Overview

ENLIGHTENMENT PERIOD

Two phases: The Age of Faith from 1607 until 1750
and The Age of Reason from 1750 until 1800


I. The Age of Faith (1607-1750)

Historical Context

  • Puritans and Pilgrims
  • Separated from the Anglican church of England
  • Aligned with a religion that dominated their lives and writings
  • Work ethic - belief in hard work and simple, no-frills living

Genre/Style

  • Sermons, diaries, personal narratives, slave narratives
  • Instructive
  • Plain style

Major Writers

  • Anne Bradstreet (1612-1672)
    First published American poet
    "To My Dear and Loving Husband"
    "Upon the Burning of Our House”

  • Edward Taylor (1645-1729)
    Minister considered the finest Puritan poet
    "Huswifery"
    "Make me, O Lord, Thy spinning wheel complete"

  • Jonathan Edwards
    Minister
    "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God"
    View of God as punitive and distant and view of man as basically evil

  • John Smith (1580-1631)
    General History of Virginia
    Pocahontas legend
    Adventurer and writer

II. The Age of Reason (1750-1800)

Historical context

  • American Revolution; growth of patriotism
  • Development of American character/democracy
  • Use of reason as opposed to faith alone

Genre/Style

  • Political pamphlets, essays, travel writing, speeches, documents
  • Instructive in values; highly ornate writing style

Major Writers

  • Ben Franklin
    Autobiography and Poor Richard's Almanac
    Symbol of success gained by hard work and common sense:
    "Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."
    "God helps them that help themselves."
    "Haste makes waste."

  • Thomas Jefferson
    Declaration of Independence
    Considered the finest writer of the era
    "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal…"

  • Thomas Paine
    Pamphleteer
    "The American Crisis" helped propel colonies into war
    Remains a model of effective propaganda:
    "These are the times that try men's souls."

ROMANTICISM (1800-1855)

Historical context

  • Expansion of book publishing, magazines, newspapers
  • Industrial Revolution
  • Abolitionist movement

Genre/Style

  • Short stories, novels, poetry
  • Imagination over reason; intuition over fact
  • Focused on the fantastic of human experience
  • Writing that can be interpreted two ways: surface and in depth
  • Focus on inner feelings
  • Gothic literature (sub-genre of Romanticism)
    Use of the supernatural
    Characters with both evil and good characteristics
    Dark landscapes; depressed characters

Major Writers

  • Washington Irving (1789-1851)
    First famous American writer; called "Father of American Lit"
    Wrote short stories, travel books, satires
    "Legend of Sleepy Hollow" terrified generations of children
    "Rip Van Winkle" and the antihero
    "Devil and Tom Walker": an encounter-with-the-devil tale

  • Edgar Allen Poe (1809-1849)
    Created the modern short story and detective story
    Short stories such as "Fall of the House of Usher," "Pit and the Pendulum,"
    Inspired future detective/horror stories Poems: "The Raven," "Bells, "Annabel Lee" Attacked two long-standing conventions: a poem has to be long, and a poem must teach a lesson

  • Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)
    Wrote about sin and guilt; consequences of pride, selfishness
    The Scarlet Letter
    Short stories ("The Minister's Black Veil")
    Anti-transcendentalist

  • Herman Melville (1819-1891)
    Ranked as one of America's top novelists, but recognized by few in his own time
    Anti-transcendentalist
    Moby Dick: did not sell – only his friend Hawthorne liked it, now considered America's greatest prose epic

  • William Cullen Bryant

  • "Fireside Poets"
    Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
    Oliver Wendell Holmes
    James Russell Lowell
    John Greenleaf Whittier

Transcendentalism (1840 - 1855)

Stressed individualism, intuition, nature, self-reliance

Genre/Style

Essays, journals, speeches, poetry

Major Writers

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

  • Established the philosophy of individualism:
  • Now an idea deeply embedded in American culture
  • "Nature"
  • "Self-Reliance"

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)

  • Resisted materialism; chose simplicity, individualism
  • "Civil Disobedience": a primer for nonviolent protest
  • Lived on Walden Pond for two-plus years
  • Walden – a metaphorical guidebook for life, showing how to live wisely in
    a world designed to make wise living impossible

New Poetic Forms

Walt Whitman (1819-1892)

  • Rejected conventional themes, forms, subjects
  • Used long lines to capture the rhythm of natural speech, free verse
  • Use everyday vocabularyin free verse
  • "Song of Myself," "I Hear America Singing," "O Captain My Captain"

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)

  • Her poetry broke with convention: did not “look right,” did not rhyme
  • In her time, her poetry considered too bold, too radical
  • Concrete imagery, forceful language, unique style
  • Wrote 1775 poems, published only seven in her life
  • "Because I could not stop for Death--"
    “My life closed twice before its close—"
    “The Soul selects her own Society—"


REALISM (1865-1915)

Historical context

  • Civil War brings demand for a "truer" literature that does not idealize people or places
  • People in society became defined by "class" as a result of materialism
  • Reflection of ideas of Darwin (survival of the fittest) and Marx (how money and class
    structure control a nation)

Genre/Style

  • Realism: a reaction against romanticism
  • Focus on lives of ordinary people; rejected heroic and adventurous
  • Anti-materialism rejected the new "class" system
  • View of nature as a powerful and indifferent force beyond man's control
  • Naturalism (sub-genre of Realism)
    Like Realism but a darker view of the world
    The universe is unpredictable; fate is determined by chance; free will is an illusion
    Characters' lives are shaped by forces they can't understand or control
    Novels, short stories
    Often aims to change a specific social problem
    Dominant themes: survival, fate, violence, nature as an indifferent force

Major Writers

The Civil War (1855-1865)

  • Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811-1896)
    The most famous woman of her day
    Uncle Tom's Cabin: most influential book of the nineteenth century
    First American book to sell one million copies
    One of the most effective documents of propaganda
    Was said to have helped fuel the Civil War
  • Frederick Douglas (1817-1895)
    An escaped slave; one of the most effective orators of his day
    Influential newspaper writer; militant abolitionist; diplomat
    Autobiography an instant and enduring classic of courage

The Frontier (1865-1915)

  • Mark Twain (1835-1910)
    Samuel Langhorne Clemens widely thought to be the greatest American humorist
    Used vernacular, exaggeration, deadpan narrator to create humor
    “Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” Adventures of Tom Sawyer
    Adventures of HuckleberryFinn Life on the Mississippi (a memoir)

  • Stephen Crane (1871-1900) (Naturalist)
    Crane attacked patriotism, individualism, organized religion; confronted the meaninglessness of the world; writing known for its images and symbolism
    Red Badge of Courage (most famous work; set in Civil War)
    “The Open Boat” (man vs. Nature's indifference)
    “An Episode of War” (short story)

  • Jack London
    Pushed Naturalism to its limits
    Call of the Wild (tame dog forced to revert to his original primitive state)
    “To Build a Fire” (survival of the fittest)

The Local Colorists (1865-1930)
Regional writers tried to capture the essence of a particular area, or its "local color"

  • Bret Harte (1836-1902)
    Old West
    “Outcasts of Poker Flat”
  • Kate Chopin (1851-1904)
    Louisiana bayou
    The Awakening
  • Willa Cather (1873-1947)
    Life on the Nebraska prairie
    Pulitzer Prize winner

New Poetic Forms

  • Edwin Arlington Robinson
  • Edgar Lee Masters
  • Paul Laurence Dunbar

MODERNISM (1915-1945)

Historical context

  • Overwhelming technological changes
  • World War I first war of mass destruction
  • Grief over loss of past; fear of eroding traditions
  • Rise of youth culture

