The United States of American Literature Spring 2013,I think therefore I am. Descartes,Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous. Confucious,Its exhilarating to be alive in a time of awakening consciousness; it can also be confusing, disorienting, and painful. Adrienne Rich,That is what learning is. You suddenly understand something youve understood all your life, but in a new way. Doris Lessing,To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark. Victor Hugo,Why American Literature?,Would you name some authors, their works? What do you think of them?,For its Americanness,I dont give a damn for a man that can only spell a word one way. Mark Twain,An Englishman is a person who does things because they have been done before. An American is a person who does things because they havent been done before. Mark Twain,Course Evaluation,Attendance (10%) Participation (20%) Term Paper (10%) Term Exam (60%),Provisional Syllabus of “Glimpse of USAn Literature ”,I. Survey of the Major Trends and the Respective Representative Writers & their Writings II. Close Reading of Some Classic Works III. Brief Introduction to some contemporary literary works,USAn Literature,Literature produced in American English by citizens of the United States of America.,Basic Qualities of the United States of American Literature,Individualistic Critical Innovative Humorous,Chronological Development,I. The Puritan Background, 1635-1735 II. The Age of Reason and Enlightenment, 1735-1835 III. Romanticism: Transcendentalism 1835-1865 IV. Realism and Naturalism 1865-1910 V. Modernism 1910-1945 VI. Post-war Literature 1945-,A Little history,It takes a great deal of history to produce a little literature. Henry James,From the Old to the New World,Blend of ethnicity; blend of culture Blend of Purposes: religious freedom Pilgrim escape from the past fortune-hunting dream-fulfilling adventure-taking sight-seeing,The New World,The New Promised Land; New Jerusalem; Zion “An unimaginable empire, between the Isthmus of Panama and the Arctic, of nearly eight million square miles, more than half of it covered by ancient forests of fabulous density.” (The American Tradition in Literature, V1,3),Protestant Traits,The majority of them, and predominantly those who came to rest in New England and the Middle colonies, were products, in some sort, of the Protestant Reformation, a fact which continues to influence the life and thought of the United States. (The American Tradition in Literature, V 1,4),Idea of Martin Luther(1483-1546) “priesthood of believers” “Neither Pope or Bishop nor any other man has a right to impose a single syllable of law upon a Christian man without his consent.” John Calvin(1509-64):Predestination and Grace “In Adams fall we sinned all.”,“He was a visionary who never forgets two plus two equals four; he was a soldier of Jehovah who never came out on the losing side of a bargain. He was a practical idealist.,Puritan,He came to the New World to found the perfect society and the Kingdom of the elect and never expected it to be perfect, but only the best that fallible men could make.,His creed was the revealed word of God and his life was the rule of moderation; his beliefs were handed down on high and his conduct was regulated by expediency.He was a doctrinaire and an opportunist.”Perry Miller,Puritanism,the Dissidence of Dissent, the Protestantism of Protestant Religion 1607Jamestown, a trading post, commercial venture, Virginia 1620Plymouth, Massachusetts, May Flower, humble country folk coming for religious reason(Dec.11; 102 pilgrims, out of whom 50 died within the year; 300 in 1630) 1630Massachusetts Bay Company, prosperous, worldly, Governor John Winthrop (1636- Harvard 1638- Cambridge printing press 1693- William and Mary College,The early colonists wanted to prove that they were Gods chosen people who would enjoy Gods blessings on earth and in Heaven. They were exiles under special grace of God to establish a theocracy in the New World. Lofty idealism, militant self-assertiveness Self-cultivation, self-improvement,Key Concepts,1. Gods Mysteries 2.Predestination 3. Total Depravity,Great Men/Women and Their Works,William Bradford(1590-1657) Of Plymouth Plantation John Winthrop(1588-1649) 12 times chosen governor of MA Bay, A Model of Christian Charity Anne Bradstreet(1612?-1672) Mary Rowlandson(1636?-1678?) Jonathan Edwards(1703-1758) Freedom of the Will,City Upon A Hill,“There are two rules whereby we are to walk one towards another: Justice and Mercy. Now the only way to avoid this shipwreck, and to provide for our posterity, is to follow the counsel of Micah, to do justice, to walk humbly with our God (He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, and love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? Micah6:8 ),For we must Consider that we