1. Colonial Period of American Literature
Time Period: Beginnings – 1750
Basics of Literary Time Period
Native Americans were the first settlers in North America
Colonists from Europe did not begin arriving until the late 1500s
Religious reformers called Puritans sailed from England on the Mayflower in 1620

2. Introduction to the Colonial Period
American Literature
Introduction to the Colonial Period

3. Background on Native Americans
They were here first technically
Native American Myths
Explain customs, institutions, or religious rites
Natural landmarks
Events beyond
people’s control

4. Background on Puritans
Puritans/Pilgrims/Separatists
Pilgrims, or Separatists, wanted to withdraw from the Church of England
Puritans wanted to reform or “purify” the church from within; they wanted to create a theocracy (government through God)
Puritans’ Central Beliefs—Human beings exist for the glory of God and Bible is sole expression of faith
“Puritan Ethic”—thought they could accomplish good only through continual hard work and self-discipline
Theocracy—state under the immediate guidance of God

5. Puritan Plain Style
Literature produced by Puritans as an extension of their religion
Few literary devices
Simple, straightforward style
Not intended to entertain
Prayers, Psalms, Songs, Diaries, Journals

6. Great Awakening Early 1700s, Puritanism was in a decline
In 1720, religious revivals, known as The Great Awakening, were led by ministers, such as Jonathan Edwards
This was done in hopes of reviving the puritan ways and beliefs
It did little to revive old-fashioned Puritanism

7. Southern Planters Settled Jamestown and South
Came to grow crops and make money
Lived on plantations (large farms)
Literature was very different from that produced by New England Puritans

8. Ornate Style Literature of Southern Planters
Complex pieces using literary devices
Intended to entertain
Some of the first plays were performed in the homes of the wealthiest southerners
Stories, Poems, Plays

9. Writers and Works of the Period
Native Americans
“The Earth on Turtle’s Back
“When Grizzlies Walked Upright”
Explorers/Narrative Accounts
Christopher Columbus – “Journal of the First Voyage to America”
William Bradford – “Of Plymouth Plantation”
Puritans
Edward Taylor – “Huswifery”
Anne Bradstreet – “To My Dear and Loving Husband”
Jonathan Edwards – “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”
The Crucible (written in the 1950s, but about Puritans)