Moran: the final countdown

Five things that I did not know about America

1. That the Puritan colonists believed in predestination.
2. That America was born out of a mix of the opposing forces of Puritanism and the Enlightenment.
3. That Americans had a history of viewing nature with awe.
4. That many feminists were at the head of the abolitionist movement.
5. That many Americans have a history of celebrating the individual.


Five things that I did not know about American literature

1. That the idea of the ‘self made man’, which would become a model for the American dream, originated with Ben Franklin.
2. That authors such as Washington Irving and James Cooper wrote intending to create ‘American Literature’.
3. That Nathaniel Hawthorne was the descendant of a judge at the Salem witch trials.
4. That the gothic writing style often commented on the theme of slavery, especially Poe.
5. That many themes of American writers discuss the balance of man’s place in society with his connection to nature.


I think the biggest surprise I encountered this year was how much American Literature differed from the rest of the world. I assumed that there were some differences between writers in America and the rest of Europe but I thought that they all followed the movement and styles of the time. I think that the differences can be attributed to our origins. The majority of the American colonies were started by the Puritans who brought over their deeply religious views, while in contrast, the United States was a child of the enlightenment and the two binary opposites have created a unique culture with a unique style of literature.

Girau, Literature and America in all its glory

Five things learned about America

- The first American settlers, The Puritans, left because of religious persecution from Europe, and believed in Divine Intervention- the idea that God ruled all. The idea of predestination was understood that good people go to heaven to show God’s mercy. This idea led them to determine that people were either saved or condemned.

- The early writers as well as painters of America emphasize as well as understood nature as an essential part of human life. We view nature now more from a scenic view point of tranquility and peace i.e. pictures of trees, grass, flowers. Because we are not anywhere as dependent on nature as we once were, when America was first founded.

- America experienced The Enlightenment Era which was understood as men having the tools to understand the universe that led to changes in science, the social contract, and human’s altogether.

- Great Awakening led to the idea that repentance and a good life can earn salvation for the damned or the idea that you can determine your own destiny..- John Edwards, Calvinists

- Anne Hutchinson, a great American preacher, was convicted as heretic for maintaining that it was a blessing not a curse to be a woman. The interpretation of the Bible as literal was an essential to the Puritan lifestyle. So, women were viewed as temptresses because of Eve’s sin in the Garden of Eden. She was excommunicated for expressing her thoughts of the recent theological sermons.

American Literature

- American Literature has many different aliases.

- Edgar Allen Poe while being a brilliant writer makes me want to jump off a bridge.

- I now consider myself a Transcendentalist, because I trust my inner self like Alcott, Thoreau, and Emerson

- Puritans were incredibly obtuse. The Salem deaths due to the conviction by the possessed girls, in my opinion, were a load of crap and I would love nothing more than to slap those girls.

- The story of “The Birthmark” exemplifies in my life that perfection is unobtainable and that flaws is what makes a person unique.

Williams, Whitman and Dickinson

The two great American poets, Whitman and Dickinson couldn't have lived more disparate lives: one a lifelong recluse, too shy to come downstairs and say "hello"; the other a traveler over all of the United States, gregarious and curious. While these different lifestyles certainly contribute to major differences in their poetry, a certain American identity still ties the two together.

The first chant of Whitman's "Song of Myself" celebrates, well, himself. He sings forth his individual self so that he may feel the connection with all other things and people around him. He asserts " My tongue, every atom of my blood, form'd from this soil, this air, / Born here of parents born here from parents the same, and their parents the same." Whitman feels intimately and eternally connected to not only all living people but to all living things as well. The conceit of the grass, pervasive of the whole poem and introduced in this first chant, represents the unity connecting all beings. Emily Dickinson, on the other hand, uses a metaphor from nature to ridicule people in "I'm Nobody! Who Are You?", an interesting reversal of Whitman's style. Dickinson expresses the urge to remain hidden to the world, a fierce claim laid on her individuality. She is resolutely "Nobody" and wishes to remain that way, rather than become the frog who tells its name "the livelong June--/ To an admiring Bog!" While Whitman wishes to expose himself in order to achieve unity with the universe, Dickinson wants only to remain an anonymous individual. However, both poets have just that in common: a celebration of individuality.

HENRY, LITERATURE CAN CHANGE THE WORLD?!

In the past semester, we have read the works of many authors and I have enjoyed most of them. However, now I understand that America could use some tending to, yet it does have it good points and great authors. This semester I have learned that America is, greedy, selfish, strong, unpredictable, and a great place to live. A few things that I have learned about American literature is that: being able to express oneself is extremely healthy and important, darkness is not always a bad thing, God and love are extremely important, disobedience is a good thing if in means bad things will change, and that women are extremely important to mankind (regardless of the fact that they give life). Theses ten thing have improved my view on America. These writings have allowed me to understand that I hold a big piece of America even though I am a black woman; all I have to do is claim what is mine. I have also come to terms with the fact that America is not perfect, and it is going to take reform after reform to make it better. Plus perfection is over rated and boring, unless your name is JESUS then its fine. Another way this course has changed my perception on America is that now I know that and am sure about this, people back then had it rough! So I see this country was built on fear and strength, and Whites and Blacks contributed a lot. Even though early blacks had it much harder in the worst way and for that reason I learned that America is also greedy, selfish, and hypocritical at times. I will never understand how early Americans claimed to see God in everything, yet condoned slavery. All and all America needs a lot of work, and writing is the first step to assure that attention. That is if anyone reads it.

