Essay Writing in America.pdf

Essay Writing in America History, Prominent Essay Writers and Themes  Introduction to Essay Writing in America A brief prose composition that presents ideas and opinions about a single topic Periodicals in England as an influence: Eighteenth Century Periodicals such as The Tatler and...

Essay Writing in America History, Prominent Essay Writers and Themes  Introduction to Essay Writing in America A brief prose composition that presents ideas and opinions about a single topic Periodicals in England as an influence: Eighteenth Century Periodicals such as The Tatler and The Spectator were popular and used satirical humour to comment on different issues Romantic writers of nineteenth century England found the essay genre appealing because they expressed personal feelings. Prominent essayists of this time included William Hazlitt and Charles Lamb. Many Americans found the essay genre as a traditional, ‘British’ form of writing but it slowly blossomed into a cultural force as writers composed essays that responded to the concerns of America’s expanding cosmopolitan readership. American authors explored American identity and societal conditions  Eighteenth Century Essays Puritanism and its teachings via sermons and pamphlets: Articulation of religious ideas and philosophies Prominent writers: Cotton Mather and Jonathan Edwards Enlightenment Ideals: A philosophical movement from the early 1700s to the 1810s; focus on human intellectual potential; liberty and religious tolerance; logic and reasoning John Locke and Jeremy Bentham in England, Montesquieu, Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Denis Diderot, and Condorcet in France, and Thomas Paine and Thomas Jefferson in colonial America The Enlightenment ideals fueled the revolutionary spirit Essays and pamphlets to express political ideas; popular during the Colonial era in America Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense” (1776): inspired the idea of political democracy Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwqr1NQg7PM Founding Fathers and their contribution to the ‘American’ identity  Nineteenth Century Essays Attempts to distinguish American writing from British writing – For e.g. works by Washington Irving, Mark Twain, Charles Brockden Brown, James Fenimore Cooper, etc. Emergence of The American Renaissance and Transcendentalism (19th Century): Romantic ideals, relationship with nature, spiritual connections with the environment, focus on individual expression and experience and so on Exploration of essays as a genre of creative expression and complex philosophical ideals In his essay “The Poet” (1844), Ralph Waldo Emerson, perhaps the most influential writer of this era, asserts: “For all men live by truth, and stand in need of expression. In love, in art, in avarice, in politics, in labor, in games, we study to utter our painful secret. The man is only half himself, the other half is his expression.” The Civil War and Abolitionist Movement: Commentary on slavery and discourse on race by writers  Twentieth Century Social commentary: Racism, marginalisation, gender dynamics, response to conflicts Cultural diversity and need for inclusivity evident in the works Diasporic reflections and expression by minority groups Evolution of the essay form: Newspapers, magazines and fast ‘consumption’ of information Read more: https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/The_Glorious_American_Essay/3krSDwAAQB AJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=the+making+of+the+american+essay&printsec=frontcover