Postbellum American literature, by its very nature, was written under the influence of the preceding catastrophic events of the American Civil War. The Civil War’s impact on society was immense, and the brutal reality of war permeated all aspects of American life - especially literature. The immeasurable magnitude of war inspired literature of all forms, such as press releases, memoirs, fiction and poetry. Press releases and memoirs are expected and their relevance is obvious, but fiction influenced by war is not as easily deciphered. The dissection of war’s literary impact on society is arguably the most intricate and profound, yet it is often overlooked.

Today’s critics of postbellum American literature often focus on influential current events of the time, and little on prior events. Common events of the postbellum era include mass immigration from Europe, labor strikes, women’s independence, and African American rights. These are indeed monumental themes of the time and undeniably deserve allusion in literature, but is it possible the issues have been over-scrutinized? Has anyone revealed how the lingering effects of the War transformed into pages of postbellum literature?

The purpose of this website is to identify and evaluate how the Civil War affected authors of postbellum literature. Some authors, like Stephen Crane, were deeply impacted by the War and wrote whole novels dedicated to the topic. Other authors, like William Dean Howells, were less impressed and their mention of the War was less focused on battlefield hardships than it was on cultural influence.