Date of Graduation

5-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

History

Advisor/Mentor

Stanley, Matthew

Committee Member/Reader

Starks, Trish

Committee Member/Second Reader

Zamboanga, Byron L.

Committee Member/Third Reader

D'Eugenio, Daniela

Abstract

This paper provides a cursory examination of the history and truth of the modern “butcher” stereotype associated with Civil War surgeons. Beginning with a review of modern examples of the stereotype in cinema, educational materials, children’s literature, and academic literature, this thesis further provides a detailed historical analysis of the source of this stereotype in the nineteenth century. This analysis completes the cultural analysis present within the paper by demonstrating the presence of the “butcher” stereotype in Civil War era newspapers and literature.

Finally, after the cultural analysis of the modern stereotype and its historical roots in the nineteenth century, the paper culminates in an analysis of evidence regarding the surgeons’ abilities. Using a combined statistical and expository approach the thesis demonstrates the Civil War surgeons’ effectiveness through field hospital statistics, mortality rates, and an analysis of medical school curriculums during the nineteenth century.

Keywords

Civil War, Medicine, Surgery, Historical Stereotypes, Presentism

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