Feeder 3.1

In Confederates in the Attic, Tony Horwitz explores the U.S. in hopes to find more about his deep interest in the Civil War. In two excerpts from the book, Cats of the Confederacy and Dying for Dixie, Horwitz investigates two separate towns within America and their ties to the war. In Cats of the Confederacy, Horwitz follows and observes the Daughters and Sons of the Confederacy in Lancaster, North Carolina. In Dying for Dixie, Horwitz researches the death of Michael Westerman over the Confederate flag in the small town of Guthrie, Kentucky. Within his writing’s, Horwitz portrays the South as a region stuck in the past while the world around them is rapidly moving forward. Individuals in the South feel as if they have to stand up for their “ancestors” even over 140 years after the war.
At the beginning of Cats of the Confederacy Horwitz is lead by locals in Lancaster, North Carolina to a woman named Sue Curtis, one of the members of the Daugthers of the Confederacy. Horwitz attends the Sons of the Confederacy meeting where the members introduced themselves as if they were generals or held a position in the Civil War. The beginning of the meeting was marked by a salute four separate flags, two of them representing the Confederacy. They celebrated Lee’s and Jackson’s birthdays with a Lee-Jackson trivia quiz that contained questions such as ”what did Robert E. Lee weigh at the start of the war?” It was rare that no one knew the answer to these far from important questions about particulars pertaining to these two individuals in the Civil War. Within this scene Horwitz mentions that the Sons of the Confederacy are among the “latter-day rebels.” Sue Curtis explained that the reason why the South still cares about the Civil War is because of family, all of their relatives that went off to the war and lost their lives. As these meetings are being held in this small town of Lancaster, North Carolina it seems as if no one takes notice to the world around them besides Tony Horwitz. As he steps out of his motel he is surrounded by a Kmart, a Waffle House, a Dunkin’ Donuts, McDonald’s, and several gas stations. This is the scenery in which there are “clubs” taking pride in their ancestors, acting as if they were in the Confederate army themselves, and pledging themselves to the Confederate flag.
In Dying for Dixie, Horwitz finds himself caught in a “war” inside the small town of Guthrie, Kentucky. Guthrie’s main street contained a Piggly Wiggly, convenience stores, and locals scratching off lottery tickets yet confederate flags were still flying as if the Civil War were present today. Interestingly enough, Horwitz finds that Todd County is not even rebel country when a large amount of its citizens are flying the rebel flag. Guthrie’s mayor explained that when he was a boy, no one had cared about the Confederate flag but today he believes people feel as if they have to stand up for what they believe. The younger southern generation feels they have to protect the confederate flag. A Sons of Confederate Veteran’s museum treated Michael Westerman’s death as if he was a confederate soldier who had died in the civil war calling him the “confederate martyr.” At the procession for his death, bikers on Harley’s recognized his “duty” to the Confederacy as they gathered beside the present day restaurant, Cracker Barrel. Horwitz makes note of what David Westerman, Michael’s father, says at the end of the excerpt and writes “They say that war ended a long time ago. But around here it’s like it’s still going on.”
As Robert Penn Warren once wrote “History, like nature, knows no jumps, except the jump backward.” Horwitz portrays the south as close followers and believers of its regional history even as businesses such as a Piggly Wiggly, a Dairy Queen, and convenience shops are prevalent. The Confederate flag and the Confederacy have the same if not greater meaning today than they did in the Civil War within the south.

Me and the South #2

Charlotte may be in North Carolina and it may be considered the South but to me, apart from less amazing shopping and less people, it is really no different than New York City. I never really considered that I lived in the South living there. I didn't even "realize" I was in the South until I came here for school. I feel as if every sterotype of the south is portrayed here at Carolina. When I think of the south I think of girls dressing cute everyday, hair up, nails done, high heels. I think of big victorian style homes with cute front porches and flowers in the front yard. I think of a small town in which everyone knows eachother. I think of the typical frat boy, all prepped out. I think of debutant balls and getting married at a young age. I think of southern bells with country accents and some of the nicest cars. I think of polite people, ones who will open the door for you or stop at a cross walk to let you walk. Now I don't know about any of you but at my high school we didn't have too much of any of that, I didn't even know what a "deb" ball was. Maybe the girls dressed all cute but I wouldn't call us any more Southern than a New Yorker. It was interesting to see the stereotypical south in real life and you know what, I love it! I love the polite people, I love the cute dresses, I love the victorian homes, flowers in the front yard, and small towns. Since being at Carolina I now know what its like to be a Southerner in my eyes and I am now a converted Southerner (minus the accent and the debutant balls).

Response to Dying for Dixie

As I was reading Dying for Dixie I noticed a pattern in the way Horwitz organizes his text through the Cats of the Confederacy. His writing jumps around a lot. For example, one minute he is talking about Redbone's, the next he is making references to Robert Penn Warren's childhood and a town names Guthrie. I believe this offers a comparison between two separate events, and that even though they are completely randomized, together they share a common rage (well at least in this passage they do). A biker bar on the edge of town filled with profanity and racism is no different from the small and what used to be quiet town of Guthrie. Two completely separate communities share the same characteristics. I also believe that Horwitz likes to display the "good and bad" sides of each case, the confederate flag bearers vs. the black individuals. With so much leeway open for biased opinions on each side of the case, Horwitz likes to keep a neutral position and leave the opinions to the reader. Who do we think is right in this situation? He likes to talk to people from each side of the spectrum and get their opinions on the whole situation of Michael.
I think its interesting that in a time of sorrow and grief that the whites come together and the blacks come together yet they only separate themselves farther apart. The South, which prides itself on family, just had its family split in two.