Early American Writing Early writers focused on describing and trying to make sense out of their...
-
Upload
lorin-russell -
Category
Documents
-
view
213 -
download
0
Transcript of Early American Writing Early writers focused on describing and trying to make sense out of their...
Unit 1
KEY IDEA For thousands of years, Native Americans regarded themselves as caretakers, not owners, of the land. The Europeans who began arriving in North America, however, saw things differently. They laid claim to the land and aggressively defended it from Native Americans–and from one another. In the end, the British claim overpowered all others. Yet the question remains: What entitles people to claim land as their own?
Unit 1
Unit 1
KEY IDEA America’s early explorers traveled for many reasons: to gain glory for themselves or for their countries, to find gold or other riches, to discover new routes for travel and trade. Yet none of these motivators alone seems enough to make the uncertainties of exploration–unknown destinations, unknown rewards, unknown dangers–worth the risk. What is it that causes people to seek out the unknown?
Unit 1
Unit 1
KEY IDEA Puritan settlers believed that human beings were sinful creatures doomed to a fiery eternity unless saved by the grace of God. Yet others who came to North America celebrated the powers of reason and proclaimed the goodness and intrinsic worth of humans. Are people destined always to struggle against their basest instincts? Or are they fundamentally good–and capable of becoming even better?
Unit 1
Unit 1
KEY IDEA For centuries, European kings and queens had ruled because it was believed that they had a God-given right to do so. But in the Age of Enlightenment, people began to question basic assumptions about government. In America, a popular uprising put a new kind of government to the test: democracy. With this experiment, the young American nation was asking: Who really has the right to rule?
Unit 1
Early American Writing Early writers focused on describing and trying to
make sense out of their challenging and new environment
Millions of people lived in the Americas before the arrival of the Europeans
First relationships between Native Americans and Europeans was cooperative, until the Europeans began to force them off their land
From a colony to a country First colony –
Jamestown (1607) Loyal to England but
not represented Broke from England
and declared “free and independent” in 1776
Founding fathers, Franklin, Jefferson, Hancock, etc. wrote Declaration of Independence
Adopted in 1788 – United States was born
Cultural influences Puritan beliefs and
values directed people’s lives
Struggle with sin a daily mission
Felt humans were sinful; some “elect would be spared from hell
Ideas of the age Burst of intellectual
energy – Enlightenment Questioned who
should hold power “Give me liberty or
give me death!” Emphasized reason
The Great Awakening – fear that Puritan values were being lost Called for people to
rededicate themselves
Unified colonists and set new standards
Emphasized emotion
Early American Literature Native American
Experience 300 cultures, over
200 languages One common
activity – storytelling
Much oral tradition was lost to European diseases
Explorers and Early Settlers Journals, diaries,
letters and logs of first settlers (Christopher Columbus)
Settlers wrote home and described the landscape
The Puritan Tradition Believed writing was
a tool to help understand the Bible
Logic, clarity and order are emphasized in their style
Sermons warn the dangers of sinful ways
Puritan poets Anne Bradstreet Edward Taylor
Poetry is a means of exploring the relationship between the individual and God
Writers of the revolution Focused energies on
matters of government rather than religion
Publication of pamphlets – 1763-1783 Fueled the
revolution Reached thousands
quickly
Thomas Paine Wrote Common Sense Argued that American
had a special destiny to be a model to the rest of the world
Welcome people from around the world to its free society
Writing that launched a nation Declaration of
Independence Argued that natural
law would govern (people are born with rights and freedoms)
Government protects those freedoms
Other significant writers Phillis Wheatley – wrote poems and letters
about the rights of African-Americans
Abigail Adams – urged her husband, 2nd President, to include women’s rights in the founding documents