Genre/Style

  • Dominant mood: alienation/disconnection
  • Writers see to create a unique style
  • Writing highly experimental: use of fragments, stream of consciousness, interior dialogue

Major Writers

  • Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961)
    Writing style: concise, direct, spare, objective, precise, rhythmic
    Major works include The Sun Also Rises, A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Old Man and the Sea
    Larger than life hero; big game hunter; sport fisherman; headliner
    Won Pulitzer Prize and Nobel Prize for Literature

  • F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940)
    The Great Gatsby (ironic and tragic treatment of the American success myth)
    His work and life illustrate American culture of the 1920's

  • William Faulkner (1897-1962)
    As I Lay Dying and The Sound and the Fury (his masterpiece)
    The most original writer of his time
    Primary subject was his heritage: Southern memory, reality, myth

  • John Steinbeck
    Of Mice and Men and The Pearl
    Belief in the need for social justice; hope people learn from the suffering of others
    Grapes of Wrath (combined naturalism and symbolism to express outrage and compassion for the plight of the farmers displaced by the Depression and Dustbowl)

    Sherwood Anderson
    Katherine Anne Porter
    Eudora Welty
    Thornton Wilder


CONTEMPORARY TIMES (1945-present)

Historical context

  • Media saturated culture
  • People observe life as media presents it rather than experiencing life directly
  • Insistence that values are not permanent but only "local" or "historical"
  • Media culture interprets values
  • Post WWII prosperity
  • People now in a new century, a new millennium
  • Social protest

Genre/Style

  • Lines of reality blurred; mix of fantasy and nonfiction
  • No heroes/anti-heroes
  • Concern with individual in isolation
  • Detached, unemotional, usually humorless
  • Emergence of ethnic and women writers

Major Writers

  • Beat writers (pre-hippie, highly intellectual, anti-tradition)
  • Countered the hidden despair of the 50's with wildly exuberant language/behavior
  • Confessional poets: Used anguish of own lives to explore America's hidden despair
  • J. D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, symbol for a generation of disaffected youth
  • Flannery O'Conner (Southern Gothic)
  • James Thurber (America's most popular humorist in 30's and 40's)
  • Multicultural Literature
    Jewish American literature (50's and 60's)
    African American literature (black militancy/civil rights movement in 50's 60's) Native American Latino-American literature
    Asian-American literature
  • New Frontiers
    John Updike and Truman Capote
  • Arthur Miller's The Crucible

Beginning the American Tradition

With the beginning of the American tradition in literature, two prevalent themes arise:

  • Preoccupation with the meaning of America
  • Self-transformation and its arising conflict with the demands of society.

In this first unit entitled "Age of Faith," we will seek to understand the following:

  • How the earliest American writers viewed America, and how they viewed the settlers' difficulties in surviving a new land

  • Important features of Puritan experience, especially the idea of grace, the view of America as divinely appointed, the use of the plain style, and brief revival of Puritanism in the Great Awakening

  • The subject matter and technique of the first significant American poet Edward Taylor

  • Differences between life in early New England and in the early South.


ENLIGHTENMENT PERIOD consists of both "The Age of Faith" from 1607 until 1750, and "The Age of Reason" from 1750 until 1800.


I. The Age of Faith (1607 through 1750)

Historical Context

  • Pilgrims and the Puritans
  • Separated from the Anglican church of England
  • Aligned with a religion that dominated their lives and writings
  • Work ethic - belief in hard work and simple, no-frills living
  • The Bay Psalm Book

Genre/Style

  • Sermons, diaries, personal narratives, slave narratives
  • Instructive
  • Plain style

Major Writers and Works

Class Discussions

In the selection from Of Plymouth Plantation, there are peace terms with the Indians. Explain in a paragraph whether the terms were more favorable to the settlers or the Indians.

Who are the Puritans?

What are three main Puritan characteristics?

Who are the significant Puritan leaders?

How did the earliest American writers view America? Support in a paragraph with examples.

Discuss the differences between life in early New England and the early South. How did these affect the literature of the time?

Write an interpretation of “Upon the Burning of Our House.”

Edwards’ sermon is a classic statement of the Puritans’ literal vision of Hell and of their belief in humanity’s utter dependence upon God. He compares God’s wrath to several things. In a paragraph cite at least three comparisons.

The Revolutionary Period

Two prevalent themes continue:

  • Preoccupation with the meaning of America
  • Self-transformation and its arising conflict with the demands of society.


In this second unit entitled "Age of Reason," we will seek to understand the following:

  • The basic literary and philosophical ideals of the Enlightenment, especially in contrast to Puritanism


ENLIGHTENMENT PERIOD consists of both "The Age of Faith" from 1607 until 1750, and "The Age of Reason" from 1750 until 1800.


II. The Age of Reason (1750 through 1800)

Historical context

  • Waning of Puritanism
  • American Revolution; growth of patriotism
  • Development of American character/democracy
  • Use of reason as opposed to faith alone

Genre/Style

  • Political tracts, pamphlets, essays, travel writing, speeches, documents
  • Instructive in values; highly ornate writing style
  • Literary elements: first-person point of view, allusion, personification, aphorism

Major Writers

  • Ben Franklin
    Autobiography and Poor Richard's Almanac
    Symbol of success gained by hard work and common sense:
    "Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."
    "God helps them that help themselves."
    "Haste makes waste."

  • Thomas Jefferson
    Declaration of Independence
    Considered the finest writer of the era
    "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal…"

  • Thomas Paine
    Pamphleteer
    "The American Crisis" helped propel colonies into war
    Remains a model of effective propaganda:
    "These are the times that try men's souls."

Lessons, Worksheets, and Class Discussions

    Benjamin Franklin as a Writer

    “An Eighteenth Century Writer”

    • Contributes to the creation of an American national identity distinct from England

    • Supports the shift from an otherworldly (inner life) to a this-worldly (outer life) point of view

    • Maintains that theory should be tested primarily by experience not logic (i.e., reason should be tested pragmatically)

    • Attempts to recreate himself and his career as the archetypal American success story

    “While Puritan spiritual autobiographies emphasize their authors’ dependence upon God for grace and salvation and their inability to achieve virtue without grace, Franklin focuses on his own efforts to learn what is virtuous in this world and to put his discoveries to use in his life. Franklin retains the puritan concern for self-improvement but removes its otherworldly focus.”

    • Jonathon Edwards: attempts to understand this world in the light of Puritan assumptions about God and His divine plan for humanity

    • Benjamin Franklin: focuses on this world, largely ignores the next, and sees morality and experience as more important than faith .


    Thomas Paine and Persuasive Writing

    Many of Paine’s statements sound like “aphorisms.” An aphorism is a brief statement that is carefully and cleverly worded; it makes a wise and pithy statement about life. Find three of Paine’s statements that could be called aphorisms. (e.g., These are the times that try men’s souls.)


    Paine uses many Biblical allusions in his work. What could this frequent use of Biblical allusions imply? List three Biblical allusions in this work.


    Parallelism is the repetition of words or phrases that have similar grammatical structure. Paine uses parallelism several times in his work. Find three examples of parallelism.


    Paine uses strong images to evoke ideas and connections. The pamphlet opens with the images of “the sunshine patriot” and “the summer soldier.” Are these images appropriate? Why or why not? What connections can be drawn about a summer soldier and a winter soldier? Find three other examples of strong images.


    Persuasive writers often use analogies to draw connections between two things that have similar characteristics. Paine uses an analogy that connects the king of Britain with a common housebreaker (burglar or thief). What point is he trying to make using this analogy? Find at least one other analogy that Paine makes in this work.


    A metaphor is a figure of speech that compares two unlike things without using like or as. Find at least one metaphor that Paine uses in his work.


