U.S. History: Book Review Worksheet on Civil War and Politics

This assignment is a book review worksheet focusing on Michl F. Holt's "The Fate of Their Country," which examines the political factors contributing to the U.S. Civil War. The student's thesis argues that politicians fueled the conflict for political gain, utilizing issues like slavery and states' rights. The review supports this thesis by analyzing the formation of two-party systems and the Kansas-Nebraska Act as examples of political manipulation. The critique highlights the book's strengths in presenting primary documents but suggests a need for deeper exploration of certain events. The review concludes that the book provides thought-provoking insights, although some arguments could be more substantiated. Overall, the review assesses the book's effectiveness in explaining how political actions played a role in the Civil War.

Running head: U.S. HISTORY: BOOK REVIEW WORKSHEET
U.S. HISTORY: BOOK REVIEW WORKSHEET
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

1U.S. HISTORY: BOOK REVIEW WORKSHEET
Thesis:
The question in regard to factors that caused civil war may seem simple however
to answer the question would probably not be easy. It is one of the most complexes to
respond. Several historians have presented their thoughts regarding this same. The
subjects of slavery and states’ rights have been examined from a narrow perspective that
focusses on the statements and ideas of the citizen, press and the abolitionist movement
which is often examined in details. However, the politicians’ political acts of keeping the
problem of slavery thriving for so long that it could be used to split the nation. Politicians
have played an important role in utilising this issue according to their interest. Based on
these conditions, The Fate of their Country belongs to one of the few books that
examined the political manoeuvres (Holt, 2004). People interested in American history
can read this book.
Development:
According to the Michl F. Holt, politicians only fueled the dying flame every time
it was necessary for the political benefit. It is the undeniable truth that politicians use
human emotions as a tool for their success (Ahmed, 2013). Supporting his thesis, the
final formation of two-party systems was looked at by the author. The two party systems
are the Wilmot Proviso and the Kansas-Nebraska Act that showed the use of the slavery
issue as a tool of gaining political power. The politicians in Washington, specifically the
members of the congress were the one to identify the value of partisan in regard to the

2U.S. HISTORY: BOOK REVIEW WORKSHEET
issue and took action on the basis of short term political benefits and calculations. They
were not interested in the even to a minimum about the sectional comity.
The author examines the Pandora’s Box of sectional dissent of slavery that goes back to
the late 1810s and the fight that took place over the admission of Missouri, a state of
slavery. He placed the partisan politics above sectional differences which according to
him was the prime reason of civil war.
The author also discusses the Wilmot proviso and the intraparty and intra-
sectional fight over slavery in state and federal elections prior to final chapters. He
outlined the Janus-faced political stances of southern Whigs and that was one of the most
fascination phases in the book. It was a powerful case presented by him. His argument
regarding the Kansas-Nebraska Act was one of the most appealing which states “arguably
the most consequential piece of legislation ever passed by the U.S. Congres. One of the
compelling parts of the book was this specific portion of the book. The book is the entire
territorial debate in Congress that holds the inception of the Missouri compromise and the
movement through the compromise of the year 1850. It ends with the Kansas-Nebraska
Act of the year 1854 which is an interesting and knowledge worthy piece.
Critique:
According to Memmi, 2013), although the events mentioned by the authors are
competent, there was a need for more explanation. They did not explain nor highlight the
aspects in great depth. Therefore, it ignored many of the events as in the Nullification
Crises, the publication of Uncle Tom’s Cabin. The audience of the book was expected to
be younger who would reject voluminous tones of academic discourse. It could also be

3U.S. HISTORY: BOOK REVIEW WORKSHEET
the adults who would possess a fringe understanding of the problems and therefore will
be uninterested in the details. The book certainly leads to provoking thoughts and may
lead to further studies. Also, the book can be considered misleading. In order to
understand the ways politics contributed to the civil war, there is a need to understand the
major events of the period from various aspects. According to De Waal (2014), it took
several years of personal abuse and miscommunication that to make that forced an entire
country to divide. Only four events irreversibly cannot be the reason for the nation to take
the path of civil war. Although Holt’s statement is good, it lacks substances.
The four events selected by Holt are critical to understanding the sectional crises.
The two-party system created firstly to highlight the differences between the southern and
northern mindset. On the basis of beliefs the size and role of government and later
The value of the book is mostly in the appendix section that contains significant primary
documents, letters, laws and speeches. Anybody interested in American history can read
this book.

4U.S. HISTORY: BOOK REVIEW WORKSHEET
References:
Ahmed, S. (2013). The cultural politics of emotion. Routledge.
De Waal, A. (2014). When kleptocracy becomes insolvent: Brute causes of the civil war
in South Sudan. African Affairs, 113(452), 347-369.
Holt, M. F. (2004). The fate of their country: Politicians, slavery extension, and the
coming of the Civil War. Macmillan.
Memmi, A. (2013). The colonizer and the colonized. Routledge.