Hijacking the term "Civil War"

[Mild53]

Those of us on the CWF automatically think of certain events when we hear the term "Civil War".

Not only is Civil War history and the lessons from it only important to a handful of folks ( us) , it may be lost entirely in a generation or two.

The latest threat is hijacking the term "Civil War" for a comic book series - a war between two superheroes.

http://io9.com/oh-no-civil-war-ii-really-is-happening-1746667993

So in 2016 a teacher will ask a class, "Who is familiar with the American Civil War?" Hands will shoot up in the affirmative, but all will be wrong...

 

[ForeverFree]

As a part time comic book fan, I don't have a problem with their use of the term. The phrase 'civil war' is not a US term, it's a worldwide term - just about every nation with any kind of long history has had some kind civil war. Superheroes might as well have their own war and use the terms as well.

Here's what I don't like: I don't like doing a Google search which includes the text string "civil war," and then, getting results that include references to the comic book war. That is so annoying.

- Alan

 

[civilken]

As long as the teachers in this country have to deal with outdated and old history textbooks they'll have a lot more problems than just the Civil War.

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

If you'd said "Civil War" to an educated person of the 1860s, my bet is that they would first think of the Roman Civil War first, and then possibly the English Civil War after that.

 

[Miles Krisman]

The term "Civil War" is of course a misnomer when used in reference to the conflict in the United States between 1861 and 1865. It was a rebellion.

 

[E_just_E]

Civil War without any qualifiers can mean a whole bunch of literal and metaphorical events and situations...

The American Civil War is what we are talking about, usually abbreviated as ACW...

 

[James B White]

If you'd said "Civil War" to an educated person of the 1860s, my bet is that they would first think of the Roman Civil War first, and then possibly the English Civil War after that.

I disagree. "Civil war" was a very common way to refer to that thing that was going to happen or was in progress. Lots of newspaper hits. http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/s...t=&proxdistance=5&rows=20&searchType=advanced

Things like: "Shall we have civil war? If it is important for Maryland to stay in the Union to prevent civil war, it follows, a fortiori, that Virginia should stay in, and President Buchanan sas that if Maryland secedes civil war will follow instantly. Let Virginia stay in, that civil war may be avoided." Staunton [Virginia] Spectator, Jan.29, 1861.

 

[E_just_E]

If you'd said "Civil War" to an educated person of the 1860s, my bet is that they would first think of the Roman Civil War first, and then possibly the English Civil War after that.

Which one? I can think of about 15 of those

+1 for the English Civil War, in the History context. In the daily news context there was one CW in the 1860s

 

[GELongstreet]

... In the daily news context there was one CW in the 1860s

Well, if we look for a civil war around that time and on such a large scale we will also find the Taiping Rebellion in China - ultimately one of the deadliest wars in history with estimates ranging from about 20 millions up to a hundred millions.

 

[E_just_E]

Well, if we look for a civil war around that time and on such a large scale we will also find the Taiping Rebellion in China - ultimately one of the deadliest wars in history with estimates ranging from about 20 millions up to a hundred millions.

I mean in the daily news for the folks who were living in the North America. Pretty sure that they did not have much info to that one, or the caring level on a daily basis would be a tad low.

 

[MaryDee]

Just before Thanksgiving the local newspaper's web page featured a "Pictorial History of the Civil War." I clicked on it , but discovered that it was actually about the University of Oregon/Oregon State University football game. Obviously my mind was not on football!

 

[GELongstreet]

I mean in the daily news for the folks who were living in the North America. Pretty sure that they did not have much info to that one, or the caring level on a daily basis would be a tad low.

No, for sure they didn´t. And even if - they´d have enough trouble on their own.

 

[rpkennedy]

The term "Civil War" is of course a misnomer when used in reference to the conflict in the United States between 1861 and 1865. It was a rebellion.

The American Civil War meets the definition of both terms.

R

 

[rpkennedy]

Those of us on the CWF automatically think of certain events when we hear the term "Civil War".

Not only is Civil War history and the lessons from it only important to a handful of folks ( us) , it may be lost entirely in a generation or two.

The latest threat is hijacking the term "Civil War" for a comic book series - a war between two superheroes.

http://io9.com/oh-no-civil-war-ii-really-is-happening-1746667993

So in 2016 a teacher will ask a class, "Who is familiar with the American Civil War?" Hands will shoot up in the affirmative, but all will be wrong...

As a big fan of the comic arc and the Marvel Universe in general, everyone should learn about the American Civil War and the Superhero Civil War.

R

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

I disagree. "Civil war" was a very common way to refer to that thing that was going to happen or was in progress. Lots of newspaper hits.

I'm referring to if someone said "The Civil War," as today we'd automatically think of the 1861-1865 conflict when those words were used.

 

[RebYell64]

If you wanted to get super technical you could classify the War Between the States as a War of Attrition.

But I have many names for the same thing. Depending on your definition (and sometimes your opinion) you could call it the Civil War, War of Rebellion, War of Northern Aggression, War of Southern Independence, War Between the States, War for the Union, etc.

I think Civil War has the fewest syllables, so perhaps that's why we refer to it simply as that. Often, when talking to my friends, I just have to refer to it as "The War."

 

[James B White]

I'm referring to if someone said "The Civil War," as today we'd automatically think of the 1861-1865 conflict when those words were used.

When they were living right in the middle of it, I'd think they'd tend to think of the war going on around them first. The Library of Congress newspaper site doesn't seem to allow adding "the" to a phrase, but at Genealogy Bank, there are a few newspaper references to the civil wars in Venezuela, Syria, etc. in 1860, but after that, it's pretty much all about the US war.

Headline from the Alexandria (Virginia) Gazette, April 23, 1861: "News from the North--From Baltimore--Progress of the Civil War."

From the May 1, 1861 Times Picayune, "Telegraphed to the New Orleans Picayune, The Civil War, Lincoln Calls for 83,000 Men, Latest from Washington, New York, Virginia and Maryland."

Out-of-state papers talk about "the civil war in Kentucky"or wherever, and London talks about "the civil war in America," but it seems to be such a common label that people would understand a person was referring to the current war. I'm curious to see your evidence that educated people would think first of the Roman Civil War or the English Civil War.

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

Those were the most noted of all the civil wars up until that point, and higher education was heavily tilted toward classical history.

 

[James B White]

Those were the most noted of all the civil wars up until that point, and higher education was heavily tilted toward classical history.

Up until that point, but then in the 1860s a new civil war started raging around them, and it was widely called by that name. I'm just not seeing how they'd think of another historic war first.

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

It's not an especially important point.