    Paine is attempting to persuade other people to believe the same way that he does. In his writing, he makes a point, provides support for that point, and then transitions into a new point. List examples of the above elements of structure.


    Patrick Henry and Persuasive Speech

    Make a list of Patrick Henry’s persuasive appeals to logic.

    Make a list of Patrick Henry's persuasive appeals to emotion.

    A New Nation: Romanticism

    ROMANTICISM (1800-1855)

    Historical context
    In 1802, July 4, United States Military Academy opens at West Point, New York. Among its cadets will be Ulysses Grant, Robert E. Lee, and Edgar Allan Poe.

    In 1803, August 31, Lewis and Clark expedition sets out down the Ohio River.They will complete a three-year journey to the West Coast.

    In 1806, Noah Webster issues his Compendious Dictionary of the English Language .

    In 1809, Washington Irving publishes History of New York.

    In 1814, Francis Scott Key writes "The Star-Spangled Banner."

    In 1828, Noah Webster publishes American Dictionary of the English Language.
    Genre/Style
    • Short stories, novels, poetry
    • Imagination over reason; intuition over fact
    • The law of the universe was not static but dynamic with change, growth, and development
    • Focused on the fantastic of human experience
    • Writing that can be interpreted two ways: surface and in depth
    • Focus on inner feelings
    • Gothic literature (sub-genre of Romanticism)
      Use of the supernatural
      Characters with both evil and good characteristics
      Dark landscapes; depressed characters
    Pre-Romantic Writers
    "Irving, Cooper, Bryant, and Poe are entitled to several 'firsts.' They were among the first professional writers in American, and among the first American writers whose works are still widely read. Irving, Cooper, and Poe developed or helped introduce into America such important fictional forms as the tale, the short story, the novel, and the romance. Bryant and Poe gave a new emphasis to the lyrical and musical qualities of poety. And all four writers were among the first American Romantics" ("First Harvest" Adventures in American Literature - Heritage Edition).

    Transcendentalism


    ROMANTICISM (1800-1855)

    Historical context

    In 1838 begins the removal of 15,000-17,000 Cherokee Indians from Georgia on the "Trail of Tears" resulting in an estimated 4,000-8,000 deaths.

    In 1838, the Underground Railroad is organized.

    In 1845, Thoreau begins living at Walden Pond.

    On August 10, 1846, the act establishing the Smithsonian Institution is passed by Congress and immediately signed into law by President James K. Polk.

    In 1849, Amelia Bloomer begins publishing The Lily, a journal supporting temperance and women's rights.

    In 1852, Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin sells one million copies within the year.

    In 1855, Frederick Douglass publishes My Bondage and My Freedom.

    Genre/Style

    • Short stories, novels, poetry
    • Imagination over reason; intuition over fact
    • The law of the universe was not static but dynamic with change, growth, and development
    • Focused on the fantastic of human experience
    • Writing that can be interpreted two ways: surface and in depth
    • Focus on inner feelings

    Transcendentalism (1840 - 1855)

    Stressed individualism, intuition, nature, self-reliance

    Genre/Style

    Essays, journals, speeches, poetry

    Major Writers


    Anti-Transcendentalism


    ROMANTICISM (1800-1855)

    Historical context

    Genre/Style

    • Short stories, novels, poetry
    • Imagination over reason; intuition over fact
    • The law of the universe was not static but dynamic with change, growth, and development
    • Focused on the fantastic of human experience
    • Writing that can be interpreted two ways: surface and in depth
    • Focus on inner feelings

    "Anti"-Transcendentalism

    Transcendentalism stressed individualism, intuition, nature, self-reliance.

    Anti-Transcendentalism was a literary movement that essentially consisted of only Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville.

    They focused on the limitations and potential destructiveness of the human spirit rather than on the possibilities.

    Genre/Style

    Short stories, novels, and poetry

    Major Writers

    • Herman Melville (1819-1891)
      Ranked as one of America's top novelists, but recognized by few in his own time
      Anti-transcendentalist: Billy Budd
      Moby Dick: did not sell – only his friend Hawthorne liked it - now considered America's greatest prose epic

    THE SCARLET LETTER

    The novel by chapters

    UNDER CONSTRUCTION

    New Poetic Form - Dickinson

      Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)

      • Her poetry broke with convention: did not “look right,” did not rhyme
      • In her time, her poetry considered too bold, too radical
      • Concrete imagery, forceful language, unique style
      • Wrote 1775 poems, published only seven in her life

      67
      Success is counted sweetest
      By those who ne'er succeed.
      To comprehend a nectar
      Requires sorest need.

      Not one of all the purple Host
      Who took the Flag today
      Can tell the definition
      So clear of Victory

      As he defeated -- dying --
      On whose forbidden ear
      The distant strains of triumph
      Burst agonized and clear!


      76
      Exultation is the going
      Of an inland soul to sea,
      Past the houses -- past the headlands --
      Into deep Eternity --

      Bred as we, among the mountains,
      Can the sailor understand
      The divine intoxication
      Of the first league out from land?


      135
      Water, is taught by thirst.
      Land -- by the Oceans passed.
      Transport -- by throe --
      Peace -- by its battles told --
      Love, by Memorial Mold --
      Birds, by the Snow.


      185
      "Faith" is a fine invention
      When Gentlemen can see --
      But Microscopes are prudent
      In an Emergency.


      214
      I taste a liquor never brewed --
      From Tankards scooped in Pearl --
      Not all the Vats upon the Rhine
      Yield such an Alcohol!

      Inebriate of Air -- am I --
      And Debauchee of Dew --
      Reeling -- thro endless summer days --
      From inns of Molten Blue --

      When "Landlords" turn the drunken Bee
      Out of the Foxglove's door --
      When Butterflies -- renounce their "drams" --
      I shall but drink the more!

      Till Seraphs swing their snowy Hats --
      And Saints -- to windows run --
      To see the little Tippler
      Leaning against the -- Sun -


      254
      "Hope" is the thing with feathers --
      That perches in the soul --
      And sings the tune without the words --
      And never stops -- at all --

      And sweetest -- in the Gale -- is heard --
      And sore must be the storm --
      That could abash the little Bird
      That kept so many warm --

      I've heard it in the chillest land --
      And on the strangest Sea --
      Yet, never, in Extremity,
      It asked a crumb -- of Me.


      258
      There's a certain Slant of light,
      Winter Afternoons-
      That oppresses, like the Heft
      Of Cathedral Tunes-

      Heavenly Hurt, it gives us-
      We can find no scar,
      But internal difference,
      Where the Meanings, are-

      None may teach it-Any-
      'Tis the Seal Despair-
      An imperial affliction
      Sent us of the Air-

      When it comes, the Landscape listens-
      Shadows-hold their breath-
      When it goes, 'tis like the Distance
      On the look of Death-


      303
      The Soul selects her own Society --
      Then -- shuts the Door --
      To her divine Majority --
      Present no more --

      Unmoved -- she notes the Chariots -- pausing --
      At her low Gate --
      Unmoved -- an Emperor be kneeling
      Upon her Mat --

      I've known her -- from an ample nation --
      Choose One --
      Then -- close the Valves of her attention --
      Like Stone -


      311
      It sifts from Leaden Sieves --
      It powders all the Wood.
      It fills with Alabaster Wool
      The Wrinkles of the Road --

      It makes an Even Face
      Of Mountain, and of Plain --
      Unbroken Forehead from the East
      Unto the East again --

      It reaches to the Fence --
      It wraps it Rail by Rail
      Till it is lost in Fleeces --
      It deals Celestial Vail

      To Stump, and Stack -- and Stem --
      A Summer's empty Room --
      Acres of Joints, where Harvests were,
      Recordless, but for them--

      It Ruffles Wrists of Posts
      As Ankles of a Queen --
      Then stills its Artisans -- like Ghosts --
      Denying they have been -


      324
      Some keep the Sabbath going to Church --
      I keep it, staying at Home --
      With a Bobolink for a Chorister --
      And an Orchard, for a Dome --

      Some keep the Sabbath in Surplice --
      I just wear my Wings --
      And instead of tolling the Bell, for Church,
      Our little Sexton -- sings.

