Historical Background Literary Periods in American Literature Historical Background

Introduction The following is an overview of the major periods in American literature we will be studying. Please take notes on the timeline provided to you and in your notes section/notebook. Your timeline will serve as a frame of reference as we move forward in the course.

“The earth is a great island floating in a sea of water, and ….”

Pre-1600: Native American Period Original native people belonged to more than 200 distinct groups, speaking over 500 different languages. Native American literature was primarily oral, passed down from generation to generation by storytelling and performance. Types: -creation myths (beginning of the world) -trickster and hero tales (common beliefs and values) -ritual songs and chants (religious ceremonies) Subject matter – emphasizing importance of living in harmony with natural world. Oral tradition – repetition and rhythm

“In the name of God, Amen.”

1600-1750: The Colonial Period The Colonial Period of American Literature spans the time between the founding of the first settlement at Jamestown to the outbreak of the Revolution. Influence of the Puritans - The writings of this time centered on religious, practical, or historical themes. Records of descriptions and daily life as well as exploration (John Smith and Pocahontas).

The Colonial Period Continued Writers not born in U.S., but writing on American topics Literature: Survival, religion and written communication. Genres (nonfiction): Poetry (devoted to God), diaries, journals, letters, sermons, etc. The most influential writers of the Colonial Period include William Bradford, Jonathan Edwards and Anne Bradstreet (1st American poet).

“Give me liberty, or give me death!”

1750-1800: Revolutionary Period Led by the Age of Reason – did not depend on past traditions. Revolutionary War – fight for independence resulted in need to express. During the Revolutionary Age, some of the greatest documents of American history were authored. Genres (nonfiction): essays, speeches, letters, diaries and documents.

Revolutionary Period (Continued) Writers were also political figures. Literature reflected turbulent times. In 1776, Thomas Paine authored “Common Sense” and Thomas Jefferson wrote “The Declaration of Independence.” In 1787, “The Constitution of the United States” was drafted. Slave voice emerges – Phyllis Wheatley (1st book of poetry by African American)

“Good men must not obey the laws too well.”

Romantic Period Artwork

1800-1850: Romantic Period The early Romantic Period of American Literature saw the beginnings of literature that could be truly identified as "American". The writers of this new American literature wrote in the English style, but the settings, themes, and characters were authentically American. Rise of the short story (first time writing for fun). Emphasis on emotions and individual, not just reason (intuition & imagination valued).

1800-1850: Romantic Period cont. Subjects – nature, past, inner world, death Four of the most recognized writers of this time are: Washington Irving (“Rip Van Winkle”), William Cullen Bryant (“Thanatopsis”), Nathaniel Hawthorne (The Scarlet Letter) and Edgar Allan Poe (wrote short stories and poetry; generally one mood).

1840-1850: Transcendentalism Based on philosophy, literary theory and religion. View that all basic truths of the universe lie beyond the knowledge we obtain from our senses. Issues: poverty, industrialization, educational reform, women’s rights, slavery – a new way of seeing life. Characteristics: Intuition, not logic; nature is source of goodness and inspiration; individualism; democracy; desire to reform society; and optimistic view. Genres: nonfiction essays, poetry. Writers include Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau and Louisa May Alcott. 

"The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them.” ~Mark Twain

Realism Period Artwork

1865-1930: Age of Realism Following the Civil War, American Literature entered into the Realistic Period. The major form of literature produced in this era was realistic fiction. Unlike romantic fiction, realistic fiction aims to represent life as it really is, and make the reader believe that the characters actually might exist and the situations might actually happen. “Slice of life”

1865-1930: Age of Realism cont. Historical influences: Rise in materialism, gap between rich and poor, farmers having trouble surviving, science (Darwin’s survival of the fittest) and Civil War. Other techniques: Dialect and the female voice. In order to have this effect on the reader, realistic fiction focuses on the ordinary and commonplace. The major writers of the Realistic Period include Mark Twain, Henry James and Kate Chopin.

1920s: Harlem Renaissance Period Historical Influences: Jim Crow laws, Klan violence and jazz music (Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong) Writers include Zora Neale Hurston, who wrote about blacks as complete, complex, multifaceted human beings; and Langston Hughes.

“The power of a woman is her refinement, gentleness and elegance; it is she who makes etiquette, and it is she who preserves the order and decency of society.”

1920-1940s: Age of Modernism Between 1914 and 1939, American Literature entered into a phase which is still referred to as "The Beginnings of Modern Literature". Events: World War I: 1914-1919; Women’s Suffrage; Prohibition; Great Depression; World War II 1939-1945. Some characteristics: Images and symbolism; language that creates feeling of “real” conversation; purpose to change way people see world; form and style most important; experimentation in forms; and characters trapped by own flaws and destroyed by society.

1920-1940s: Modernism cont. 1920s: Harlem Renaissance, Jazz Age The American Modernist Period also produced many other writers that are considered to be writers of Modernist Period Subclasses. For example, F. Scott Fitzgerald is considered a writer of The Jazz Age, and Langston Hughes and W.E.B. DuBois writers of The Harlem Renaissance.

1920-1940s: Modernism cont. Gertrude Stein, T.S. Eliot, Ezra Pound, and Ernest Hemingway are famous writers of The Lost Generation (1920s & 30s).   Some well-known American Modernist Poets include Robert Frost, Edna St. Vincent Millay and E.E. Cummings. Prose writers include Edith Wharton, Sinclair Lewis, and Willa Cather.  The Great Depression marked the end of the American Modernist Period, and writers such as William Faulkner, John Steinbeck, and Eugene O'Neill dealt with the social and political issues of the time in their literary works.

New Voices in America

1940-Present: Postmodernism Postmodernism, or The Contemporary Period includes an abundance of important American literary figures spanning from World War II into the New Millennium. These writers include, Eudora Welty, John Updike, Kurt Vonnegut, Sylvia Plath, Arthur Miller, Tennessee Williams, Ralph Ellison, Gwendolyn Brooks, Zora Neal Hurston, Alice Walker, Toni Morrison, and Maya Angelou. 

1940-Present: Postmodernism cont. 1950s : Beat Writers During the 1950s, a vigorous anti-establishment, and anti-traditional literary movement emerged. The main writers of this movement, Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac, are called Beat Writers. 1960s, 1970s : Counterculture Much writing of the 1960s and 1970s, referred to as Counterculture Writing, continued the literary ideals of the Beat Movement, but in a more extreme and fevered manner.

1940-Present: Postmodernism cont. Characteristics: -No heroes -Individual isolation -Social issues – align feminist and ethnic groups -Humorless (usually) -Present tense -Narratives -Irony -Writing style and content must agree -Challenges limits of decency

What will be the next literary period? Since major events usually change the way we think and write, is there one event that may have already changed the literary period in American Literature in the 21st Century?

The New Millennium in America: How will it affect our literature? 9-11? The New Millennium in America: How will it affect our literature?