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American Literature

American literature refers to literature written in English in the United States. Some of the earliest American authors include John Smith who published accounts of Virginia in the early 1600s. During the Puritan and Colonial period from 1650-1750, genres included sermons, diaries and narratives that reinforced religious authority and described the colonization process. Key works included William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation and Mary Rowlandson's narrative of her captivity. The Revolutionary and Age of Reason period from 1750-1800 saw political pamphlets and travel writing that encouraged support for the Revolutionary War through persuasive and ornate styles like Thomas Paine's Common Sense. The Romantic period from 1800-1860 brought expansion of publishing and debates over slavery and industrial

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8 views

American Literature

American literature refers to literature written in English in the United States. Some of the earliest American authors include John Smith who published accounts of Virginia in the early 1600s. During the Puritan and Colonial period from 1650-1750, genres included sermons, diaries and narratives that reinforced religious authority and described the colonization process. Key works included William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation and Mary Rowlandson's narrative of her captivity. The Revolutionary and Age of Reason period from 1750-1800 saw political pamphlets and travel writing that encouraged support for the Revolutionary War through persuasive and ornate styles like Thomas Paine's Common Sense. The Romantic period from 1800-1860 brought expansion of publishing and debates over slavery and industrial

Uploaded by

kennydarle0811
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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What is American Literature?

American literature generally refers to literature from the United States that
is written in English.
 The purpose of these early texts was usually to explain the process of
colonization and describe the United States to future immigrants back
home in Europe.
 John Smith (1580-1631)- British explorer, is sometimes credited as
the first American author for his publications that include A True
Relation of Virginia (1608) and The Generall Historie of Virginia, New-
England, and the Summer Isles (1624).

History of American Literature


Puritan/Colonial Literature (1650-1750)
Historical context
 A person’s fate is determined by God (Predestination)
 All people are corrupt and must be saved by Christ (original sin)
 Covenant of grace and Covenant of works debate
Genre/Style
 Sermons, diaries, personal narratives
 Written in plain style
Effect/Aspects
 Instructive
 Reinforces authority of the bible and church
Literary works
 Of Plymouth Plantation, a journal by William Bradford
 A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson
by Mary Rowlandson
 Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" is a sermon written by the
American theologian Jonathan Edwards.
 Though not written during Puritan times, The Crucible and The
Scarlet Letter depict life during the time when puritan theocracy
prevailed.

Revolutionary/ Age of reason (1750-1800)


Historical Context
 Tells readers how to interpret what they are reading
 Meant to encourage Revolutionary War support
 Instructive in values
Genre/Style
 Political pamphlets
 Travel writing
 Highly ornate style
 Persuasive writing
Effect/Aspects
 Patriotism grows, instills pride
 Creates common agreement about issues
 National mission and the American character
Literary works
 Common Sense, a 47-page pamphlet written by Thomas Paine
 Benjamin Franklin’s Poor Richard’s Almanack and “The
Autobiography”
Romanticism (1800-1860)
Historical Context
 Expansion of magazines, newspapers, and book publishing
 Slavery debates
 Industrial revolution brings ideas that the ‘old ways” of doing things
are now irrelevant.

 Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, The House of the Seven


Gables, and The Blithedale Romance
 Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, “Bartleby, the Scrivener,” “Benito
Cereno,” and other writings
 Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Representative Men
 Henry David Thoreau’s Walden
 Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass

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