      God preaches, a noted Clergyman --
      And the sermon is never long,
      So instead of getting to Heaven, at least --
      I'm going, all along.


      338
      I know that He exists.
      Somewhere -- in Silence --
      He has hid his rare life
      From our gross eyes.

      'Tis an instant's play.
      'Tis a fond Ambush --
      Just to make Bliss
      Earn her own surprise!

      But -- should the play
      Prove piercing earnest --
      Should the glee -- glaze --
      In Death's -- stiff -- stare --

      Would not the fun
      Look too expensive!
      Would not the jest --
      Have crawled too far!




      435
      Much Madness is divinest Sense --
      To a discerning Eye --
      Much Sense -- the starkest Madness --
      'Tis the Majority
      In this, as All, prevail --
      Assent -- and you are sane --
      Demur -- you're straightway dangerous --
      And handled with a Chain -


      441
      This is my letter to the World
      That never wrote to Me --
      The simple News that Nature told --
      With tender Majesty

      Her Message is committed
      To Hands I cannot see --
      For love of Her -- Sweet -- countrymen --
      Judge tenderly -- of Me


      465
      I heard a Fly buzz -- when I died --
      The Stillness in the Room
      Was like the Stillness in the Air --
      Between the Heaves of Storm --

      The Eyes around -- had wrung them dry --
      And Breaths were gathering firm
      For that last Onset -- when the King
      Be witnessed -- in the Room --

      I willed my Keepsakes -- Signed away
      What portion of me be
      Assignable -- and then it was
      There interposed a Fly --

      With Blue -- uncertain stumbling Buzz --
      Between the light -- and me --
      And then the Windows failed -- and then
      I could not see to see -


      508
      I'm ceded -- I've stopped being Theirs --
      The name They dropped upon my face
      With water, in the country church
      Is finished using, now,
      And They can put it with my Dolls,
      My childhood, and the string of spools,
      I've finished threading -- too --

      Baptized, before, without the choice,
      But this time, consciously, of Grace --
      Unto supremest name --
      Called to my Full -- The Crescent dropped --
      Existence's whole Arc, filled up,
      With one small Diadem.

      My second Rank -- too small the first --
      Crowned -- Crowing -- on my Father's breast --
      A half unconscious Queen --
      But this time -- Adequate -- Erect,
      With Will to choose, or to reject,
      And I choose, just a Crown --




      569
      I reckon -- when I count it all --
      First -- Poets -- Then the Sun --
      Then Summer -- Then the Heaven of God --
      And then -- the List is done --

      But, looking back -- the First so seems
      To Comprehend the Whole --
      The Others look a needless Show --
      So I write -- Poets -- All --

      Their Summer -- lasts a Solid Year --
      They can afford a Sun
      The East -- would deem extravagant --
      And if the Further Heaven --

      Be Beautiful as they prepare
      For Those who worship Them --
      It is too difficult a Grace --
      To justify the Dream --




      585
      I like to see it lap the Miles --
      And lick the Valleys up --
      And stop to feed itself at Tanks --
      And then -- prodigious step

      Around a Pile of Mountains --
      And supercilious peer
      In Shanties -- by the sides of Roads --
      And then a Quarry pare

      To fit its Ribs
      And crawl between
      Complaining all the while
      In horrid -- hooting stanza --
      Then chase itself down Hill --

      And neigh like Boanerges --
      Then -- punctual as a Star
      Stop -- docile and omnipotent
      At its own stable door -


      712
      Because I could not stop for Death --
      He kindly stopped for me --
      The Carriage held but just Ourselves --
      And Immortality.

      We slowly drove -- He knew no haste
      And I had put away
      My labor and my leisure too,
      For His Civility --

      We passed the School, where Children strove
      At Recess -- in the Ring --
      We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain --
      We passed the Setting Sun --

      Or rather -- He passed Us --
      The Dews drew quivering and chill --
      For only Gossamer, my Gown --
      My Tippet -- only Tulle --

      We paused before a House that seemed
      A Swelling of the Ground --
      The Roof was scarcely visible --
      The Cornice -- in the Ground --

      Since then -- 'tis Centuries -- and yet
      Feels shorter than the Day
      I first surmised the Horses' Heads
      Were toward Eternity -


      861
      Split the Lark -- and you'll find the Music --
      Bulb after Bulb, in Silver rolled --
      Scantilly dealt to the Summer Morning
      Saved for your Ear when Lutes be old.

      Loose the Flood -- you shall find it patent --
      Gush after Gush, reserved for you --
      Scarlet Experiment! Sceptic Thomas!
      Now, do you doubt that your Bird was true?




      986
      A narrow Fellow in the Grass
      Occasionally rides --
      You may have met Him -- did you not
      His notice sudden is --

      The Grass divides as with a Comb --
      A spotted shaft is seen --
      And then it closes at your feet
      And opens further on --

      He likes a Boggy Acre
      A Floor too cool for Corn --
      Yet when a Boy, and Barefoot --
      I more than once at Noon
      Have passed, I thought, a Whip lash
      Unbraiding in the Sun
      When stooping to secure it
      It wrinkled, and was gone --

      Several of Nature's People
      I know, and they know me --
      I feel for them a transport
      Of cordiality --

      But never met this Fellow
      Attended, or alone
      Without a tighter breathing
      And Zero at the Bone -


      1052
      I never saw a Moor --
      I never saw the Sea --
      Yet know I how the Heather looks
      And what a Billow be.

      I never spoke with God
      Nor visited in Heaven --
      Yet certain am I of the spot
      As if the Checks were given -


      1263
      There is no Frigate like a Book
      To take us Lands away
      Nor any Coursers like a Page
      Of prancing Poetry --
      This Travers may the poorest take
      Without oppress of Toll --
      How frugal is the Chariot
      That bears the Human soul.


      1624
      Apparently with no surprise
      To any happy Flower
      The Frost beheads it at its play --
      In accidental power --
      The blonde Assassin passes on --
      The Sun proceeds unmoved
      To measure off another Day
      For an Approving God.


      1695
      There is a solitude of space
      A solitude of sea
      A solitude of death, but these
      Society shall be
      Compared with that profounder site
      That polar privacy
      A soul admitted to itself --
      Finite infinity.


      1732
      My life closed twice before its close --
      It yet remains to see
      If Immortality unveil
      A third event to me

      So huge, so hopeless to conceive
      As these that twice befell.
      Parting is all we know of heaven,
      And all we need of hell.

      New Poetic Form - Whitman

      In the literary world between 1855 and 1865, a period of transition occurred when no new movements developed. However, the wartime era did produce Walt Whitman, one of the most important and influential poets in the history of American literature. While the country was being torn apart by war, Whitman was reaffirming the principles upon which the country was founded by expressing American democratic ideals in his poetry.

      Walt Whitman (1819-1892)

      • Rejected conventional themes, forms, subjects
      • Used long lines to capture the rhythm of natural speech, free verse
      • Use everyday vocabulary in free verse
      • Considered America's finest 19th century poet
      • Whitman has been described as a: democrat, patriot, metaphysicist, nature poet, lover, and a free spirit
      • Themes: nature, war, love and separation, human sexuality, self-realization
      • Published his poems in an ever enlarging work entitled Leaves of Grass

        Beat! beat! drums!

