Early American History Week 1 PDF

AMERICAN HISTORY: THE BEGINNINGS Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  BASIC PRINCIPLES FOR THE STUDY OF LITERATURE IN THIS CLASS Always historicize. Always consider each text as a specimen of a larger phenomenon, but also look for what is special abou...

AMERICAN HISTORY: THE BEGINNINGS Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  BASIC PRINCIPLES FOR THE STUDY OF LITERATURE IN THIS CLASS Always historicize. Always consider each text as a specimen of a larger phenomenon, but also look for what is special about each text. Always consider the literary properties of each text, but also ask how each text might function in its larger cultural context. Always consider the relevance of each text to our own lives in today’s world. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  ALWAYS HISTORICIZE Always be aware of when a text was written. In the case of a narrative, try to determine when the action of the narrative takes place. Read the text within the context of what was going on in the world around it where and when it was written and where and when the narrative takes place. More importantly, ask how the text is affected by the larger process of history that is going on around it and ask how the text participates in this process. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  THE MIDDLE AGES IN EUROPE Because of the For about a thousand stagnation of society and years, European society relative lack of was dominated by the advancement or cultural Catholic Church and a achievement, this period hereditary aristocracy. has been called the “Dark Ages.” Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  THE MEDIEVAL ECONOMY Mostly feudal in nature, with large estates owned by aristocrats but worked by peasants who had little opportunity to leave the estates and generally spent their whole lives on a single estate. Literacy rates and general education levels were low. Goods were generally made by local craftsman and trade was minimal. The medieval suspicion of commerce and money meant that merchants were looked down upon as the most despised class. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  NEW ENERGIES Dante’s Divine Comedy (completed 1320) takes EMERGE IN literature in a new, more modern direction, because FOURTEENT it is written in Italian, rather than Latin. Painting and sculpture began to thrive in Florence, H-CENTURY beginning around 1400, culminating in the work of such masters as Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) and ITALY Michelangelo (1475-1564). (ESPECIALLY FLORENCE) Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  LEONARDO’S MONA LISA (1503-1517) Dr. ISRA DARAISEH KEY DATE: 1439, JOHANNES GUTENBERG INVENTS THE PRINTING PRESS Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  KEY DATE 1492: COLUMBUS SAILS TO AMERICA Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  1517: MARTIN LUTHER CHALLENGES THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, LEADING TO THE RISE OF PROTESTANTISM Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  KEY DATE: 1534, HENRY VIII ABOLISHES CATHOLICISM IN ENGLAND Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  Resources such as silver, gold, and (especially) sugar poured into Europe into such large numbers that the entire society was destabilized. The merchant class, emboldened by THE opportunity and empowered by wealth, rose COLONIZATION to new prominence and respect in Europe. This new bourgeoisie becomes the true ruling OF AMERICA class. PUTS THE Protestantism challenges the power of the Catholic Church. “CAPITAL” IN Every aspect of European society is CAPITALISM transformed. The energies of this transformation were accompanied by an outpouring of individualist confidence and cultural innovation. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  Native Americans had lived in the America for tens of thousands of years. Native inhabitants of the Caribbean and Latin America were largely enslaved or exterminated quite quickly. BUT WHAT Colonization of North America proceeded more slowly because it was not perceived ABOUT THE as being as profitable. (Conditions were not conducive to growing sugar, the main AMERICAS? cash crop.) North American colonization dominated by Protestant England, not Catholic Spain. (Though the Spanish originally colonized California and the American Southwest.) Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  EARLY NORTH AMERICAN ENGLISH SETTLEMENTS 1585—Roanoke Colony (Virginia): The Lost Colony 1607—Jamestown Colony (Virginia) 1620—Plymouth Colony 1628—Massachusetts Bay Colony (John Winthrop became governor in 1630) 1624—A Dutch settlement that soon became New Amsterdam and eventually New York in 1664 (now under English control). 1681—Pennsylvania colony. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  Conditions in the Southern were conducive to large-scale agriculture and to the production of major cash crops such as cotton and tobacco. But these crops required the use of slave VIRGINIA labor from Africa in order to be truly BECAME THE profitable. LEADING As a result, the Southern economy remained SOUTHERN primarily agrarian and largely slave-based COLONY until after the Civil War of 1861-1865. Indeed, conflicts over the issue of slavery led to the Civil War. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  The Northern colonies grew quickly, largely by displacing Native Americans who were already there. The weather and terrain were not MASSACHUSET conducive to large-scale agriculture, so major cities such as Boston, Philadelphia, TS BECAME and New York became the centers of life in the North. THE LEADING The North industrialized much more NORTHERN extensively than the South. COLONY By the time of American independence from England, slavery was outlawed in the Northern colonies. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  THE PLIGHT OF NATIVE AMERICANS Native Americans were pushed Westward by English colonization, though conflicts with the colonists were common even in the eastern United States through the eighteenth century. The Seven Years’ War (1756-1763) between England and France spilled into America, involving English colonists in New England and French colonists from Canada, with Native Americans fighting on both sides. During the American Revolution, most Native Americans supported the British Crown, increasing animosity with the victorious American rebels. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  By the early 16th century, many in England felt that the official Church of England (aka the Anglican Church) was sliding into Catholic corruption and away from Protestant reformism. In particular, a group known as the “Puritans” was devoted to moving away from Anglican PURITANISM ceremonialism and toward a more austere form of religion. The Puritans were not a homogenous group, but many of them were fanatically devoted to strict adherence to religious codes of conduct. Battles between the Puritans and Anglicans led to civil war in England and to decades of unrest, until the Glorious Revolution of 1688. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  During the unrest in England, many Puritans (especially of the most extreme variety) came to America to escape persecution in England. Puritan extremism in America led to such events as PURITAN the Salem Witch Trials of 1692-1693: 200 people EXTREMISM were accused of practicing witchcraft and 19 (14 women and 5 men) were executed. Because of such extremism, the Puritans were soon discredited are still generally thought of negatively in America. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH  KEY PURITAN IDEAS The key Calvinist The Puritans who came Chief among these were doctrine of to America were mostly emphasis on the unique “unconditional election” Calvinists, practicing a value of each individual soon became form of religion human being and marginalized, but some advocated by the 16th- emphasis on hard work of its implications century French as the key to acquisition became central to theologian John Calvin. of material wealth. American thinking. Dr. ISRA DARAISEH A NEW NATION  The rise of capitalism radically transformed Europe. Once relatively backward and poor, Europe became the wealthiest and most THE modern continent. TRANSFORMATIO European nations (especially Britain and N OF EUROPE France) began to build global empires. Such a rapid transformation, however, led to considerable unrest and instability. Many Europeans moved to America in search of a better life.  THE ORIGINAL THIRTEEN COLONIES The Eastern part of what is now the Between 1625 and United States quickly 1775, the European developed into a population grew from loosely allied group of 2000 to 2.4 million. thirteen colonies.  Slavery was widely practiced in British colonies, including those in the future United States. SLAVERY The first African slaves to reach the English colonies in America arrived at Point Comfort, WAS Virginia, near Jamestown, in August 1619. ESTABLISHE By the time the United States was established in 1776, slavery had become D VERY crucial to the economies of the southern colonies. EARLY Slavery was soon outlawed in the northern states.  Native Americans were pushed Westward by English colonization, though conflicts with the colonists were common even in the eastern United States through the eighteenth century. The Seven Years’ War (1756-1763) THE PLIGHT between England and France spilled into America, involving English colonists in OF NATIVE New England and French colonists from AMERICANS Canada, with Native Americans fighting on both sides. During the American Revolution, most Native Americans supported the British Crown, increasing animosity with the victorious American rebels.  