Rogers, 10 things

1. Anne Hutchinson’s secret radicalism/feminism
Anne Hutchinson’s plight shows that feminism was circulating even in early America and this changed my perspective that every woman regarded herself as property in the early days
2. Early American Communism
I was unaware that early American society was so socialist in nature- the entire community banded together and not just in prayer.
3. Myths as they sustain American identity
I have never recognized the prevalence of myths in American culture- they are woven into the fabric of our history
4. Slavery a bane for not only slaves but also slaveholders
I never before looked on the slave-owners as being pitiable, but have come to understand that when you enslave someone else your own soul in turn becomes enslaved and you lose your humanity when you deny someone else’s right to freedom.
5. Return to Puritan evangelicalism in the 1830s
I see progression as moving away from evangelical religious ideas. The second great awakening snuck up on me and it’s interesting to see that progressive thought wasn’t as rampant as I believed.

1. Jeremiads vs. American exceptionalism
Authors were producing Jeremiads by the handful but there was still an innate belief in American Exceptionalism and how we know the best way of doing things and are not subject to universal standards.
2. Tragedy in the common man- John Proctor, “The Crucible”
It was interesting to see the perpetuation of tragedy as seen in the common man, for example John Proctor is manipulated by one young girl.
3. Poe’s life in death and death in life (Masque of the red death)
I was somewhat aware of Poe’s preoccupation with death, as everyone is, however after reading Masque of the Red Death the alternate perspective of death in life was made clear.
4. Herman Melville’s anti- Romanticism
I never thought of Melville as an “Anti -Romantic”, but the innately hostile landscape (world as hell), the inhospitable and untenable human communities make it clear that that is exactly what he is
5. Narrative vs. Incidents
I would never have previously been able to distinguish between a Frederick Douglas’ and Harriet Jacobs’ works but now I understand the idea of a proactive voice vs. a passive one.

Martin-Klumpp, 10 Things I Didn't Know About You, America.

10 Things I Didn’t Know About You, America.

American History
1. Puritanism has a very long lasting influence in America.
2. America is built on the idea that there is no past, only an ever-growing future.
3. There is a constant push and pull between the covenant of grace and the covenant of works, i.e. an independent spirit and an obligation to the community.
4. America is a world filled with natural depravity and a natural innocence.
5. America, the land of the free, is built upon the subjugation of non-white-males (e.g. slavery and women even in the North).

Literature
6. American literature is very paradoxical, often contradicting itself as a result of the beliefs it was founded upon which began with Puritanism.
7. Amercian literature can be very dark, filled with an aura of gloom and mystery.
8. Wilderness and nature are two important themes found in many American works, but they take on very different ideas.
9. American authors are often hypocrites. Thank you, Franklin and Emerson, etc.
10. Alcott is awesome.

This course has changed my view on American literature. I didn’t really know or read any American literature before this class, other than several years ago in high school and I really didn't care for it then. I now understand the paradoxes that contribute to the development of the country and literature and have a new appreciation for what contributed to American lit. The influence of Puritanism is still present today, which is something that I didn't really thing still existed. However, many American works attempt to deny the past of the nation, and yet contain the same themes found in the works before them. All in all, America is one confusing place.

Tahir, America!

I learned many things this stimulating semester, but these can be condensed into ten of the most enlightening. Concerning American literature, I learned that Hawthorne is actually a great author. In high school, I despised this man, and abhorred The Scarlett Letter so much so that I did not read it through till the end, and passed that test on my own wits. But his short stories were my favorite of the whole semester! Interesting to see how my outlook on Hawthorne has changed so drastically. I also learned that Alcott wrote under a pseudonym, and that the name she used was a man's. I didn't think that women had to fear rejection by the public in her time, but I suppose they still did so since she employed the use of a pseudonym. I learned that the Gothic movement, if it can be called that, arose in response to the replacement of the Enlightenment's rational, orderly world-view with the shaky and suspicious universe that came into being during the late eighteenth century. I also learned that Thoreau's mother did his laundry every weekend when he lived in supposed seclusion at Walden, and that apparently this was normal for men of this time period. That is suprising. Have men always been babied? Perhaps the most important thing I learned was that guilt is something that is completely different from remorse, and how to differentiate between the two feelings. Both of these feelings produce different types of works of literature.
One of the things I learned about America was how big of an impact the Puritans actually made on our nation, and how the repercussions of their way of thinking can even be seen today. I didn't think they were so important to our nation's history, besides signing the Mayflower Compact. I learned that Benjamin Franklin was perhaps our country's first "rational man," and that his method of viewing the world has shaped our identity as well. To my shock, Walt Whitman was arrested for homosexual tendencies in New Orleans, one of the most homosexual cities in the world; I suppose people couldn't flaunt their sexuality as openly back then as they do now. That is strange to me since I've always thought New Orleans was a racy, liberal city. I learned that the early American people feared nature and viewed it as dark, and that gradually this changed to a love of the wild that can be seen in later works by Thoreau and Whitman. I learned that Moby Dick is one of the best books ever and that we all should read it one day.
How has my perspective changed? I used to sort of believe that American literature wasn't up to par with, say, European literature, but this is most definitely not the case. That was a foolish, half-formed notion in my mind that I'm glad has faded away. I suppose I appreciate America more. For though some of the Puritan way of thinking is still seen in our conscious today, we have still changed so much from their era. We will constantly keep on changing and forming new identities, which I find reassuring, since the way we are viewing the world right now is causing nothing but problems for everyone.