        Beat! beat! drums! -- blow! bugles! blow!
        Through the windows -- through doors -- burst like a ruthless force,
        Into the solemn church, and scatter the congregation,
        Into the school where the scholar is studying;
        Leave not the bridegroom quiet -- no happiness must he have now with his bride,
        Nor the peaceful farmer any peace, ploughing his field or gathering his grain,
        So fierce you whirr and pound you drums -- so shrill you bugles blow.

        Beat! beat! drums! -- blow! bugles! blow!
        Over the traffic of cities -- over the rumble of wheels in the streets;
        Are beds prepared for sleepers at night in the houses? no sleepers must sleep in those beds,
        No bargainers' bargains by day -- no brokers or speculators -- would they continue?
        Would the talkers be talking? would the singer attempt to sing?
        Would the lawyer rise in the court to state his case before the judge?
        Then rattle quicker, heavier drums -- you bugles wilder blow.

        Beat! beat! drums! -- blow! bugles! blow!
        Make no parley -- stop for no expostulation,
        Mind not the timid -- mind not the weeper or prayer,
        Mind not the old man beseeching the young man,
        Let not the child's voice be heard, nor the mother's entreaties,
        Make even the trestles to shake the dead where they lie awaiting the hearses,
        So strong you thump O terrible drums -- so loud you bugles blow.


        Miracles

        Why, who makes much of a miracle?
        As to me I know of nothing else but miracles,
        Whether I walk the streets of Manhattan,
        Or dart my sight over the roofs of houses toward the sky,
        Or wade with naked feet along the beach just in the edge of the water,
        Or stand under trees in the woods,
        Or talk by day with anyone I love, or sleep in the bed at night with anyone I love,
        Or sit at the table at dinner with the rest,
        Or look at strangers opposite me riding in the car,
        Or watch honeybees busy around the hive of a summer forenoon,
        Or animals feeding in the fields,
        Or birds, or the wonderfulness of insects in the air,
        Or the wonderfulness of the sundown, or of stars shining so quiet and bright,
        Or the exquisite delicate thin curve of the new moon in spring;
        These with the rest, one and all, are to me miracles,
        The whole referring, yet each distinct and in its place.
        To me every hour of the light and dark is a miracle,
        Every cubic inch of space is a miracle,
        Every square yard of the surface of the earth is spread with the same,
        Every foot of the interior swarms with the same.
        To me the sea is a continual miracle,
        The fishes that swim-the rocks-the motion of the waves-the ships with men in them,
        What stranger miracles are there?


        A noiseless patient spider

        A noiseless patient spider,
        I mark'd where on a little promontory it stood isolated,
        Mark'd how to explore the vacant vast surrounding,
        It launch'd forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself,
        Ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them.

        And you O my soul where you stand,
        Surrounded, detached, in measureless oceans of space,
        Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing, seeking the spheres to connect them,
        Till the bridge you will need be form'd, till the ductile anchor hold,
        Till the gossamer thread you fling catch somewhere, O my soul.


        O Captain! My Captain!

        O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done,
        The ship has weather'd every rack, the prize we sought is won,
        The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,
        While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring;
        But O heart! heart! heart!
        O the bleeding drops of red,
        Where on the deck my Captain lies,
        Fallen cold and dead.

        O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
        Rise up -- for you the flag is flung -- for you the bugle trills,
        For you bouquets and ribbon'd wreaths -- for you the shores a-crowding,
        For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;
        Here Captain! dear father!
        This arm beneath your head!
        It is some dream that on the deck,
        You've fallen cold and dead.

        My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still,
        My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will,
        The ship is anchor'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,
        From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won;
        Exult O shores, and ring O bells!
        But I with mournful tread,
        Walk the deck my Captain lies,
        Fallen cold and dead.


        Vigil strange I kept on the field one night

        Vigil strange I kept on the field one night;
        When you my son and my comrade dropt at my side that day,
        One look I but gave which your dear eyes return'd with a look I shall never forget,
        One touch of your hand to mine O boy, reach'd up as you lay on the ground,
        Then onward I sped in the battle, the even-contested battle,
        Till late in the night reliev'd to the place at last again I made my way,
        Found you in death so cold dear comrade, found your body son of responding kisses, (never again on earth responding,)
        Bared your face in the starlight, curious the scene, cool blew the moderate night-wind,
        Long there and then in vigil I stood, dimly around me the battle-field spreading,
        Vigil wondrous and vigil sweet there in the fragrant silent night,
        But not a tear fell, not even a long-drawn sigh, long, long I gazed,
        Then on the earth partially reclining sat by your side leaning my chin in my hands,
        Passing sweet hours, immortal and mystic hours with you dearest comrade -- not a tear, not a word,
        Vigil of silence, love and death, vigil for you my son and my soldier,
        As onward silently stars aloft, eastward new ones upward stole,
        Vigil final for you brave boy, (I could not save you, swift was your death,
        I faithfully loved you and cared for you living, I think we shall surely meet again,)
        Till at latest lingering of the night, indeed just as the dawn appear'd,
        My comrade I wrapt in his blanket, envelop'd well his form,
        Folded the blanket well, tucking it carefully over head and carefully under feet,
        And there and then and bathed by the rising sun, my son in his grave, in his rude-dug grave I deposited,
        Ending my vigil strange with that, vigil of night and battle-field dim,
        Vigil for boy of responding kisses, (never again on earth responding,)
        Vigil for comrade swiftly slain, vigil I never forget, how as day brighten'd,
        I rose from the chill ground and folded my soldier well in his blanket,
        And buried him where he fell.


        When I heard the learn'd astronomer

        When I heard the learn'd astronomer,
        When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,
        When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them,
        When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,
        How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,
        Till rising and gliding out I wander'd off by myself,
        In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
        Look'd up in perfect silence at the stars.

      Realism and Naturalism


      REALISM (1865-1915)


      Historical context

      Genre/Style

      • Realism: a reaction against romanticism
      • Focus on lives of ordinary people; rejected heroic and adventurous
      • Anti-materialism rejected the new "class" system
      • View of nature as a powerful and indifferent force beyond man's control
      • Naturalism (sub-genre of Realism)
        Like Realism but a darker view of the world
        The universe is unpredictable; fate is determined by chance; free will is an illusion
        Characters' lives are shaped by forces they can't understand or control
        Novels, short stories
        Often aims to change a specific social problem
        Dominant themes: survival, fate, violence, nature as an indifferent force

      Major Writers

      The Civil War (1855-1865)

      The Frontier (1865-1915)

      The Local Colorists (1865-1930)
      Regional writers tried to capture the essence of a particular area, or its "local color," by accurately depicting the distinctive qualities of its people and including vivid, realistic descriptions of the physical appearance of the environment. As America grew and became more diversified, the public became curious about the people and the style of life in different parts of the country. Regional literature satisfied their curiosity.

      New Poetic Forms

      Modernism Overview

      "Ezra Pound, whose famous exhortation 'Make it new' is rightly considered one of modernism's mottoes, was also urging writers to apply new energy to established forms" (PBS, "The American Novel," American Masters).


      MODERNISM (1915-1945)

      World War I had a tremendous impact on the attitudes and outlooks of the American people. Prior to World War I, the mood of American society was confident and optimistic. This mood was shattered by the horrifying realities of hundreds of thousands of Americans and Europeans. When the war ended, many people were left with a feeling of distrust toward the ideas and values of the past. People saw the need for change, but they were unsure about the sort of changes that were needed. There was growing sense of uncertainty, disjointedness, and disillusionment among certain members of American society.