ETHNIC CLEANSING Native Americans were Fighting between white systematically removed settlers and Native The Seminole Wars in from all lands east of the Americans continued Florida lasted from 1816 Mississippi River during through the first decades to 1858. the first decades of the of the United States. existence of the United States.  Forced displacement of approximately 60,000 people of the "Five Civilized Tribes" between 1830 and 1850 by the United States government. Members of the Cherokee, Muscogee (Creek), Seminole, Chickasaw, and Choctaw nations were forcibly removed from their ancestral homelands in the Southeastern United THE TRAIL States. Forced to walk to newly designated Indian OF TEARS Territory west of the Mississippi River after the passage of the Indian Removal Act in 1830. Thousands died of exposure, disease, and starvation as a result of the removal. THE TRAIL OF TEARS  THE ENLIGHTENMENT IN EUROPE The transformation of Europe led to a new age of reason and to the rise of science and to the notion that humans are able to understand the world. New ideas of individualism involved the notion that all people are equal. New ideas of history led to a strong belief in the notion of progress. Thus, while the values of the Enlightenment were not always practiced, there was a built-in chance for things to improve.  In 1776, after years of dissatisfaction with the British government, the original 13 colonies declared their independence from Britain. THE AMERICAN The American Revolution (1776-1783) DECLARATION OF finally established American independence. INDEPENDENCE The original Declaration of Independence is a key statement of the ideals of the Enlightenment.  THOMAS JEFFERSON (1743-1826) Principal author of the Declaration of Independence One of the leading thinkers of his time. Third president of the United States (1801- 1809) Founder of the University of Virginia (1819) Owned over 600 slaves over the course of his life.  All men are created equal. All are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, including FUNDAMENTAL “life, liberty, and the pursuit of “SELF EVIDENT happiness.” It is the role of government to protect TRUTHS” these rights. If a government does not protect these rights, then the people have the right to abolish it and form a new one.  The most important issue was that the colonists felt they were being unfairly taxed without sufficient representation THE BULK OF in Parliament. THE DOCUMENT The declaration, though, focuses on LISTS abuses committed by King George III, depicted as an irresponsible and GRIEVANCES tyrannical ruler. AGAINST THE BRITISH Infused with a hostility toward GOVERNMENT monarchy in general that still remains central to American political ideology.  The Declaration of Independence initiated the process of American independence from British rule. Still remains a central HISTORICAL statement of American values, IMPORTANCE studied by all American school children. Exercised considerable influence on the French Revolution, which began 13 years later.  FRANCE EXERCISED AN IMPORTANT INFLUENCE IN THE FOUNDING OF THE U.S. The French, with a stronghold in Quebec, competed for space with the English colonizers. The Seven Years’ War was part of a broader competition between Britain and France that would eventually become even more intense after the French Revolution. France supplied aid to the U.S. during the American Revolution. There was considerable intellectual interchange between France and the U.S. in the decades after the revolution.  THE STATUE OF LIBERTY A gift to the U.S from France in 1886 to celebrate a century of cooperation and exchange between the two countries.  HECTOR ST. JOHN DE CRÈVECOEUR (1735-1813) Born and died in France but spent considerable time in America. In Letters from an American Farmer (1782) he poses as an American farmer attempting to explain the new nation to Europe. Letter III “What Is an American” is an influential statement of the opportunities offered by the new nation, key background to the development of the idea of the “American Dream.”  This letter is a key statement of Enlightenment thinking. Emphasizes the notion of progress and the improvability of humans EMPHASIS ON and human societies. Argues that, by welcoming change THE NEW and the new, America offers a fresh opportunity for pursuing improvement of society as a whole and of the situation of each individual.  FREEDOM FROM THE SHACKLES OF TRADITION “He is arrived on a new continent; a modern society offers itself to his contemplation, different from what he had hitherto seen.” “It is not composed, as in Europe, of great lords who possess everything, and of a herd of people who have nothing.” “Here are no aristocratical families, no courts, no kings, no bishops, no ecclesiastical dominion, no invisible power giving to a few a very visible one; no great manufacturers employing thousands, no great refinements of luxury.”  