This article, written by Elissa R. Henken discusses the Civil War and is history. The war was fought between the North and the South over states' rights and the abolition of slavery. However, the Civil War also had a significant impact on shaping Southern identity. Although the war is long over, it continues to be an issue of debate amongst the descendants of the original Confederates. It is a part of their history which they will neither relinquish nor put aside.

In this article, Henken details information regarding the Civil War legends and family narratives from people around Georgia. Henken sheds light on the psyche of the Southern mentality of contemporary Georgia. It is interesting to consider that the participants in the article's fieldwork are probably descendants of some of the people who Mitchell used as models for her Gone with the Wind characters. In Henken's article, those descendants of Civil War Southerners provide very strong views of their ancestors. Through the article we are able to see firsthand how Southerners think today and how they view their past. In Gone with the Wind, we see the past of the South recreated in all its glory. The film is a visual embodiment of Henken's study.

Henken's article is particularly interesting to me because it is a primary source and firsthand account of true Southerners, specifically residents of Georgia. The article illustrates real life versions of the fictional characters portrayed in Gone with the Wind. Scarlett O'Hara's and Rhett Butlers truly exist today. In learning about a culture or society, it is fascinating to have firsthand accounts of real people in addition to the fictional versions portrayed in film or literature. Henken's article provides a window into a unique society at a specific time in history. Now, in addition to learning about the Civil War era through a Hollywood studio's view in a great film, I have also attained an understanding of the underlying reality that contributed to the psyche, social mores and political situation of the time.