American Literary Movements (11th Grade Review).pdf

‭Covered in 10th Grade‬ ‭Native American‬‭(Before 1600)‬ ‭ ative American literature, deeply rooted in‬ N ‭oral tradition‬‭, consists of‬‭epic tales, creation‬ ‭myths, songs, and poetry passed down‬ ‭through generations‬‭. These stories,‬‭rich with‬ ‭symbolism and moral lesson...

‭Covered in 10th Grade‬ ‭Native American‬‭(Before 1600)‬ ‭ ative American literature, deeply rooted in‬ N ‭oral tradition‬‭, consists of‬‭epic tales, creation‬ ‭myths, songs, and poetry passed down‬ ‭through generations‬‭. These stories,‬‭rich with‬ ‭symbolism and moral lessons‬‭, often‬‭explain‬ ‭natural phenomena‬‭or cultural practices.‬ ‭Prominent figures include Black Elk, a Lakota‬ ‭Sioux holy man whose life and teachings‬ ‭were recorded in‬‭Black Elk Speaks‬‭. (In‬ ‭contemporary literature, authors like‬ ‭Sherman Alexie (‬‭The Lone Ranger and Tonto‬ ‭Fistfight in Heaven‬‭), Joy Harjo, the first Native‬ ‭American Poet Laureate of the United States‬ ‭(‬‭An American Sunrise‬‭), Tommy Orange (‬‭There‬ ‭There‬‭), and Leslie Marmon Silko (‬‭Ceremony‬‭)‬ ‭have revived and reinterpreted Native‬ ‭American traditions, exploring themes of‬ ‭identity, displacement, and survival.)‬  ‭Covered in 10th Grade‬ ‭Puritanism or Colonial‬‭(1620-1750)‬ ‭ uritan literature was heavily influenced by‬ P ‭religious beliefs‬‭and the desire to create a‬ ‭'city upon a hill,' a model of Christian living.‬ ‭Works from this period often focus on the‬ ‭spiritual journey of individuals, detailing‬‭the‬ ‭challenges and triumphs of leading a pious‬ ‭life in the New World‬‭. William Bradford’s‬‭Of‬ ‭Plymouth Plantation‬‭and Anne Bradstreet’s‬ ‭poetry are key examples. Jonathan Edwards’‬ ‭sermon‬‭Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God‬ ‭captures the intense religious fervor of the‬ ‭time,‬‭warning of divine wrath‬‭and urging‬ ‭repentance.‬  ‭Covered in 10th Grade‬ ‭ evolutionary, Age of Reason,‬ R ‭Enlightenment‬‭(1750-1800)‬ ‭ his period saw the‬‭rise of American‬ T ‭political thought‬‭and a‬‭focus on reason,‬ ‭science,‬‭and‬‭skepticism.‬‭Enlightenment‬ ‭writers like Thomas Paine‬ ‭(‬‭Common Sense‬‭) and Benjamin‬ ‭Franklin (‬‭Poor Richard’s‬ ‭Almanack‬‭) used satire and wit to‬ ‭critique British rule and‬ ‭promote independence.‬ ‭Thomas Jefferson’s‬‭The‬ ‭Declaration of Independence‬‭embodies‬ ‭Enlightenment ideals, asserting‬‭the rights of‬ ‭individuals to life, liberty, and the pursuit of‬ ‭happiness‬‭. Literature from this era reflects a‬ ‭growing‬‭confidence in human reason‬‭and a‬ ‭belief in progress.‬  ‭Covered in 11th Grade‬ ‭Romanticism, American Gothic‬‭(1800-1865)‬ ‭ omanticism‬‭in America emphasized‬‭emotion,‬ R ‭nature,‬‭and‬‭individualism‬‭,‬‭rejecting the‬ ‭rationalism of the Enlightenment.‬‭Romanticism‬ ‭coincided with a period of nation-building and‬‭a‬ ‭growing sense of American identity distinct from‬ ‭European roots‬‭. For American Romantics,‬ ‭celebrating the‬‭unique spirit, landscape, and‬ ‭democratic ideals of America‬‭became important.‬ ‭Washington Irving (‬‭The Legend of Sleepy Hollow‬‭),‬ ‭James Fenimore Cooper (‬‭The Last of the Mohicans‬‭),‬ ‭and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (poetry) were‬ ‭all key figures in shaping a distinctly American‬ ‭voice.