Essay --

Introduction Gone with the Wind is a classic fictional love story that depicts life in the old south before, during and after the Civil war. The book was originally written in 1936 by Margret Mitchell, the movie adaptation was released in 1939, directed by Victor Fleming, and staring Clark Gable and Vivian Leigh. Ms. Mitchell grew up listening to Civil war stories from confederate veterans. It was reported that they told her everything; everything that is, except that they had lost the war, she found that out when she was 10 years old. Though the book was written 71 years after the Civil War ended, Ms. Mitchell did her research and appears to have drawn inspiration from those childhood stories that she was told. This is apparent in the detailed description of the clothing, houses, and everyday discussions and interactions of the characters throughout the book. Though not all historically correct most of what is in the book is accurate. During the time the movie was released, â€Å"damn† was considered to be vulgar and controversial and they used the term â€Å"darkies† to describe the slaves. Summary of the movie The movie revolves around the sometimes love hate relationship between Rhett Butler and Scarlett O’Hara and how she will do whatever it takes to survive. It over romanticizes the old south and how the plantations were run and deals with topics such as slavery, reconstruction of the south and has a strong feminist survival theme to it. Scarlett â€Å"makes her uncontrollable self-centeredness seem like the most charming thing in the world.† She is a young southern belle and every man in the county is smitten with her. Though she could have any man she wanted, her eyes are set on the Mr. Ashley Wilkes who is engaged to marry his c... ...e (Ashley’s wife) dying and a promise to take care of their son, Scarlett realizes her true love to Rhett though it is to late as Rhett walks away from the marriage. She will return back to Tara plantation to find a way to win him back. Mitchell, Margaret, Margaret Mitchell's Gone with the Wind Letters, 1936-1949, Edited by Richard Harwell, New York: Macmillan, 1976. â€Å"Gone with the Wind Letters† is essentially a collection of letters written by Ms. Mitchell to those that wrote to her about Gone with the wind. One letter in particular is to Vivian Leigh who plays Scarlett in the movie. Thompson, C. Mildred. Reconstruction in Georgia: Economic, Social, Political, 1865-1872, Gloucester, Mass.: P. Smith, 19641915. This book contains the history of the Reconstruction of Georgia. It gives you an insight to the economic, social, and political aspects of Reconstruction