SENSE OF UNLIMITED OPPORTUNITY “The rich and the poor are not so far removed from each other as they are in Europe.” “We are all animated with the spirit of an industry which is unfettered and unrestrained, because each person works for himself.” “We are the most perfect society now existing in the world. Here man is free as he ought to be; nor is this pleasing equality so transitory as many others are.”  EQUAL OPPORTUNITY FOR ALL “New laws, a new mode of living, a new social system; here they are become men: in Europe they were as so many useless plants, wanting vegetative mould, and refreshing showers.” “They withered, and were mowed down by want, hunger, and war; but now by the power of transplantation, like all other plants they have taken root and flourished!” “Formerly they were not numbered in any civil lists of their country, except in those of the poor; here they rank as citizens.” “By what invisible power has this surprising metamorphosis been performed? By that of the laws and that of their industry.”  “What then is the American, this new man? “ “He is either an European, or the descendant of an European, hence that strange mixture of blood, which you will find in no other country.” A NEW “I could point out to you a family whose grandfather NATION AND A was an Englishman, whose wife was Dutch, whose son married a French woman, and whose present NEW HUMAN four sons have now four wives of different nations.” “He is an American, who, leaving behind him all his ancient prejudices and manners, receives new ones from the new mode of life he has embraced, the new government he obeys, and the new rank he holds.”  A NEW MULTICULTURAL NATION “Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men, whose labours and posterity will one day cause great changes in the world.” “The American is a new man, who acts upon new principles; he must therefore entertain new ideas, and form new opinions.” “From involuntary idleness, servile dependence, penury, and useless labour, he has passed to toils of a very different nature, rewarded by ample subsistence.--This is an American.” PURITAN LITERATURE IN AMERICA  PURITAN “LITERATURE” Their stern religious One reason was the view was also The Puritans placed difficulty of life in the suspicious of literature little emphasis on what New World: they were as a potential we now call “literature,” more interested in distraction from which they regarded as surviving than in devotion to God, or frivolous. “entertainments.” even as a Satanic temptation  PURITAN TEXTS Generally devoted to promoting Puritan religious ideas, including literal sermons. Even when written in the form of poetry, Puritan texts were very unadorned and specifically designed to avoid ornamentation. Despite the emphasis on individualism, Puritan texts were very monological and left little room for competing points of view. Any emphasis on the aesthetic was intended to emphasize the beauty of God’s creation. JOHN WINTHROP (1587-1649) Elected governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1629 (subsequently re- elected many times). Traveled to America leading a group of colonists in 1630. His colony eventually grew into the city of Boston, the largest city in the original 13 colonies until outgrown by Philadelphia in the mid- 1700s.  A man of wealthy background who was relatively moderate by Puritan standards. JOHN His group initially hoped to reform the Church of England from within. WINTHROP A Model of Christian Charity was intended as a sort of pep talk to the group of colonists that he was about to lead to America.  Historian Perry Miller: the sermon “stands at the beginning of [the] THE consciousness” of the American mind. AMERICAN MIND Optimistic Confident Community-based  Expressed the ideals that Winthrop wanted the colonists to embrace. Emphasized the Christian values A MODEL OF he hoped would reign in the CHRISTIAN colony. CHARITY But he also argued that the eyes of the world were on them and that they should strive to be an example for all, a “city upon a hill.”  "God Almighty in his most holy and wise BEGINS providence, hath so disposed of the condition of mankind, as in all times WITH AN some must be rich, some poor, some APOLOGY high and eminent in power and dignity; others mean and in subjection.” FOR Then attempts to explain this inequality INEQUALITY as a product of God’s infallible wisdom.  HIERARCHY IS NATURAL Just as God is greater than humans, it is natural for some humans to be in a greater position than others. God dispenses gifts to humans. But he dispenses greater gifts to some humans so that they can then dispense gifts to others.  