      Historical context

      • Overwhelming technological changes
      • World War I first war of mass destruction
      • Grief over loss of past; fear of eroding traditions
      • Rise of youth culture
      • 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s

      In the aftermath of World War I, a major literary movement know as Modernism developed. Abandoning many traditional forms and techniques, the Modernists sought to capture the essence of modern life in both the form and content of their world. To reflect the disjointedness of modern life, they constructed their works out of fragments, omitting the expositions, resolutions, interpretations, transitions, and summaries often used in traditional works. The Modernists also frequently expressed their view about modern life in the themes of their works, often focusing on such themes as the uncertainty, bewilderment, and apparent meaninglessness of modern life.

      Genre/Style

      • Dominant mood: alienation/disconnection
      • Writers see to create a unique style
      • Writing highly experimental: use of fragments, stream of consciousness, interior dialogue

      Believing that modern life lacked certainty, the Modernist generally suggested rather than asserted meaning in their works. The theme of a typical Modernist work is implied, not stated, forcing readers to draw their own conclusions. Often, the Modernists used symbols and allusions to suggest themes. They also generally used a limited point of view in their works, believing that reality is shaped by people's perceptions. Finally, the Modernists experimented with a number of new literary techniques, including shifting points of view and stream-of-consciousness.

      Major Writers

      • Ernest Hemingway (1899-1961)
        Writing style: concise, direct, spare, objective, precise, rhythmic
        Major works include The Sun Also Rises, A Farewell to Arms
        For Whom the Bell Tolls, The Old Man and the Sea
        Larger than life hero; big game hunter; sport fisherman; headliner
        Won Pulitzer Prize and Nobel Prize for Literature

      • John Steinbeck
        Of Mice and Men and The Pearl
        Belief in the need for social justice
        Hope that people learn from the suffering of others
        Grapes of Wrath (combined naturalism and symbolism to express outrage and compassion for the plight of the farmers displaced by the Depression and Dustbowl)

      THE GREAT GATSBY


      MODERNISM (1915-1945)

      World War I had a tremendous impact on the attitudes and outlooks of the American people. Prior to World War I, the mood of American society was confident and optimistic. This mood was shattered by the horrifying realities of hundreds of thousands of Americans and Europeans. When the war ended, many people were left with a feeling of distrust toward the ideas and values of the past. People saw the need for change, but they were unsure about the sort of changes that were needed. There was growing sense of uncertainty, disjointedness, and disillusionment among certain members of American society.

      Historical context

      • Overwhelming technological changes
      • World War I first war of mass destruction
      • Grief over loss of past; fear of eroding traditions
      • Rise of youth culture
      • 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s

      In the aftermath of World War I, a major literary movement know as Modernism developed. Abandoning many traditional forms and techniques, the Modernists sought to capture the essence of modern life in both the form and content of their world. To reflect the disjointedness of modern life, they constructed their works out of fragments, omitting the expositions, resolutions, interpretations, transitions, and summaries often used in traditional works. The Modernists also frequently expressed their view about modern life in the themes of their works, often focusing on such themes as the uncertainty, bewilderment, and apparent meaninglessness of modern life.

      Genre/Style

      • Dominant mood: alienation/disconnection
      • Writers see to create a unique style
      • Writing highly experimental: use of fragments, stream of consciousness, interior dialogue

      Believing that modern life lacked certainty, the Modernist generally suggested rather than asserted meaning in their works. The theme of a typical Modernist work is implied, not stated, forcing readers to draw their own conclusions. Often, the Modernists used symbols and allusions to suggest themes. They also generally used a limited point of view in their works, believing that reality is shaped by people's perceptions. Finally, the Modernists experimented with a number of new literary techniques, including shifting points of view and stream-of-consciousness.


      F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896-1940)


      The Great Gatsby (ironic and tragic treatment of the American success myth)

      His work and life illustrate American culture of the 1920's

      First, his work as a short story writer:


      Visit Mrs. Steller's F. Scott Fitzgerald Gallery.

      Read his biography so that you will be familiar with him when we read The Great Gatsby.

      What is a bob?

      Read "Bernice Bobs Her Hair," a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald that is "a witty snapshot of the trials of a young debutante and her transformation into a jazzy flapper."

      Modern Novel: The Great Gatsby

      Index and Resources

      F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald

      To Live in the 1920s

      Fashions in the 1920s

      The Jazz Age

      The Roaring Twenties' Dance Craze

      The Flappers

      Harlem Jazz Age

      Fitzgerald Reading List

      "The Crack-up"

      Modern Short Stories


      Modern Short Stories (1915-1945)

      World War I had a tremendous impact on the attitudes and outlooks of the American people. Prior to World War I, the mood of American society was confident and optimistic. This mood was shattered by the horrifying realities of hundreds of thousands of Americans and Europeans. When the war ended, many people were left with a feeling of distrust toward the ideas and values of the past. People saw the need for change, but they were unsure about the sort of changes that were needed. There was growing sense of uncertainty, disjointedness, and disillusionment among certain members of American society.

      Historical context

      • Overwhelming technological changes
      • World War I first war of mass destruction
      • Grief over loss of past; fear of eroding traditions
      • Rise of youth culture
      • 1910s, 1920s, 1930s, 1940s

      In the aftermath of World War I, a major literary movement know as Modernism developed. Abandoning many traditional forms and techniques, the Modernists sought to capture the essence of modern life in both the form and content of their world. To reflect the disjointedness of modern life, they constructed their works out of fragments, omitting the expositions, resolutions, interpretations, transitions, and summaries often used in traditional works. The Modernists also frequently expressed their view about modern life in the themes of their works, often focusing on such themes as the uncertainty, bewilderment, and apparent meaninglessness of modern life.

      Genre/Style

      • Dominant mood: alienation/disconnection
      • Writers see to create a unique style
      • Writing highly experimental: use of fragments, stream of consciousness, interior dialogue

      Believing that modern life lacked certainty, the Modernist generally suggested rather than asserted meaning in their works. The theme of a typical Modernist work is implied, not stated, forcing readers to draw their own conclusions. Often, the Modernists used symbols and allusions to suggest themes. They also generally used a limited point of view in their works, believing that reality is shaped by people's perceptions. Finally, the Modernists experimented with a number of new literary techniques, including shifting points of view and stream-of-consciousness.

      Major Writers

      Sherwood Anderson

      Visit Sherwood Anderson.

      His most famous work is Winesburg, Ohio .

      Read "Sophistication" and answer these questions:

      "Sophistication" is a story of two people caught between adolescence and maturity. George and Helen strain toward a new awareness of life while they are still bound to the familiar life of Winesburg. What reasons are given in the fourth paragraph for George's "new sense of maturity"?




      The fifth paragraph describes the moment of sophistication, when a person first takes "the backward view of life." Anderson uses the image of a passing procession to suggest George's vision of the passing of time. What image does the author use to suggest the feelings of helplessness and uncertainty that accompany sophistication?




      The author describes youth as a struggle between two forces: "the warm unthinking little animal" and "the thing that reflects and remembers (Adventures in American Literature 466). Find a few instances in the story of the sturggle between these two forces. What do you think Anderson means by this conflict?




      At the end of the story, what do George and Helen gain from their silent evening together that "makes the mature life of men and women in the modern world possible"? What do you think George and Helen give up of their youth to gain this new-found sophistication?



      Katherine Anne Porter

      Visit Katherine Anne Porter.

      Read "The Jilting of Granny Weatherall" and answer the questions.



      What connotations does the name "Weatherall" have in the context of the story?



