Literary History of America 1588-present

Overview Puritan/Colonial (1588-1750) Revolutionary/Age of Reason (1750-1800) Romanticism (1800-1860) American Renaissance/ Transcendentalism/Anti- Transcendentalism (1840-1860) Realism/Naturalism (1855-1900) Modernism (1900-1946) Post-Modernism (1946-Present) Contemporary (1970s-Present)

Puritan/Colonial Period (1588-1750) Puritan settlers fled England, seeking religious freedom Plain, spare, harsh life Literature for fun highly discouraged Most writing instructional in nature; reinforce authority of Bible and Church Sermons Tracts Hymnals Religious poetry

Puritan/Colonial Period (1588-1750) Thomas Hariot wrote A Brief and True Report of the New-Found Land of Virginia in 1588 quickly translated into Latin, French, and German; it was a window for the Old World to see an embellished version of the New World Anne Bradstreet born & educated in England considered a spinster at 25 first book of American poetry first published American woman

Puritan/Colonial Period (1588-1750) William Bradford governor of Plymouth essentially the first historian of the new colonies wrote Of Plymouth Plantation in 1651 Cotton Mather Comes from a long line of Puritan ministers Harvard educated (indirect) major participant in the Salem Witch Trials

Revolutionary Period/Age of Reason (1750-1800) Also known as “American Enlightenment” Born from European Age of Reason Applied scientific reasoning to politics, science, and religion Increased religious tolerance Restored literature, arts, and music as subjects worth studying in colleges and universities Identified American character Set stage for Revolutionary War

Revolutionary Period/Age of Reason (1750-1800) Benjamin Franklin scientist, writer, diplomat, Founding Father Explored all new avenues of thought Thomas Paine great American propagandist Common Sense; presented argument for American freedom The American Crisis; series of essays and articles that continued to argue for independence

Romanticism (1800-1860) Based on European Romanticism Direct response to rationalism of Enlightenment French Revolution also responsible Emphasized intense emotion like apprehension, horror and terror, and awe High value on heroic ideals, individuals, and artists Promoted individual ideas and imagination as ultimate authority

Romanticism (1800-1860) Washington Irving known as “Father of American Literature” first famous American author Advocated for stronger laws protecting authors’ works Edgar Allan Poe Bad childhood made him despise the world Darkly metaphysical vision Refined the short story Created detective fiction Challenged notion that poem had to be long & teach something

American Renaissance/ Transcendentalism/Anti-Transcendentalism (1830-1860) Transcendentalists: Devoted to the possibility of democracy Looking to establish a uniquely American art form Taught that the divine was to be found in all nature/people Urged people to find a “unique connection to the universe.” Anti-Transcendentalists: Believed men were nothing but sinful, evil creatures Created stories about limitations and destructiveness of human spirit

American Renaissance/ Transcendentalism/Anti-Transcendentalism (1840-1860) Ralph Waldo Emerson Leader of the Transcendentalist movement Emphasized individuality, freedom, and relationship of the soul to the world Henry David Thoreau contemporary of Emerson wrote Civil Disobedience, argument for individual resistance to civil government in moral opposition to an unjust state

American Renaissance/ Transcendentalism/Anti-Transcendentalism (1840-1860) Nathaniel Hawthorne writes in direct opposition to Transcendentalists most stories written about New England Focus on inherent evil and sin in man Usually have a deep moral message

Realism (1855-1900) Written in lead-up and response to Civil War Dark, brutal time in American history People were looking for “reality” of life Birth of objective narrator Authors don’t tell readers how to interpret the story

Realism (1855-1900) Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) writes in strong, realistic everyday speech first major author to come from center of the nation Emily Dickenson Writing has characteristics of both Romanticism and Realism Rebelled against strong Puritan upbringing Hardly anyone knew of her when alive

Naturalism (1865-1915) Heavily influenced by literary Realism Detachment Determinism Man is a victim of predestination At the whims of nature or fate Sense that the universe is indifferent to human life Heavily influenced by literary Realism

Naturalism (1865-1915) poor working class writer Jack London poor working class writer Gritty, vivid stories of life and death struggles died at age 40; alcoholism, kidney failure, dysentery, morphine overdose Stephen Crane many characters suffer from crisis of identity/faith, fear of the unknown, and social isolation died from tuberculosis at age 28

Modernism (1900-1946) Writers broke from traditions of the past Horrors of WWI caused society to re-evaluate priorities Heavily influenced by Freud and Marx Challenged the rationality of the human mind Focused on stories of individualism Creation of larger-than-life heroes Futility of life Birth of interior monologue Experiments in writing styles

Modernism (1900-1946) Ernest Hemingway used concise, spare, direct, objective writing to create bigger-than-life heroes won Pulitzer and Nobel Peace Prize for Literature John Steinbeck wrote about both pains and joys of life most writing took place during the Great Depression famous for The Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men

Post-Modernism (1946-present) Marked departure from modernist era Rejection of everything Modernist Skepticism Irony Rejection of: Objective reality Morality Truth Human nature Reason Language Social progress

Post-Modernism (1946-present) JD Salinger fought in WWII; D-Day, Battle of the Bulge Most famous novel – Catcher in the Rye became increasingly reclusive died Jan 27, 2010, at 91 Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. fought in WWII; captured by Germans during the Battle of the Bulge darkly humorous critiques of society most famous novel – Slaughterhouse Five died April 11th, 2007

Contemporary Celebrates diversity of humanity Real people Argument over dates – 1950 or 1970-present Celebrates diversity of humanity Real people Ethnically diverse Social issues/problems Realistic, thoughtful writing Not always a happy ending Birth of the anti-hero Highly symbolic Lots of figurative language

Contemporary (1950-present) Stephen King famous for books that scare people lives in Maine was rejected by publishers 30 times before 1st book published (Carrie, 1974)

Contemporary (1950-present) James Oliver Rigney (a.k.a. Robert Jordan) went to Citadel Military College in South Carolina wrote in fantasy genre died before finishing 15-book Wheel of Time series