TO Inequality provides an opportunity PROVIDE A for the rich to show generosity to the ROLE FOR poor. GOD’S And provides an opportunity for the SPIRIT IN poor to show humility and obedience by accepting their subservient THE position. WORLD  TO FOSTER INTER-DEPENDENCE AND BROTHERHOOD AMONG MANKIND He explains that the rich are permitted wealth, not God permits one man to for their own benefit, but be wealthy so that the "for the glory of his wealthy man may share Creator and the common his riches with the poor good of the creature, man, benefitting both. Man.”  TWO OVERRIDING RULES OF COMMUNITY: JUSTICE AND MERCY Justice and mercy should be exercised by both rich and poor, since both rich and poor have need of them. He summarizes these two rules with an overriding "law”: every man "is commanded to love his neighbor as himself.” Each person has a responsibility to their family. But, in a broader sense, any person who loves God should show that love by helping others.  Calls upon each of the colonists to work together to achieve the success of the community. IMPORTANCE The only way to ensure success “and to provide for our posterity, is to follow the OF counsel of Micah, to do justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with our God. For COMMUNITY this end, we must be knit together, in this work.”, as one man. We must entertain each other in brotherly affection.  ENCOURAGES HIS FOLLOWERS TO THINK OF THEIR COLONY AS AN EXAMPLE TO OTHERS “For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause Him to withdraw His present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world.” This notion ultimately became the most important and influential aspect of his sermon. An important early source of the notion of “American exceptionalism.”  Often cited in American politics, even today. The most famous modern instance was Ronald THE “CITY Reagan’s election-eve speech in 1980, when he argued that his contemporary Americans “are every ON A HILL” bit as committed to that vision of a shining city on a hill, as were those long ago settlers.” CONCEPT Republican Senator Mitt Romney warned that the election of Donald Trump as president could make America cease to function as a shining city on a hill.  America has been chosen by God to set a good example for the rest of the world. America thus occupies a unique position in the world. AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM The idea was not fully articulated, though, until the writings of the French thinker Alexis de Tocqueville, following his trip to the United States in 1831. De Tocqueville’s view was based more on history and politics than theology.  ANNE BRADSTREET (1612-1672) Born in Northampton, England, 1612, the daughter of Thomas Dudley. She grew up in wealthy and cultured circumstances and was a well-educated woman for her time Studied history, several languages, and literature.  ANNE BRADSTREET Anne and Simon, along with Anne's parents, Both Anne's father and At the age of sixteen she emigrated to America husband were later to married Simon aboard the Arbella as serve as governors of the Bradstreet. part of the Winthrop Fleet Massachusetts Bay of Puritan emigrants in Colony. 1630.  ANNE BRADSTREET Anne’s family eventually settled in Cambridge, across the river from Boston. Both Anne's father and her husband were instrumental in the founding of Harvard University in 1636. Two of her sons were graduates, Samuel (Class of 1653) and Simon (Class of 1660). In October 1997, the Harvard community dedicated a gate in memory of her as America's first published poet.  Illustrates the unadorned ”HERE nature of Puritan verse. FOLLOWS To modern ears, reads like SOME VERSES doggerel. UPON THE Was designed simply to BURNING OF deliver a message. OUR HOUSE, Written in verse largely to make it more memorable. JULY 10TH, 1666  Her family home in Cambridge was destroyed by fire. The poem is designed to explain how this could happen to a good Christian family. Two major points: The family lost most of their possessions in THE the fire, but those things really belonged OCCASION to God. True wealth lies in heaven, not in the physical world.  A SAMPLE A price so vast as is unknown, Yet by His gift is made thine own; There‘s wealth enough, I need no more, Farewell, my pelf, farewell, my store. The world no longer let me love, My hope and treasure lies above. “THE WILD HONEYSUCKLE” PHILIP FRENEAU (1843) PHILIP FRENEAU (1752-1832) Newspaper editor who became heavily involved in early American politics (pro-Jefferson, anti- Washington) His nature poetry had much in common with that of Romantics such as Wordsworth and anticipated American Transcendentalism.  American literature was still struggling to find its own identity when this poem was published in 1786. “THE WILD This poem resembles the work of HONEYSUCKLE” British Romantic poets, such as (1786) William Wordsworth. More thoughtful and less passionate than the typical Wordsworth poem, however.  