RECONSTRUCTING CHILDHOOD: YOUTH, CITIZENSHIP, AND THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR

This paper argues that the unprecedented propaganda effort directed at children during the Civil War marked the first instance where children were transformed from passive citizens to active military participants, structurally embedding childhood as a political institution required for wartime success. Through an exploration of different mechanisms to garner war support,including interviews, pictures, songs, and textbooks, the paper situates a comparative analysis between the Unions and Confederacys modes of education and propaganda. It then investigates some of the roles children played during the War,once again comparing the North and South. The paper then transitions to arguing that the Civil Wars devastating effects planted the seeds for the later Progressive Era child reform movement, exploring connections between the two through reactionary literature and legislation. It ends with a critical examination of how the competing conceptions of childhood formed within the Civil War persist today, articulated through debates between Republicans and Democrats on child safety, education, and civic engagement.