      How is it a suitable name for the main character, Granny?



      Cite examples to show that life has not been "too much for her."


      Identify the following characters and tell whether they are related primarily to Granny's "present" or to her "past": Cornelia, John, Doctor Harry, George, Father Connolly.







      What roles do these characters play in Granny's life and her thoughts?







      "She had spent so much time preparing for death there was not need for bringing it up again." Explain how, in light of the end of the story, this sentence is not true.








      Why is the jilting so important to Granny? How is the jilting related to the last paragraph of the story?








      In the story, figurative language is ofen used to convey Granny's state of mind: for example, to Granny, "Doctor Harry floated like a balloon around the foot of the bed." Find three other examples of figurative language used to convey a state of mind.



      Eudora Welty

      Visit the Eudora Welty Gallery.

      Read "A Worn Path" and answer the questions.

      The phoenix, a mythical bird, proved to be indestructible by rising from its own ashes after consuming itself in flames. Point out two or three incidents in which Phoenix Jackson triumphs over circumstances that threaten her.




      How does Phoenix herself prove to be indestructible?




      When Phoenix gets the second nickel from the attendant, she goes to buy a paper windmill for her grandson. How does her method of acquiring the nickles contribute emotional force to an important theme - her tireless love for her grandson?



      In what sense does Phoenix literally travel a worn path?



      How does the phrase refer more generally to her love for her grandson?





      Ernest Hemingway

      Read a biography of Hemingway .

      Read "Big Two-Hearted River" and answer the questions.

      The river runs through the scorched earth of Seney - beween the two "hearts," the fresh, sunlit meadow and the tangled, mist-shrouded swamp. What is significant about the fact that in the midst of a devastated countryside the river still contains living healthy fish?



      At what points in the story do you first become aware that something is wrong with Nick? Explain.



      Find passages in this story that express pleasure in purely physical sensations. Hemingway has a reputation for being able to convey precisely how a thing looks or how it feels. Do you think he deserves this reputations? Cite examples from the story to support your answer.




      Judging from the story, what do you think Hemingway considered important in life? What kinds of skills did he think it imortant for a person to have? How did he think a person should face life? Support your answers with details from the story.






      Why is trout fishing particularly difficult in a swamp? Why do think Nick sees fishing there as a "tragic adventure"?




      John Steinbeck

      Visit John Steinbeck at NobelPrize.org

      Read "Flight" and answer the questions.

      Describe three impressions that you get of the Torres family life from the first few paragraphs. Support each impression with details from the story.



      What admirable qualites do you find in Mama Torres?



      At the beginning of the story Pepe is described as "fragile" and "lazy." How are his appearance and behavior different when he returns from Monterey?



      How does Pepe's behavior during his flight support his mother's ideas of what changes a boy into a man?



      Is the story more, or less, interesting because you never see the pursuers or know anything about them?



      What is the first indication of real danger?



      How does Pepe's gradual shedding of his father's possessions parallel the increasing hopelessness of his situation?



      How doe Pepe's flight resemble that of an animal?



      What does he do during his flight to retain his dignity as a human being?



      Does the ending of the story satisfy you? Why or why not?





      William Faulkner

      Visit the William Faulkner Gallery.

      Read "The Bear" and answer the questions.

      The boy hunts the bear three times, when he is ten, eleven, and fourteen years old. The first hunt divides into several actions, as a kind of prelude to the other hunts. What does Sam teach the boy before the first hunt? How does Sam know the bear is near?






      As the boy sees the hound return with a tattered ear and raked shoulder, he imagines a cause far more universal than a bear:"...it was still no living creature, but the wilderness which, leaning for the moment down, had patted lightly once the hound's temerity." Interpret this sentence.





      During the second hunt, the boy seems to be on the track of something more than animals. Although the others think he is "hunting squirrels," what is he unconsiously teaching himself?





      Sam tells the boy that he will have to "choose." Between what two alternatives must the boy choose? In what sense can a coward be more dangerous than a brave person?





      As the boy advances farther into the woods, he realizes that he must abandon not only his gun but also his watch, compass, and stick. What does his abandonment of these things suggest is the real point of his hunting the bear?





      By the time the boy is fourteen, what qualifies him as a competent woodsman? What action marks his initiation as a true hunter?





      After the first hunt Say says, "We ain't got the dog yet." What kind of dog is needed for the hunt? How does this dog's nature relate to the choice that the boy has had to make?





      What has the boy finally acquired from his experiences in the wilderness that is more important than his skill as a woodsman?


      Thomas Wolfe

      Visit the Wolfe Gallery.

      Read "Circus at Dawn" and answer the questions.

      What three circus scenes are described and how does each scene convey the special qualities that might be missing during other times of day?



      Find descriptive phrases that are particularly effective in appealing to the senses.



      TEACHERS: Visit here for North Carolina Historic Sites and North Carolina Field Trips.

      Modern Poetry

      "Ezra Pound, whose famous exhortation 'Make it new' is rightly considered one of modernism's mottoes, was also urging writers to apply new energy to established forms" (PBS, "The American Novel," American Masters).


      Modern Poetry (1915-1945)

      from Adventures in American Literature, Heritage Edition, pages 626-627:

      "Modern poetry has often been described as experimental [,that is,]...the bold search for new forms of poetic expression...Among American poets, Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson stand at the forefront of modern poetry...In addition to these native sources, modern American poetry owes a debt to the symbolist movement, a late nineteenth-century French movement that had a profound influence on poets writing in English. Symbolism is based on the assumption that all external objects are 'symbols' of deeper, truer reality. Things that seem altogether unrelated are connected by surprising, secret links. The symbolist poet tends to avoid any direct statement of meaning and instead attempts to evoke meaning by establishing a mood and focusing on highly suggestive symbols."

      "Modern poetry embraces a great variety of styles...Many modern poems move quickly and unexpectedly from idea to idea, producing the sense of dislocation that some poets think is characteristic of modern life...[Other poets] were electing to rework traditional forms...Modern poetry is also characterized by certain pervasive themes...A feeling of anxiety about the world runs through much modern poetry. Extensive industrialization, rapid technological advance, new perceptions about human nature and the universe, and the general disillusionment produced by world war have contributed to changing the shape and tempo of modern life - seemingly for the worse...[As a result] some have written poems of protest; others have expressed the desire to escape form the modern world. Still others have responded to the challenge of modern life by affirming such universal values as beauty and love. [Finally,] Modern poets have been preoccupied with the nature and possibilities of human relationships, and the complex emotional and psychological elements that bear on them.

      Ezra Pound

      Imagism: Name given to a movement in poetry, originating in 1912 and represented by Ezra Pound, Amy Lowell, and others, aiming at clarity of expression through the use of precise visual images.

      Imagist: A group of American and English poets whose poetic program was formulated about 1912 by Ezra Pound - in conjunction with fellow poets Hilda Doolittle (H.D.), Richard Aldington, and F.S. Flint.

      The Imagists wrote succinct verse of dry clarity and hard outline in which an exact visual image made a total poetic statement. Imagism was a successor to the French Symbolist movement, but, whereas Symbolism had an affinity with music, Imagism sought analogy with sculpture.

      Imagist Manifesto

      • To use the language of common speech, but to employ the exact word, not the nearly-exact, nor the merely decorative word
      • We believe that the individuality of a poet may often be better expressed in free verse than in conventional forms. In poetry, a new cadence means a new idea.
      • Absolute freedom in the choice of subject
      • To present an image: We are not a school of painters, but we believe that poetry should render particulars exactly and not deal in vague generalities, however magnificent and sonorous.
      • To produce a poetry that is hard and clear, never blurred nor indefinite
      • Finally, most of us believe that concentration is of the very essence of poetry.

