Literature Review Of The "Armies Of Manifest Destiny"

The Mexican American War was a two-year-long war between the United States and Mexico over the land of Texas, New Mexico, and California. This battle took place in Mexico and ended with the United States being victorious. The U.S gained the land as a reward for the win. This was a significant war because it caused the United States to finally accomplish its long-desired dream of manifest destiny. This underrated war was the foundation for the creation of James M. McCaffrey’s historical novel “Armies of Manifest Destiny: The American Soldier in the Mexican War 1846-1848.” This book talks about the hardships the American soldiers had to endure during the war, the interactions with different people, and their thoughts, actions, and emotions when entering unfamiliar land. McCaffrey first hints at the basis for writing the book as he says “But I wanted more. I wanted to find out about the soldiers who fought in this war. I wanted to understand their social history.” (McCaffrey, xi). This indicates that we have been taught the causes and the effects, the generals and presidents, even the opposing side of battles. However, we forget to mention the soldiers, for nobody experiences war more than the people who are fighting it. The experiences they have to go through are overlooked and not studied enough. McCaffrey explains further in detail for his inspirations to writing the publication as he later states in his thesis, “The purpose of the present work, then, is to look at the war from the viewpoint of the common soldiers’ experiences. What prompted them to enlist in the first place? What did they think of the Mexican people with whom they came in contact? How did they feel toward their officers? Were they adequately supported with food, clothing, shelter, and medical care by their government? How did they spend their spare time? If they broke any rules, how were they punished? What did the regular soldiers think of these temporary volunteers, and vice versa? And finally, having answered these questions, how did the American Soldiers in the Mexican War measure up to their counterparts of earlier and later conflicts?” (McCaffrey, xii). The point the author is trying to get through is that we might know about how, where, what, and why the war happened, but we forget that there is more than that. He is attempting to emphasize the lack of knowledge on the social history of the battle, and that is what he established in researching, writing, and publishing this book. He wrote about the Mexican American War through the eyes of American soldiers in an attempt to teach the readers and make them understand what they had to live through those two years.

