Early American Literature

Paper Summary:

The paper discusses the first period of the American literature that was influenced by a sense of religiousness and then shows how American literature changed from a religious-based philosophy to a political-based one, with the works of Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Paine. The paper looks at the literature trends in the period of the American Revolution and during the Civil War. The paper concludes that the theme "a new start" in American literature represented an important step in the establishment of the national identity of the American people in each of its important moments.

From the Paper:

"The history of the American literature can be considered to be in deep contact with the history of the American nation itself. It represents a close mirror image of the way in which the United States came into being. This is largely due to the fact that one of the few means of manifestation for the early colonists that came in America to manifest themselves was the literary field. At the same time though, literature was largely used to express the feelings and emotions of the beginning of the nation. This is why, from this point of view, it is important to consider the history of the American literature as part of the wider attempt to construct the cultural identity of a nation."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Funston, Judith E. (1990) "Authority, Autonomy, and Representation in American Literature, 1776-1865". by Mark R. Patterson. Review. The Journal of American History, Vol. 77, No. 2., pp. 650-651.
• Kwok, Gordon. (2001) Civil War Poetry. 13 Feb 2008 http://hometown.aol.com/gordonkwok/cwpoetry.html
• Larkin, Edward. (2008). Thomas Paine and the Literature of Revolution. Cambridge University Press.
• Outline of American Literature. (2006). Democratic Origins and Revolutionary Writers, 1776-1820. USINFO.STATE.GUV website. 13 Feb 2008 http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/oal/lit2.htm
• Outline of American Literature. (2006). Early American and Colonial Period to 1776. 13 Feb 2008 http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/oal/oaltoc.htm

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