The Emerging American Identity Through Early Writings

The Emerging American Identity Through Early Writings We Americans are the peculiar chosen people – the Israel of our time; we bear the ark of the liberties of the world. - Herman Melville, White Jacket

In defining “American” literature who is the American we are defining? Is it: - The indigenous people who inhabitated North America as early as settlers who arrived as early as the fifteenth centurey Question 1: What is American about American Writing?

American literature begins with the orally transmitted myths, legends, tales, and lyrics of native cultures Given the great diversity of native narratives, it is impossible to generalize the nature of the stories. Still, there are many commonalities: Reverence for nature as a spiritual as well as physical mother Main characters may be animals or plants A sense of balance – good will Nature is alive and endowed with spiritual forces First Words

Reference to the Americas in literature began with European explorers. But American writing is generally acknowledge to begin with the work of English adventurers and colonists in the New World chiefly for the benefit of readers in the mother country. Prominent among this group was Captain John Smith whose True Relation of Such Occurrences and Accidents of Notes as Hath Happened in Virginia since the First Planting of that Colony was the first book printed in America. Smith’s writings were designed to encourage Europeans to try their luck in America. Such writings portrayed the “virgin land” as a symbol of limitless untapped wealth, fruit ripe for the picking. This enticement essentially missed the fact that the “virgin land” was not exactly virginal, having been inhabited by native peoples for hundreds of years before. The Language of Exploration

The Pilgrims, the Puritans, and the Colonial Period • The first separatists to arrive at Plymouth Rock on the Mayflower came to America for quite different reasons than the colonists at Jamestown in Virginia, seeking not material wealth but spiritual riches. • These settlers, like the Puritans that followed, left Europe because of religious persecution. They intended to live in seclusion in this new land to practice their faith as they saw fit. • From this event emerged one of the most important documents to inform American government. Signed by the 41 men aboard the Mayflower, theMayflower Compact asserts that a legitimate government can only be forged by the consent of those governed.

The Puritans • Like the Pilgrims, the Puritans settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, came to the New World to escape religious persecution. • But unlike the Pilgrims, the Puritans believed that they had a chance to establish a new society based on religious principles that would prepare the way for the second coming of Christ. • The Puritans of New England intended to be a model of religious and civil government . • Puritans viewed their journey as a very public experiment in theocracy. • Puritan settlers brought their wives and children, intending to make the move permanent. Many left behind affluent lives and thriving business – they were committed to the “errand into the wilderness.” • They viewed the wilderness as dangerous and filled with savage people; it was their duty to clear the land and create a paradise, a Garden of Eden, a New Jerusalem

And More About Puritans • Puritans were members of the Protestant Church of England • An important tenet of the Protestant Reformation was that people did not need priests or other representatives of the Church hierarchy to mediate between individuals and God. They believed, instead, in direct relationships between people and their God • Puritans were Congregationalists – each Church group would be self governing • Their attitudes toward entertainment: joy and laughter are symptoms of sin. • Their attitudes toward work: work itself is a good in addition to what it achieves, that time saved by efficiency or good fortune should be spent in doing further work.

Puritans were hungry for education. Reading and intellectual discourse allowed them to understand and execute God's will as they established their colonies throughout New England. Much of their education was self taught Between 1630 and 1690, there were as many university graduates in New England, as in the mother country (aristocrats). And Still a Little More…

Puritan Beliefs • But the most important defining feature of the Puritan settlers was their religion. • You will recall the mnemonic TULIP, which outlines the ideas of original sin, predestination, and the principles of conversion through God’s grace. • Unconditional Election – the idea that God has decided which humans will be saved and which will be condemned to damnation was a driving force behind Puritan behavior. • KEY POINT: No one knows if they are save or damned but “signs” and behaviors may be a clue.

Additional BeliefsTypology • The belief that God's intentions are present in human action and in natural phenomenon. • Puritans believed in cyclical or repetitive history; they use "types" to compare their experiences (the Chosen People) with the stories of the Bible- Moses' journey out of Egypt is played out in the Pilgrims' crossing of the Atlantic, the New World is the Garden of Eden, the first settlers are the New Adam. • God's wrath and reward are also present in natural phenomena like flooding, bountiful harvest, the invasion of locusts, and lightening striking a home. • It is for people to interpret these signs – failure to do so is a human limitation.

Additional Beliefs…The “Ripe Fruit”/“City Upon a Hill ” Thing • The concept of manifest destiny was echoed almost as Europeans stepped foot on “the virgin soil” – in both their willingness to appropriate the land and riches and in • Without using the words, John Winthrop articulated the concept in his famous sermon, the Arbella Covenant (1630), when he said: • ... for we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill, the eyes of all people are upon us; ..." • This image of Puritans as a people with a special mission ordained by God justified and ennobled America’s westward expansion. • Additionally, Captain John Smith’s sentiment that America is a a fruit ripe for the picking, confirms unrestrictedexpansion into the New World.