IN ENGLAND, THE ROMANTIC ERA EXTENDS ROUGHLY FROM 1789 TO THE 1820S Historical events such as the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars gave birth to this new, self-consciously modern and revolutionary pan-European movement. Romantic poetry placed an unprecedented emphasis on the powers and terrors of the individual inner imagination. Much of it explores the inner self, as did other phenomena of the period, such as biography, autobiography, and the confessional essay. This new emphasis on the self and the inner imagination led to a new emphasis on the author as creator.  The poet as author was seen as the source of poetry through his or her own individual inspired internal reaction to the external world. The individual poet was seen as connected to his or her poetry as never before, especially when the THE author created an autobiographical persona within his or her writings. ROMANTIC The Romantic author was seen as an original “POET” genius, ahead of his or her time, possessed by a mysterious and inexplicable power of imagination and creativity. This notion of the author as the source of literature has remained powerful ever since.  Much Romantic poetry focuses on the beauties of the ROMANTIC natural world. POETRY AND But also focuses on NATURE the “sublime” power of the natural world. THE TRANQUILITY OF NATURE CAN PROVIDE KEY EXAMPLES OF ROMANTIC BEAUTY  THE OVERWHELMING VIOLENCE OF SOME NATURAL PHENOMENA IS A KEY EXAMPLE OF THE ROMANTIC SUBLIME  Romanticism proper had little real presence in American literature. But Transcendentalism, an American movement strongly influenced by Romanticism, did become important. ROMANTICISM AND TRANSCENDENTALISM Also often emphasized nature but put more emphasis on human harmony with nature (and thus less on the sublime). Led by New England intellectuals such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Herny David Thoreau.  Fair flower, that dost so comely grow, Hid in this silent, dull retreat, ADDRESSED Untouch’d thy honey’d blossoms DIRECTLY TO blow, THE Unseen thy little branches greet: No roving foot shall crush thee BLOSSOMS here, No busy hand provoke a tear.  By Nature’s self in white array’d, She bade thee shun the vulgar eye, EMPHASIZES And planted here the guardian PEACEFULNES shade, S And sent soft waters murmuring by; Thus quietly thy summer goes, Thy days declining to repose.  Smit with those charms, that must decay, I grieve to see thy future doom; THE They died—nor were those flowers FLEETING more gay, BEAUTY OF (The flowers that did in Eden bloom) Unpitying frosts and Autumn’s FLOWERS power Shall leave no vestige of this flower.  From morning suns and evening MORTALITY dews At first thy little being came: IS THE If nothing once, you nothing lose, NATURE OF For when you die you are the same; LIVING The space between is but an THINGS hour, The mere idea of a flower. “THE BLACK CAT” Edgar Allan Poe (1843) EDGAR ALLAN POE (1809-1849) Born in Boston, MA Lived and worked mostly in Baltimore, MD Died young due to mysterious causes, which have been widely debated.  A major figure in the American form of Romanticism A pioneer in the short story form Known especially for his dark EDGAR stories of the macabre and Gothic ALLAN POE Also widely regarded as the inventor of detective fiction Wrote early forms of science fiction as well  “THE BLACK CAT” Published in 1843 One of Poe’s darkest short stories Features a pet black cat (one of which Poe owned) Purportedly assails the evils of alcoholism. (Poe was a reputed alcoholic and drug user.) The real focus, though, is the abnormal psychological state of the narrator.  THE STORY Pluto’s death is Then reports his immediately The narrator relates abuse and killing of followed by the his great love of his pet black cat burning down of animals. Pluto. the narrator’s home. He gets a second He hides her body cat, then murders The cat’s cries alert inside a wall, but his wife when she police of the burial actually walls up prevents him from in the wall. the cat as well. killing this cat.  Much of the story is spent building an atmosphere of dread and the unnatural. The narrator’s questionable psychological state Draws upon the reputation of black cats as related to the occult. ATMOSPHERE Possible supernatural events BUILDING The house burning The cat image on the burned house Is the second cat some sort of reincarnation of Pluto? Pluto, of course, is the name of the Greek god of the underworld.  The narrator’s obvious unreliability makes it difficult to know how much of his story is accurate. UNRELIABLE His own reports of his animal abuse NARRATOR and murder of his wife suggest that he might be insane, But, if he is insane, is he a reliable witness?  