‬ ‭ he‬‭Gothic subgenre‬‭, with its fascination‬ T ‭with the‬‭dark‬‭, the‬‭mysterious‬‭, and the‬ ‭supernatural‬‭, was mastered by Edgar‬ ‭Allan Poe (‬‭The Raven‬‭,‬‭The Fall of the House of‬ ‭Usher‬‭). His works delve into the‬‭human psyche‬‭,‬ ‭exploring themes of madness, death, and the‬ ‭macabre. Other prominent authors and poets‬ ‭within this genre include Nathaniel Hawthorne,‬ ‭William Faulkner, and Emily Dickinson.‬  ‭Covered in 11th Grade‬ ‭Transcendentalism‬‭(1840-1860)‬ ‭ ranscendentalism emerged as a philosophical‬ T ‭movement emphasizing the‬‭inherent goodness of‬ ‭individuals‬‭and their capacity to transcend the‬ ‭physical world through‬‭self-reliance, nature,‬‭and‬ ‭personal intuition.‬‭It arose as a reaction against‬‭the‬ ‭rigid religious and social structures of the time. Ralph‬ ‭Waldo Emerson, a leading figure, articulated the‬ ‭movement’s core ideas in essays like "Self-Reliance" and "Nature."‬ ‭He advocated for‬‭trusting one's inner voice‬‭and finding‬‭truth‬ ‭within oneself‬‭rather than adhering to societal norms‬‭.‬‭Henry‬ ‭David Thoreau, influenced by Emerson, documented his‬ ‭experiment in simple living at Walden Pond in his book‬‭Walden‬‭,‬ ‭and argued for civil disobedience in his essay "Civil‬ ‭Disobedience," promoting‬‭resistance to unjust laws‬‭.‬‭Margaret‬ ‭Fuller extended Transcendentalist ideas into the realm of social‬ ‭reform with her work "Woman in the Nineteenth Century,"‬ ‭where she championed women’s rights and gender equality,‬ ‭making Transcendentalism a platform for‬‭broader social‬‭change‬‭.‬ ‭Bronson Alcott, known for his innovative educational methods,‬ ‭and his daughter Louisa May Alcott, who incorporated‬ ‭Transcendentalist values into her writing, further influenced the‬ ‭movement. At its core, Transcendentalism‬‭rejected‬‭societal‬ ‭institutions‬‭and promoted a‬‭return to nature‬‭, where‬‭individuals‬ ‭could connect with the divine and cultivate personal morality.‬ ‭This philosophy influenced a range of cultural and literary‬ ‭figures, including poet Walt Whitman, whose‬‭Leaves‬‭of Grass‬ ‭celebrated individuality and the‬‭interconnectedness‬‭of life‬‭.‬ ‭Transcendentalist ideals also‬‭played a role in social‬‭justice‬ ‭movements, such as abolitionism‬‭, leaving a lasting‬‭impact on‬ ‭American thought and literature.‬  ‭Covered in 11th Grade‬ ‭Realism and Naturalism‬‭(1865-1914)‬ ‭ ealism‬‭sought to depict‬‭life as it truly was‬‭,‬ R ‭often focusing on the‬‭everyday lives of‬ ‭ordinary people‬‭. Mark Twain’s‬‭The Adventures of‬ ‭Huckleberry Finn‬‭is a quintessential example,‬ ‭using regional dialects and vivid descriptions of‬ ‭the Mississippi River to explore themes of race‬ ‭and identity.‬ ‭ aturalism‬‭, an offshoot of realism,‬ N ‭portrayed‬‭humans as products of‬ ‭their environment, shaped by‬ ‭forces beyond their control.‬‭Jack‬ ‭London’s‬‭The Call of the Wild‬ ‭illustrates the‬‭harsh realities‬‭of war and‬ ‭wilderness survival. John Steinbeck's‬‭Of Mice and‬ ‭Men‬‭captures the struggles and aspirations of‬ ‭ordinary people during The Great Depression,‬ ‭using a realistic approach to explore broader‬ ‭social issues.‬  ‭Covered in 11th Grade‬ ‭Modernism and The Lost Generation‬‭(1914-1945)‬ ‭ odernism emerged as a response to the‬ M ‭disillusionment‬‭of World War I,‬ ‭questioning traditional values‬‭and‬ ‭experimenting with new literary forms‬‭.