McCaffrey builds up his argument of wanting to know more about the soldiers in the Mexican American War by successfully detailing the responses to the questions in his thesis and supporting them with reliable resources from his research. In his thesis, he brings up the question of why the soldiers joined the army. He answers this by listing out the various reasons the soldiers enlisted in the war. He declares that “some [soldiers] went into the army to get away from the problems they were having in civilian life” (McCaffrey, 30) or to escape domestic problems. They thought of the army as a safe zone from the problems at home, a means to try to get away from all the disputes, and a much-needed moment of peace away from all that toxicity. Other soldiers joined the infantry for the money, as they needed a sort of income until the economy improved. Most soldiers had a family to support and feed, as back then there were not many job opportunities with decent pay. In addition, non-English speaking immigrants used the opportunity to join the army for a chance to get used to the American culture. They thought this would later benefit them in getting a job or settling in. However, the two major reasons for enlistment were the “desire for personal glory and adventure in a foreign land… second, there was a perceived need to avenge the deaths of the men killed during the Texas Revolution” (McCaffrey, 31). Many of these soldiers would take these opportunities for praise and adventure. This patriotism would make them forget the true dangers of war, which they don’t realize until much later in the book. Others wanted to avenge and honor the men that passed during the previous wars as a means of achieving a satisfying sense of revenge in their honor. It could also mean that these servicemen joined the infantry as a continuation of serving their country due to their family generations. This would keep the family’s honor, as well as continuing to represent your family name for another generation. McCaffrey continues to support his argument of wanting to know more about the social history of the Mexican War by explaining the relationship between soldiers and officers. He writes that some soldier units were “fortunate enough to have members with West Point training, and these men, usually elected officers because of military background, were able to lend some experience when the troops began learning the drill” (McCaffrey, 42). Some units had experienced officers that knew what they were doing and made the soldiers feel as if they were in good and respectable hangs. Other battalions had officers that were dedicated to the job. They would study and work hard to improve as well as help out their comrades. However, the author does state occasions that support the not-so-fortunate side of inexperienced officers, “For example, the top two officers in the regiment of Alabama volunteers did not have prior military training, but some of the officers beneath them did” (McCaffrey, 43). This caused the soldiers to become frustrated when trying to accomplish a simple drill, and it made them feel like the simplest task such as teaching men to march was difficult. Unfortunately, some battalions were ruined by egotistical officers who knew nothing about military subjects and only cared about the power and luxury that came with the position. Furthermore, in the book, McCaffrey aids his argument of wanting to know more about the volunteer's experiences by answering the question of how the soldiers were punished if they misbehaved. Punishments varied from minor warnings to death sentences. On one occasion, McCaffrey writes about how the soldiers were forced to “march for several hours at a time while carrying a heavyweight.” (McCaffrey, 106). Upon doing this, it would make them sore and uncomfortable for the following day. The weather wouldn’t have help, for it would have made matters worse and difficult. If it was a scorching hot day, they could experience sunstroke or get sunburned. In freezing temperatures, however, they could suffer from hypothermia or frostbite so severe it ends in amputation. Regardless of the weather, this punishment was a physically exhausting situation that any person would dread doing. In another unit, they would refer to putting prisoners in “dark holes for several days at a time with a minimum of nourishment” (McCaffrey, 106). This was not a comfortable punishment due to it causing major health problems and becoming mentally exhausting in the empty darkness. Not all punishments resided on being physically painful, it was also based on trying to make you mentally weak. Other forms of punishment were bucking, in which a soldier would sit on the ground with his knees drawn up close to his chest, his hands would be tied in front of him, then a pole was passed under his knees but above his elbows to restrict movement. After a while, this becomes extremely painful. This causes intense physical pain. Upon listing these punishments, McCaffrey makes it seem like these punishments are all based on making the soldiers so mentally and physically unstable, that they will think twice before defying the rules. Lastly, McCaffrey takes a note on the topic of the relationship between regulars and volunteers as a means to further his support of his thesis. The author writes that “The volunteers, on the other hand, tended to come from the middle classes or higher and looked down upon the regulars” (McCaffrey, 119). This originally started their feud. The regular officers hated the lack of discipline among the volunteers and believed that since they came from a place where they got served, they expected the regulars to do the same. This made the regulars feel as if they were getting belittled and disrespected by being treated less than soldiers. The regulars were not the only ones that disliked the volunteers, for “one lieutenant complained that the volunteers had no sense of the proper duty, that they did not realize that there was more to a soldier’s life than battles and glory.” (McCaffrey, 120). Many of these volunteers entered the war for the wrong reasons, and that was something that was agreed upon within the section. In addition, officers recognized how difficult it was to keep their men in line. Another thing that made them feud was the jealousy the regulars felt towards the volunteers in which they couldn’t conceal. Overall, the regulars didn’t enjoy the constant disrespect, laziness, and arrogance of the volunteers. They didn’t like the fact that since they come from a higher class, that makes them immediately better. All the soldiers would agree that their social status outside of the military shouldn’t affect the war they are treated or viewed. Overall, McCaffrey makes a great attempt at answering, explaining, and backing up his responses to his thesis, while also making the readers understand the experiences the American soldier had to endure during the Mexican American War.

