So These Are the Patriots?

When this movie was made, the prevailing view of the Civil War in the United States, represented in history books, novels, movies, and public commemorations, was that both the North and South were good Americans in that they believed in their political freedoms and fought nobly for their beliefs. This vision of both sides as noble and worthy of honor is seen in the Confederate monuments at Arlington National Cemetery and Gettysburg and other national battlefields, and Franklin Roosevelt addressing the surviving veterans of both sides that met together at Gettysburg in 1938 for the 75th anniversary of the battle.

This view of the Confederates developed in the years after Reconstruction in the interests of national reconciliation. It ignored slavery as the major cause of the war and the South's denial of full civil rights to black people after Reconstruction. As with many things, many Americans view these issues differently than people did when this movie was made.

Yes Jefferson Davis, Jeb Stuart, and Robert E. Lee are the Patriots and heroes of the South. They fought for their home states of Virginia and Mississippi, and were regarded as heroes in the South. Have fun with that!

The traitors to our country should have been hung. They should have been kissing the ground that they weren't.

I. Drink. Your. Milkshake! [slurp!] I DRINK IT UP! - Daniel Plainview - There Will Be Blood