Harold the Klansman

The novel follows the protagonist Harold a Southern gentleman and Confederate veteran who becomes involved with the Ku Klux Klan after the Civil War. The story is set in the post-Reconstruction South a period of social and political upheaval as the federal government sought to enforce civil rights and the integration of formerly enslaved people into American society. Harold and other characters in the novel are depicted as honorable men trying to protect their families and communities from what they see as the corruption and violence of the Reconstruction government and newly freed Black citizens. The novel portrays the Klan as a necessary force for restoring order and Harold’s involvement with the group is presented as an act of heroism.