“Letter to his Family”

Robert E. Lee was the leader of the Confederate Army during the Civil War after serving in the United States Army for thirty-six years (Lee 382). He only served as general for the Confederate States of America because his home state of Virginia decided to succeed from the Union and General Lee had very strong loyalty for his state (Lee 382). That loyalty characteristic is a great thing to have, and General Lee instilled that in his Confederate troops (Divine). The possible division of the Union greatly upset General Lee and he was "willing to sacrifice everything but honor for its preservation" (Lee 385). Before any of the states succeeded, Robert E. Lee made clear that he would stay true with Virginia and "return to my native state and share the miseries of my people" (Lee 385). Even though General Robert E. Lee served with the Confederates, and not the Union, he did so for a good reason. He was not a supporter of slavery, but had an ambivalent view about slavery (Divine).

Henry David Thoreau was a firm believer in antislavery and that was the one political issue that he was vocal about (Harding). He would have disliked General Robert E. Lee as he was fighting for the "wrong side" and not for the freedom of the slaves (Harding). Ralph Waldo Emerson would have appreciated General Lee for sticking to his views and staying with Virginia throughout the war until the surrender at Appomattox which ended the Civil War (Divine). Throughout Abraham Lincoln's election and the succession threats, and the entire Civil War, General Robert E. Lee stuck with his guns and supported his home state of Virginia and defended it and the Confederacy to make sure his home state was preserved (Lee 385). General Lee had great characteristics and honor as he battled his fellow countrymen during the Civil War. Emerson and Thoreau would have both respected that loyalty aspect of General Robert E. Lee.


Divine, Robert A., T. H. Breen, George M. Fredrickson, R. Hal Williams, H. W. Brands, and Ariela J. Gross. America Past and Present AP Edition. Boston: Longman, 2011. Print.

Harding, Walter. A Thoreau Handbook by Walter Harding: pp. 131-173 (New York University Press, 1959). © 1959 by New York University Press. Quoted as "Thoreau's Ideas" in Harold Bloom, ed. Henry David Thoreau, Bloom's BioCritiques. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishing, 2003. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. 13 Feb. 2012.

Hawthorne, Julian. "Emerson as an American." In The Genius and Character of Emerson. Boston: James R. Osgood, 1885. Quoted as "Emerson as an American." in Bloom, Harold, ed. The American Dream, Bloom's Literary Themes. New York: Chelsea Publishing House, 2009. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. 13 Feb. 2012.

Lee, Robert E. "Letter to his Family". Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 382-385. Print.