      William Carlos Williams

      Robert Frost: The Poetics of Robert Frost

      (wonderful poetry tutorial - "The Poetics of Robert Frost" by Carole Thompson
      Copyright 2001 The Friends of Robert Frost )

      Carl Sandburg

      Wallace Stevens

      Robinson Jeffers

      Marianne Moore

      T. S. Eliot

      John Crowe Ransom

      Edna St. Vincent Millay

      Archibald Macleish

      E. E. Cummings

      THE HARLEM RENAISSANCE

      Richard Eberhart

      Robert Penn Warren

      Theodore Roethke

      Elizabeth Bishop

      Robert Hayden

      Randall Jarrell

      John Berryman

      Robert Lowell

      Gwendolyn Brooks

      James Dickey

      Anne Sexton

      • acrostic: a poem that spells out a word.
      • alliteration: the repetition of initial identical consonants sounds or vowel sounds (usually at the beginning of a word
      • anaphora: repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of the line
      • ssonance: matched vowels are the same, but the consonants are not the same
      • beat poetry: may be confessional; often a "howl of protest" against conformity and conservatism of the 1950's
      • blank verse: metrically traditional, but without rhyme
      • closure: how does the poem bring things together at the end?
      • confessional poetry: a school of poetry where the poet may expose personal, taboo, difficult things about themselves
      • dramatic monologue poetry often does this, but the poet is confessing from within another persona's mind
      • concrete/conceptual poetry (also called language poetry): a school of poetry that often focuses on the visual aspect of writing (concrete); the visual shape of letters and their placement on the page rather than the content or meaning of language is often foregrounded; some concrete poets do collages of language and drawings, colors, photos etc. Some play with the sound of words rather than their meaning (conceptual)
      • consonance: the repetition of ending consonant sounds, but the vowel sounds are different
      • couplet: a two line stanza, or the same rhyme pattern in two conjoined lines
      • dramatic monologue: a poem that dramatizes someone's thoughts and actions; the persona of the poem talks directly to "us" or an unseen other
      • end rhyme: rhymed sound at the end of the line
      • endstop: the line ends with a period or the feeling of a period
      • enjamb: a run-on at the end of the line; can lead to added meaning and interestingly interrupted rhythms
      • exposition: often more abstract explanations or philosophical ruminations (usually in narration)
      • foot: a group of 2 or 3 stressed and unstressed syllables
      • formalism: following traditional, given poetic forms like sonnets, villanelles
      • found poem: some odd and interesting language/visual artifact the poet lifts from a sidewalk, bus seat, horoscope, graffiti, cliché etc. The poet may merely pick it up off the street, or they may construct a piece from found items. Also called a "readymade" during the dada visual art period (Duchamp's "Fountain"). A purposeful slap in the face of traditional definitions of what art should be.
      • free verse: less structured, more organically
      • haiku: a 3 line, one stanza poem; traditionally Japanese and about nature; usually has a syllable count of 5, 7, 5 and lacks rhyme and metaphor
      • iamb: a foot with an unaccented syllable and an accented syllable
      • imagery: any kind of concrete (sensory) image whether literal or figurative
      • internal rhyme: rhymed sound before the end of the line
      • metaphor: same as simile, but without "like" or "as"; creates a more surreal effect (makes the figurative almost literal); comparison of things that are not necessarily alike (unlike metonymy). Made of two parts, the tenor, or the literal thing/abstraction, and the vehicle, the non-literal, usually very concrete, comparison
      • meter or metrics: the use of patterns of stressed and unstressed rhythms (or beats) in a poetic line sometimes following strict, traditional forms (or violating those forms in free verse)
      • metonymy: part of imagery; as opposed to metaphor, a comparison of similar things; naming something by it's attribute--where one thing stands for something larger; i.e. we often say Washington when referring to the US Government.
      • minimalist poetry: a focus on simple, concrete images using less metaphor, less adjectives and adverbs, and less exposition (William Carlos Williams)
      • modernist poetry: a school of poetry that moved away from the emotions, the focus on coherent notions of the self of the romantics; often experiments with form (or focuses on form) to examine the fragmentation of subjectivity or selfhood; begins in 1914 with WWI
      • narration: descriptions of what is happening, of setting, of scenes of action (or lack of action)
      • neo-formalism: following traditional forms but with a new, 21st century, twist (often violating form more, or violating the subject-matter of traditional forms
      • new criticism: a literary reading theory that looks at the parts of a piece of writing (usually a poem) to see how they all fit marvelously together to create a beautiful, organic whole with cohesive symbolic moves.
      • ode: a poem that commemorates or celebrates; written for an occasion; contemporary odes (neo-formal) are likely to be about contemporary more cynical or popular culture subjects; Classic Odes have three parts
      • pentameter: a line with 5 feet; iambic pentameter therefore has 10 syllables (often used by Shakespeare)
      • persona: the eyes or voice or speaker or attitude or vision of the poem; like a narrator in prose
      • personification: when an object/animal is given figurative human attributes
      • postmodernist poetry: a more extreme, more avant-garde extension of modernist poetry (often comprised of anything after 1945); may focus on collage, pastiche, sexuality, humor, or form dominating or erasing content; the meaningless or difficulty or imposibility of being a subject (of constructing a self) in a world that could end at any moment
      • prose poem: a poem that has more grammatical or longer sentences and/or more of a narrative
      • refrain: a repeating line/verse in a song or a poem
      • rhyme scheme: a repeated pattern of end rhymes; usually marked with letters of the alphabet (ABBA would mark a rhyme scheme in the first stanza of, say, dog/man/plan/fog; CDDC would mark a rhyme scheme in the second stanza of, say, map/press/dress/slap)
      • romantic poetry (romantic poet): a specific "school" of poetry (or a grouping of poets doing similar things; a movement) that focused on celebrating the energy and beauty of nature; nature as spirituality, as more "real"
      • scansion: scanning the rhythm of a line by locating patterns of feet with stressed and unstressed syllables
      • scene: when place and time are specifically described; may involve dialogue or narrative (chronological action/plot)
      • sestet: a six line stanza (not usually the same rhyme pattern in each line, however)
      • sestina: a 7 stanza poem with 6 six-lined stanzas and an ending three-lined stanza; rhyme scheme is a difficult rotating repetition of the same end words rather than true rhyme
      • similes: imagistic comparison of a literal idea or image (referent) with a figurative concrete image (vehicle) using "like" or "as"
      • slant rhyme (off rhyme): substitution of assonance or consonance for true rhyme
      • sonnet: 14 line poem; Shakespearian sonnet has one stanza (usually in iambic pentameter, 10 syllables in each line), other English Sonnets may have 4 stanzas (rhyme scheme--ABABCDCDEFEFGG); Italian sonnet has an octave (8 lines; ABBABBA) and a sestet (6 lines; CDECDE)
      • stanza: a grouping of lines in a poem (much like a paragraph); the number of lines can follow a strict form, or be organically chosen as in free verse
      • stressed syllables: use ¯ or / to mark it when you're trying to find the pattern of a line's rhythm (as opposed to merely reading the poem for meaning or enjoyment)
      • symbol: something that is itself and also stands for something else
      • tension: a poem (or any piece of writing) needs sense of conflict
      • true rhyme: the last syllable rhyme sounds (and is usually spelled) exactly the same
      • typographical rhythms: the way white space in front of, in the middle of, or after lines creates rhythmic pauses and variations in meaning and emphasis
      • unstressed syllables: use "u"to mark it
      • villanelle: a 19 line form using only two rhymes and repeating two of the lines according to a set pattern.