To light us to freedom and glory again! The Role of Civil War Poetry

"To light us to freedom, and glory again!" The Role of Civil War Poetry

Poetry written during the Civil War era was used as a means of political and social mobilization. Using the Library of Congress's online collections, we will explore how Northern and Southern war poetry helped unify citizens, inspire troops, memorialize the dead, and overcome the anger and resentment of both sides in the aftermath of the war.

Join Library of Congress specialist Peter Armenti, Wednesday, April 27, 2:00 p.m. (E.D.T.) for an exploration of poetry written by Civil War soldiers, abolitionists, and citizenry both North and South. Many of the poems are presented as digital images scanned from nineteenth century books, periodicals, song sheets, and broadsides. Transcripts appear with some poems.

To attend, go to http://www.tcconference.com/lib/?auditorium&nopass_field=1

Type your name and click Enter to go into the online room.

Note: Internet Explorer is recommended. Log on 5 minutes early to allow for the the web conference software to be downloaded automatically to your computer.

This web conference offers an opportunity for participants to share ideas, ask questions, and make comments both via text chat and microphone. To make full use of this capability, a headset with microphone attached is suggested.

For more information about upcoming programs, see Online Programming for All Libraries (OPAL) at http://www.opal-online.org/.

To learn more about poetry programs and resources at the Library of Congress, see http://www.loc.gov/poetry/.