Final answer:
The short-term impact of the Civil War was the economic devastation in the South and strengthening of the North's economy. The long-term impact was the political transformation, with increased federal dominance and postwar reconstruction efforts.
Step-by-step explanation:
The impact of the Civil War on American life was profound and its consequences were felt both in the short-term and long-term. For the short-term, the economic impact was substantial, especially in the South where the plantation economy was undermined, leading to a severe downturn and financial hardship. The Northern industrial economy, on the other hand, was strengthened, paving the way for the United States' future industrial expansion.
In the long-term, the political transformation that followed the Civil War was the most impacting. The federal government's dominance over the states was established and this centralization of power would influence American politics for generations to come. Moreover, the triumph of the Union set a precedent for the nation rebuilding and policy direction that would be followed post-war. Finally, the Reconstruction period attempted to address the inequalities and to integrate African Americans into society, though with various degrees of success over time.
These impacts were chosen based on the following considerations: the immediate devastation to the South's economy, the shift towards industrialization in the North that led America into the Gilded Age, the increase in federal power vis-a-vis the states, and Reconstruction's ambitious but only partially successful transformation of societal structures.