Southern clerics and the passing of Lee: Mythic rhetoric and the construction of a sacred symbol

Abstract

Robert E. Lee, Confederate general, remains the quintessential heroic figure for the American South. The mythic image of Lee, and his role as a sacred symbol, were first developed by the southern clergy in their eulogies after his death in 1870. This essay examines the clerical discussion of Lee's immortality and the redemptive power of audience unity which were the foundation for later mythic discourse on the general's life.