1. Unit one: origins of the american tradition
Drawing connections between the history and literature of America
Mrs. Motta
English 10-H

2. The First Americans Before Europeans, actually came Asians
20-50 thousand years ago
Europeans arrive late 15th c.
24 Native American cultures by then, 1-2 million people
Cultures vary widely
But their commonality is appreciation and reverence for natural world
HOWEVER…

3. The Arrival of the Europeans…
They see world as something to be owned and turned to human ends
But then we withdraw for 500 years…
Until Columbus arrives at a Bahamian island
Thought he had reached India; hence, “Indians”

4. What this means for Native Americans
Devastation
Indians help Europeans to survive by teaching them to live off of the land, but….
Millions die from diseases
Europeans bring them over, Indians have no tolerance built
Millions are enslaved or driven away (Westward)
See “The Very Brief Relation of the Devastation of the Indies” by Bartolome de las Casas

5. New England Colonization
1587- English settlers founded colony on Roanoke Island
John White (founder) returns to England, then comes back to Roanoke… and finds no trace of the colony- it’s a mystery!
1607- Jamestown, Virginia is first colony to survive
But winter is harsh– only 38 or 104 colonists live through it

6. Pilgrims & Puritans Both are critical of Church of England
Pilgrims- separated completely from the church
Focus on individual righteousness before God
Puritans- try to reform the church
Beliefs:
Humans existed for the glory of God
Predestination (and not all will be chosen by God)
Original sin good came from hard work and self-discipline
Importance of community – functioned as Theocracies (societies guided by religious law)
High level of intolerance for anything else

7. Native American Literature
poetic and moving lyrics and songs
Oral Tradition – a work, idea, or custom that is passed by word of mouth from generation to generation
Myth - a story that explains objects or events in the natural world as resulting from the action of some supernatural force or entity.
Pictographs – a pictorial symbol for a word or phrase; earliest form of writing

8. Puritanical Literature
dominated by religion & individual spiritual development
hymns, histories, poetry, biographies, autobiographies
Give spiritual insight / instruction
For this reason, plain statement and clarity in content was highest goal
no fiction & no drama
Considered sinful!

9. Puritan Authors Anne Bradstreet Edward Taylor = religious
moving and personal voice
Massachusetts is progressive in supporting education for women; however, not interested in being educated by them
Edward Taylor = religious
These people are not the best ever… but they are the first names in American literature!

10. Unit Essential Questions
How does the earliest literature and an understanding of its chronology and themes contribute to how we as a people came to be who we are today?
How does the literature reveal the values of a given culture or time period?