The Evolution of Literature pre-1860

Literature fulfilled many purposes in Early America.  From the beginnings to the 1700s early explorers used literature as a way of documenting their journeys. 

Columbus

Christopher Columbus wrote letters to the Queen and King describing his journeys, Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca wrote letters about his appreciation for what the Native Americans’ care of him.  The explorers documented on topics such as, religion, culture, national identity, and the founding of a new land called America, and the inhabitants they encountered in America.   

Franklin

Benjamin Franklin wrote about the differences in civility of the Native Americans and Colonial people.  During the Colonial period of 1700 through 1820 the religion and politics of England played a major role in the shaping of American literature.  Puritans came to America to practice their religion without the strict reign of England.  William Bradford was among the first settlement of “Pilgrims” he called, a “community of believers” because of their choice to practice their religion unlike England called “Separatists” (Baym et al., 2008, pp. 57, 58).  

The Revolutionary period brought the Age of Enlightenment.   Philip Freneau, considered the “Poet of the American Revolution” wrote honestly about siders of the British monarchy (Baym et al., 2008, p. 416).  He wrote about nature, the Indian burial rituals, and his trials and tribulations during the war.

Melville

The American Renaissance was an extension of England’s Romanticism period, but America wanted its own type of writing style.  It was a period of awakening of the Arts, and Transcendentalists such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Herman Melville were at the forefront of this movement.    

The pre-Civil War period literature included essays, fiction, and plays about race polities, gender, and rhetoric that threatened America’s national identity.   American’s such as Thomas Jefferson, one of our Nation’s founding fathers spoke of equality for all while being a slave owner himself.  Encouraged writers of the antebellum period such as David Walker stood up to the hypocritical views of our countries’ leaders saying, “…..our oppression ought not hinder us from acquiring all we can” (Baym et al., 2008 p. 754, para. 1).  Early American literature matters to us now because not only is it a form of entertainment, it describes to us how our country was formed.  It’s important for us to know about our country’s history so that we don’t make the same mistakes, and so we can build on the positive aspects that make our country unique (Bailey, 2011).

References:

Bailey, E. (2011). Why American history matters now. Historical Reflection. Retrieved from                 http://historicalreflection.com/

Baym, N., Franklin, W., Gura, P.F., Klinkowitz, J., Krupat, A., Levine, R.S., et al. (2008). The  Norton  anthology American literature. (Shorter 7th ed., Vol. 1). New York, NY: W.W. Norton.