Could he be pretending to In this case, be insane, in did he really order to abuse and escape legal kill Pluto? responsibility UNRELIABLE ? NARRATOR Did Pluto ever exist? Did he make Did the up his narrator alcohol imagine him? abuse? Invent him?  Poe’s work is often described as “dark Romanticism.” This story is Romantic because it focuses on emotion rather than reason. “THE BLACK It is Romantic because of its focus CAT” AND on the emotional state of the narrator as an exceptional DARK individual. ROMANTICISM It is “dark” because of its subject matter and atmosphere.  AN IMPORTANT STORY “The Black Cat” has been adapted to film many times. The most important “adaptation” is Edgar Ulmer’s The Black Cat (1934) Important because it stars both Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi, the two biggest stars of classic horror. Related to Poe’s story mostly just by atmosphere, though it does feature a black cat. LUGOSI AND KARLOFF “THE PORTENT” Herman Melville HERMAN MELVILLE (1819- 1891) One of the great founding figures of a genuinely American literature, with no real precedents in Europe. BEST KNOWN FOR MOBY-DICK (1851) The first truly great American novel. Remains one of the classic works of world literature.  BUT MELVILLE ALSO MADE OTHER CONTRIBUTIONS Numerous other novels that are still read today, including The Confidence Man (1857) and Billy Budd (1891). An early master of the short story form. “Bartleby, the Scrivener” (1853) is a classic of the genre. Also an accomplished poet.  Memorialized the hanging of dissident John Brown. Figures Brown’s story as a ”THE portent of the American Civil War. PORTENT” Melville’s sympathies are (1866) clearly with the anti-slavery stance of Brown.  JOHN BROWN (1800- 1859) Conducted a guerrilla campaign against slavery. In October 1859, led a raid on the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. Intended as the first step in a slave rebellion. That project failed, and Brown was captured and executed.  JOHN BROWN (1800-1859) As late as 2020, His Puritan the television Remains a well- background made miniseries The known figure in slavery abhorrent Good Lord Bird American history. to him. was built around Brown’s story.  “THE PORTENT” Hanging from the beam, Slowly swaying (such the law), Gaunt the shadow on your green, Shenandoah! [Brown was hanged in the Shenandoah Valley in Charles Town, Virginia, on December 2, 1859.]  BROWN’S HEAD WOUND The cut is on the crown (Lo, John Brown), And the stabs shall heal no more. [Brown was wounded while being captured.]  BROWN WAS HOODED WHEN HANGED (AS WAS COMMON) Hidden in the cap Is the anguish none can draw; So your future veils its face, Shenandoah!  JOHN BROWN’S BEARD But the streaming beard is shown (Weird John Brown), The meteor of the war. [Evokes Brown’s famous flowing beard, while seeing his story as the portent of the Civil War.] “BURY ME IN A FREE LAND” Frances Ellen Watkins Harper FRANCES ELLEN WATKINS HARPER (1825-1911) Born free in Baltimore, MD. Became a leading abolitionist. Also an important advocate for women’s suffrage. One of the first African American women published in America. Wrote both poetry and short stories.  A powerful anti-slavery statement. Gains urgency because the speaker appears to be near death. “BURY ME IN A FREE Freedom is thus presented as a LAND” sort of last wish, showing its symbolic value. Harper sent a copy to the widow of John Brown after his execution. ONLY ONE LAST REQUEST Make me a grave where’er you will, In a lowly plain, or a lofty hill; Make it among earth’s humblest graves, But not in a land where men are slaves. NO REST AS LONG AS THERE ARE SLAVES I could not rest if around my grave I heard the steps of a trembling slave; His shadow above my silent tomb Would make it a place of fearful gloom. A THREAT TO HAUNT? I could not rest if I heard the tread Of a coffle gang to the shambles led, And the mother’s shriek of wild despair Rise like a curse on the trembling air.  CONTINUES THE LITTANY OF SUFFERING I could not sleep if I saw the lash Drinking her blood at each fearful gash, And I saw her babes torn from her breast, Like trembling doves from their parent nest. A FAILED ESCAPE I’d shudder and start if I heard the bay Of bloodhounds seizing their human prey, And I heard the captive plead in vain As they bound afresh his galling chain. THE SPECIAL SUFFERING OF WOMEN SLAVES If I saw young girls from their mother’s arms Bartered and sold for their youthful charms, My eye would flash with a mournful flame, My death-paled cheek grow red with shame.  FREEDOM IS THE ONLY REQUIREMENT I would sleep, dear friends, where bloated might Can rob no man of his dearest right; My rest shall be calm in any grave Where none can call his brother a slave. HER ONLY MONUMENT I ask no monument, proud and high, To arrest the gaze of the passers-by; All that my yearning spirit craves, Is bury me not in a land of slaves.