950 1953
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. ExcellentBy bill faulknerExcellent. Definitely worth reading1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. this book does a poor job of covering how the government got away with ...By norskWhile this book addresses the political machinations to maintain public support and the rationale to downplay this most bloody foreign war in US history; this book does a poor job of covering how the government got away with keeping the most violent battle of the Korean War since 1951 -- the Battle of Kumsong; out of public awareness. As a result of this subterfuge by the government; there is virtually nothing written today of this sacrifice on the part of US and coalition forces in July 1953 in which thousands were wounded; killed; or lost in action. If Casey had included in this book; it would not only have added considerably to his argument; but it would have provided the first valuable discussion on this most forgotten battle of the forgotten war.
