We are still paying the psychological trauma of the Civil War. 2/3 of the males in the country had been in the armies, and they returned with PTSD, an unknown malady that became known in the postwar period as "reverie," since it appeared the sufferers couldn't seem to stop dealing with the war. This led directly to Prohibition, because (as is well known in modern PTSD treatment), the sufferers were self-medicating with alcohol and then engaging in domestic violence (another well-known outcome of PTSD). The women and children, not knowing the source of the problem, blamed the drinking, and eventually a movement developed to get rid of alcohol that ended with national Prohibition - which led to the "professionalization" of criminal behavior.
The widespread dysfunction found in American families also comes from this - almost all familial dysfunction is multi-generational, as the children of abuse grow up thinking That's The Way Things Are and continuing the behavior as adults with their own children.
In so many ways, the unresolved Civil War is with us every day.
This! This! This! It becomes a vicious generational cycle that sometimes isn't remedied without helping people garner new experiences, new networks, and greater knowledge about human flaws (but also seeing the humanistic beauty in it). I always think about what it would be like to experience someone who fought in that war and what average life was like with the veterans trying to reenter daily life. Thank you for this and this angle of viewing postwar trauma. It was some of the best thought food I've digested on this topic. :)
You're welcome. It took me a lot of study as an historian to realize this - which was staring me in the face - as I researched the source of trauma in my own family. Most people my age with civil war ancestors refer to great-great grandparents. I refer to great grandparents. The four great-grandfathers who served were all young men - three of them teenagers - who did not marry till their 30s (old age then), then their children did the same. There is a "missing" 20 years in my family as a result. The three teenagers were the ones who suffered the most. All came from small towns where they would likely have been "normal" but for the war. One celebrated his 16th birthday on Little Round Top at Gettysburg - he came home to be known as a "hell raiser" when he drank. Another spent 9 months in Libby Prison after being captured at Cold Harbor, and came home quiet and withdrawn for the rest of his life. The third, "the youngest drummer boy in Sherman's Army" (age 14) was the most traumatized. He never went home, instead going to the west where he participated in the buffalo slaughter and the genocide of Native Americans in the "indian wars." I have a photo of him taken in the 1870s in his late 20s, and even with 19th century photography it is easy to see the spider veins in his nose, and he looks like someone you would cross the street to avoid. He eventually married and had 11 children - growing up, I always thought that wing of my family was composed of crazy people; my grandfather was someone I avoided just because he was "scary." I have photos of the great-grandfather with his children, and they all have expressions on their faces like they're around a live grenade where the pin has been pulled. In the end, I eventually chose not to have children because - though I didn't understand multi-generation dysfrunction when in my 20s - I was fearful I would recreate with any children what I had experienced. I have found similar streams in the families of others who can trace their family to the war.
Thank you for this deeply personal input. It made me reflect on how mental health is still an underappreciated topic and thus the intersection between that and historical epochs is also underappreciated. I really appreciate your support too. I am inspired to write more knowing someone like you is reading!
Excellent essay, very accurate.
We are still paying the psychological trauma of the Civil War. 2/3 of the males in the country had been in the armies, and they returned with PTSD, an unknown malady that became known in the postwar period as "reverie," since it appeared the sufferers couldn't seem to stop dealing with the war. This led directly to Prohibition, because (as is well known in modern PTSD treatment), the sufferers were self-medicating with alcohol and then engaging in domestic violence (another well-known outcome of PTSD). The women and children, not knowing the source of the problem, blamed the drinking, and eventually a movement developed to get rid of alcohol that ended with national Prohibition - which led to the "professionalization" of criminal behavior.
The widespread dysfunction found in American families also comes from this - almost all familial dysfunction is multi-generational, as the children of abuse grow up thinking That's The Way Things Are and continuing the behavior as adults with their own children.
In so many ways, the unresolved Civil War is with us every day.
This! This! This! It becomes a vicious generational cycle that sometimes isn't remedied without helping people garner new experiences, new networks, and greater knowledge about human flaws (but also seeing the humanistic beauty in it). I always think about what it would be like to experience someone who fought in that war and what average life was like with the veterans trying to reenter daily life. Thank you for this and this angle of viewing postwar trauma. It was some of the best thought food I've digested on this topic. :)
You're welcome. It took me a lot of study as an historian to realize this - which was staring me in the face - as I researched the source of trauma in my own family. Most people my age with civil war ancestors refer to great-great grandparents. I refer to great grandparents. The four great-grandfathers who served were all young men - three of them teenagers - who did not marry till their 30s (old age then), then their children did the same. There is a "missing" 20 years in my family as a result. The three teenagers were the ones who suffered the most. All came from small towns where they would likely have been "normal" but for the war. One celebrated his 16th birthday on Little Round Top at Gettysburg - he came home to be known as a "hell raiser" when he drank. Another spent 9 months in Libby Prison after being captured at Cold Harbor, and came home quiet and withdrawn for the rest of his life. The third, "the youngest drummer boy in Sherman's Army" (age 14) was the most traumatized. He never went home, instead going to the west where he participated in the buffalo slaughter and the genocide of Native Americans in the "indian wars." I have a photo of him taken in the 1870s in his late 20s, and even with 19th century photography it is easy to see the spider veins in his nose, and he looks like someone you would cross the street to avoid. He eventually married and had 11 children - growing up, I always thought that wing of my family was composed of crazy people; my grandfather was someone I avoided just because he was "scary." I have photos of the great-grandfather with his children, and they all have expressions on their faces like they're around a live grenade where the pin has been pulled. In the end, I eventually chose not to have children because - though I didn't understand multi-generation dysfrunction when in my 20s - I was fearful I would recreate with any children what I had experienced. I have found similar streams in the families of others who can trace their family to the war.
Thank you for this deeply personal input. It made me reflect on how mental health is still an underappreciated topic and thus the intersection between that and historical epochs is also underappreciated. I really appreciate your support too. I am inspired to write more knowing someone like you is reading!
You do very good work, Steward.