‬ ‭F. Scott Fitzgerald’s‬‭The Great Gatsby‬ ‭captures the decadence and despair of the‬ ‭Jazz Age, while Ernest Hemingway’s‬‭The Sun Also Rises‬ ‭explores the aimlessness of the Lost Generation.‬ ‭William Faulkner’s‬‭The Sound and the Fury‬‭and‬ ‭Virginia Woolf’s‬‭Mrs. Dalloway‬‭are noted for their‬ ‭stream-of-consciousness techniques, delving deep‬ ‭into the minds of their characters.‬‭The Lost‬ ‭Generation‬‭, disillusioned by World War I, included‬ ‭writers like Fitzgerald, Hemingway, and Gertrude‬ ‭Stein, who sought meaning in a world that seemed to‬ ‭have lost its moral compass. Modernist literature‬ ‭often reflects a fragmented world‬‭, yet retains an‬ ‭underlying optimism about the‬‭potential for‬ ‭personal and societal transformation.‬  ‭Covered in 11th Grade‬ ‭The Harlem Renaissance‬‭(1917-1937)‬ ‭ he Harlem Renaissance was a cultural‬ T ‭explosion in Harlem, New York, where‬ ‭African American artists, musicians, and‬ ‭writers celebrated their heritage and‬ ‭explored new forms of expression‬‭.‬ ‭Langston Hughes, with his‬‭jazz-influenced‬ ‭poetry‬‭like‬‭The Weary Blues‬‭, and Zora Neale‬ ‭Hurston, author of‬‭Their Eyes Were Watching God‬‭, were‬‭central‬ ‭figures. This period coincided with the Jazz Age and the‬ ‭Roaring Twenties, an era of prosperity and excess captured‬ ‭in Fitzgerald’s‬‭The Great Gatsby‬‭(though this is not‬‭considered‬ ‭HR literature.) The period engaged with‬‭social and‬‭political‬ ‭change‬‭,‬‭addressing issues of civil rights‬‭and advocating‬‭for‬ ‭social justice.‬ ‭Beat Generation‬‭(1950-1965)‬ ‭ he Beats, including Jack Kerouac (‬‭On the Road‬‭), Allen‬ T ‭Ginsberg (‬‭Howl‬‭), and William S. Burroughs (‬‭Naked Lunch‬‭),‬ ‭rejected the conformity and materialism of post-war‬ ‭America.‬‭Their works often explored‬‭themes of spirituality,‬ ‭sexual liberation, and the search for authenticity‬‭.‬‭The Beat‬ ‭Generation laid the groundwork for the countercultural‬ ‭movements of the 1960s, influencing‬ ‭music, art, and literature with their‬ ‭embrace of nonconformity and‬ ‭spontaneity‬‭.‬  ‭Covered in 11th Grade‬ ‭Contemporary/Postmodernism (1950-Present)‬ ‭ ontemporary literature, encompassing works from the‬ C ‭late 20th century to the present, reflects a‬‭wide‬‭range of‬ ‭styles, themes, and societal concerns, including‬ ‭identity, globalization, and social justice‬‭. It is‬‭marked by‬ ‭its diversity and responsiveness to‬‭current issues‬‭and‬ ‭cultural shifts‬‭.‬ ‭ ostmodernism‬‭, a specific movement within‬ P ‭contemporary literature that began in the mid-20th‬ ‭century, is known for its innovative approach to‬ ‭storytelling. It‬‭challenges traditional narrative‬ ‭structures‬‭with‬‭techniques such as irony, parody,‬‭and‬ ‭metafiction,‬‭and often‬‭explores the fluidity of truth‬‭and‬ ‭reality‬‭. Tim O’Brien’s‬‭The Things They Carried‬‭fits‬‭within‬ ‭Postmodernism through its innovative use of‬ ‭metafiction, blending reality and fiction to explore‬ ‭memory and trauma. Its fragmented narrative highlights‬ ‭the effects of war. By experimenting with narrative‬ ‭techniques and thematic concerns, Postmodern‬ ‭literature captures the fragmented and often‬‭ambiguous‬ ‭nature of modern existence.‬