This novel written by James M. McCaffrey gives the readers a closer look inside the lives of an American soldier. The research that McCaffrey gathered is portrayed smoothly and understandable throughout the book. He achieved his goal of researching the answers to his questions and thoroughly explaining what the soldiers had to endure during this war in a foreign land. The novel gave great insight and knowledge on all of their thoughts, emotions, and reactions through certain events and their reasonings behind their actions. All this is backed up with reliable proof such as quotes of diaries from credited veterans and detailed events with specific dates and locations, an example being “‘why have you volunteered’ said rather a careworn-looking, newly enrolled volunteers to a fine-looking young country soldier. ‘why I volunteered because I have no wife and go in for war,’ was the unequivocal reply; and now why have you volunteered? he added. ‘oh!’ said the careworn-countenanced little man… ‘I have volunteered because I have a wife and go in for peace.’” (McCaffrey, 31). This is a Texas newspaper report of a conversation between two soldiers stating their reasons for enlistment. This comes to shows how there is a lot of diversity when it comes to the soldiers' morals, reasons and beliefs. I believe that McCaffrey successfully answered and supported his argument of understanding the social history side of the Mexican war. He strategically uses his research as a way to emotionally compel the readers into having a deep understanding of the way the servicemen felt, or at least understand where they are coming from. For example “For some soldiers, their trip on the open seas was not only the worst event of their lives but the final event as well. The bodies of those who died at sea were disposed of in time-honored naval fashion” (McCaffrey, 49). The sorrowful vocabulary, alongside the details of honoring someone's death tugs at the heartstrings of readers. McCaffrey perfectly captures the scene of a navy funeral and allows the readers to be able to envision it. The emotional aspect and informative facts make us understand this situation better. Although the tone changes throughout the book, it still makes the readers feel a certain emotion intended by the author. In conclusion, his argument and supporting evidence were compelling and informed the readers of more than just the events that make up the war, but the thoughts and emotions behind it.

In addition, the slightly disappointing thing was the lack of detail on the opposing side. Although this book is based on the eyes of the American soldier, McCaffrey was looking at the social aspect of the Mexican-American war. There are two sides to this story, and although the American side was beautifully portrayed, the Mexican side was blunt. I think that it would have had a deeper impact and be more informative if both sides were equally talked about. For example “They [American soldiers] made note of everything from agriculture, people, and food to laziness and religion…sometimes these initial views were positive, sometimes negative, but many times they were neutral.” (McCaffrey, 69-70). After this paragraph, McCaffrey could have added a paragraph explaining what the Mexican soldiers thought of the Americans upon encountering them. Were they scared? Did they judge them for the color of their skin and made assumptions? Did they mock them? Or did they simply not care about them? I also think emphasizing the reactions of the Mexicans toward the childish acts of the Americans would have made the readers visualize and understand the whole situation better. It could have also helped us have a better insight into the type of people the Americans were. For example, “The soldiers often mocked, and sometimes mimicked, catholic church services.” (McCaffrey, 72), it would have been better portrayed in the author added a small portion of the reactions of the Mexicans toward this action. Were they angry? Did they do something about this? The lack of knowledge on the Mexican people’s point of view leaves readers with a sense that something is missing, and dissatisfaction with unanswered questions. Overall, I believe that the book would have been better if the Mexican aspect of this war was better emphasized and talked about more.

The Mexican American War was a war waged between the U.S and Mexico over the land in the North American continent. The war ended in the United States acquiring victory and achieved their god-given destiny of conquering the land between the great seas. However, we forget that this war is more than that, and we overlook the experiences these soldiers went through during the war, for they witness this war personally. This very reason is why James M. McCaffrey published the “Army of Manifest Destiny: The American Soldier in the Mexican War 1846-1848.” This historical novel talks about the Mexican War through the eyes of the American soldier. He portrays the hardships these servicemen had to tolerate to inform and makes readers aware of the inadequacy of knowledge we have on the social history of wars. McCaffrey builds up his argument by answering the questions residing in his proposition and supports it with research he gathered from reliable resources. In his thesis, he expresses questions such as reasons why the soldiers enlisted and the punishments that were inflicted on them if they are misbehaving. He also listed the relationships between soldiers and officers, and between regulars and volunteers. McCaffrey’s well-structured answers give the readers a clear understanding of what the infantry had to deal with during these two years. His emotionally compelling and fact-based statements are what I believe tied the book together and allowed us to have a deeper insight into the experiences of the army men. I do believe that this book could have been improved if McCaffrey emphasized the Mexican soldier’s point of view on this war. To have a complete perspective on what happened in the Mexican War on a social standard would have made a much deeper impact and have been a lot more informative. Although this book is based on the American soldiers' experiences, the addition of the thoughts and reactions of the opposing side would have supported the basis of this novel, which was to know more about the social history of the Mexican-American War. Overall, James M. McCaffrey’s historical book was a very informative piece that allowed for people to get a profound comprehension of the undervalued war between the United States and Mexico, and a deeper appreciation towards the servicemen that fought during the Mexican American War.