How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
He thought of Jackson hit in the arm at Chancellorsville: died a slow death. Let us cross over the river. (3.5.1)
Longstreet remembers the death of Stonewall Jackson, the famous Confederate General, who was accidentally shot by his own troops at the battle of Chancellorsville. His last words were, "Let us cross over the river, and rest under the shade of the trees." (Death is sometimes envisioned as crossing over a river.) What do you think of the tragic irony of being shot by your own troops?
Quote #5
He did not want to spoil their night. And yet suddenly, terribly, he wanted it again, the way it used to be, arms linked together, all drunk and singing beautifully into the night, with visions of death from the afternoon, and dreams of death in the coming dawn, the night filled with a monstrous and temporary glittering joy, fat moments, thick seconds dropping like warm rain, jewel after jewel. (3.5.241)
Longstreet sees the end approaching—he senses that the Cause may be doomed. So, out of character, he has a moment of nostalgia when he remembers how the army used to be, when victory still seemed like a very real possibility. He notes the temporary nature of those pleasant moments with the other soldiers, just before death swept in.
Quote #6
The men came here ready to die for what they believed in, for their homes and their honor, and although it was often a terrible death it was always an honorable death, and no matter how bad the pain it was only temporary, and after death there was the reward. (3.6.77)
These are Lee's thoughts. They contrast pretty strongly with Kilrain's opinions: whereas Kilrain believes that death is the end, Lee is a Christian, and he thinks that there's something better in the afterlife. Does belief in an afterlife make fighting in a war easier? If you think that death is the very end, and there's nothing after that, then does that make death more frightening?