How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
War meant loud brass music and shining horses ridden by men wearing uniforms finer than any suit in the stores at Newton; it meant men riding like kings, looking neither to the right nor the left, while lesser men in perfect lines strode along with guns across their shoulders, their heads held high like horses with short reins […] Jethro, forgetting the lecture to his mother on the inclination of people to select beliefs that bring them most satisfaction, never doubted that if Tom and Eb got their chance to go to war, they'd be back home when it was over, and that it would be shadowy men from distant parts who would die for the pages of future history books. (1.53)
Well aren't we romantic. These are the hopes and dreams of the idealist because um… real warfare tells quite the different tale, and one mostly filled with blood and guts and battlefields.
Quote #2
"Human nature ain't any better one side of a political line than on the other—we all know that—but human nature, the all-over picture of it, is better than it was a thousand—five hundred—even a hundred years ago. There is an awakenin' inside us of human decency and responsibility. If I didn't believe that, I wouldn't grieve fer the children I've buried; I wouldn't look for'ard to the manhood of this youngest one." (2.26)
Matt's saying that he believes humanity as a whole is becoming more humane, and he brings up an interesting concept while doing so: if humanity isn't improving, then the dead wouldn't be missing out on anything so there would be no need to grieve for them.
Quote #3
"God bless old U. S. Grant," they shrieked. "Bless old Unconditional Surrender Grant." They laughed and cried, and nearly everybody thought that the war would be over in a matter of week. (4.5)
This is overly optimistic. The Union wins one battle and all of a sudden people think that the North has got this war in the bag. We'll chalk this up to a rookie mistake.