All these beliefs inform the writings of the Puritans. Much of their writing was to defend and promote visions of the religious state. These writers set forth their visions—in effect the first formulation of the concept of national destiny—in a series of impassioned histories and jeremiads Even Puritan poetry was in the service of God Sermons and tracts poured forth, culminating in John Edward’s “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” Some scholars argue that the American voice – the first attempt at a recorded literature – grew out of the Puritans’ practice of examining their lives for acts of good and evil. This practice naturally shifted into creative writing and imaginative expressions. The Nature of Puritan Literary Works

The Function of Writing To transform a mysterious God To make him more relevant to the universe. To glorify God. Style of Writing Plain Serious Simple Metaphors/Simile/Hyperbole Forms Histories Sermons Diaries Poetry Jeremiads Common Themes Introspection – seeking to understand God’s ways Idealism - both religious and political Pragmaticism - practicality and purposefulness Progress in establishing utopian community Puritan Literature Cont…

Behavioral Outcomes of Puritanism • Belief in these doctrines lead to certain common character traits and behaviors among those who held them • Introspection – wondering if you are among the Saints • Individualism – every person has worth • A sense of rebellion against injustice but… • A sense of conformity of the governed • Control the behavior of others • Morality as center of life • Optimism – all things God visits upon people are ultimately good, even if they appear bad. • Elitism – the sense of being “chosen” • Patriotism – united in a common cause

Aspects of the Puritanism Evident in American Life (e.g. The Puritan Hangover) • Belief that a lowly peasant can communicate with God – not far to the evolution of ideas such as individualism and equality • A sense of morality married to governance or the need for moral justification for private, public, and governmental acts. • Equality in governance –a shared common good, consensus, classless society • The Puritan work ethic • Political activism and orderly methods • Importance of education and literacy • The quest for freedom - personal, political, economic, and social. • The city upon the hill - concept of manifest destiny.

Implications of the Mayflower Compact Right to self governance Insistence on limited government Contractual relationship between the governed and those who lead First American social contract Willingness of signers to be bound as individuals by laws designed for the good of all. Paves way for a democratic model. The Puritan Hangover

Implications of Election and the Search for Confirmation/Denial Self-improvement Good works Exaggerated emphasis on material wealth (their own and their neighbors) = sign of election Moral Superiority of the Wealthy Righteousness, intolerance, intrusiveness – to safeguard against a false conversion experience (=church membership) The Puritan Hangover

Forces Undermining Puritanism 1720 • A person's natural desire to do good – anti-predestination • Dislike of a "closed" life. • Resentment of the power of the few over many • Change in economic conditions - growth of fishery, farms, etc. • Presence of the leaders of dissent - Anne Hutchinson, Roger Williams. • The presence of the frontier - concept of self-reliance, individualism, and optimism. • Change in political conditions - Massachusetts became a Crown colony. • Theocracy suffered from a lack of flexibility. • Growth of rationality - use of the mind to know God - less dependence on the Bible. • Cosmopolitanism of the new immigrants. • Salem Witch Trials

The treatment of Hester Pyrnne in The Scarlet Letter constitutes the defining portrait of these aspects in the Puritan character.

So question… Do you see any PARADOXES at work in the teachings and behaviors of the Puritans? Write down at least three.

Setting the Stage • People increasingly questioned the old religious values and began to accept a more secular view of life. • The hopes that engendered the great “errand into the wilderness” were dashed. • Out of the crucible, however, grew a new kind of society in which Puritan values and ideas persisted but were modified by ideas from the European Enlightenment and other sources.

18th century was a period of major change in American ideas and ideals… As with beliefs of Puritans, changes originated in England but took on new spirit and meaning in colonies. Factors that help explain the movement away from the severe faith of the Puritans are many. Scientists and philosophers began to question religious authority. The movement that resulted from this shift in attitude was called The Enlightenment American Literature of the Enlightenment Period

Enlightenment Ideas and Proponents • Enlightenment philosophers encouraged people to: • Doubt and question what they had been taught • Think for themselves • Use reason and observation to analyze the world • These ideas became popular among the merchant class, in Europe, and the American colonies, who themselves began to question the rights of kings to rule.

Separation of church and state. Basic human equality The universe is governed by natural law DEISM or the clockmaker theory – belief that God created the universe and all the laws of nature – but once creation was completed, God withdrew from involvement and allowed the mechanism to work on its own. Enlightenment thinkers: Denied the possibility of miracles Rejected the importance of symbolism Truth was achieved through scientific study of the laws of nature Human beings were born to a state of innocence and that they were all CREATED EQUAL (Jean Jacque Rousseau’s concept of natural man) Beliefs of Enlightenment Philosophes

Enlightenment thinkers de-emphasized “grace” and “pre-destination” in favor of “moral choice” and scientificinquiry. “virtue,” “order,” “reason,” “sympathy” How do you think religious figures felt about this changing view of the universe and how people should function within it? How might this change the way the common man felt about religion and God? New Ideas Taking Root in the Colonial Mind

Deism and Revolutionary Thought • Many of these thinkers (including Jefferson and Franklin) called themselves “Deists.” • Man can deduce the existence of a supreme being from the fact that the universe exists rather than because of what the Bible says. • Deists also thought that a harmonious universe proves the beneficence of God.

How Different Really? • Are these people entirely different from the Puritans? • What’s similar? • How ‘bout: • Nature’s God • Individualism • Introspection • Personal betterment • Personal Worth • Rejection of inherited personal worth • To name but a few

Nowhere is the unification of two dominant streams of American thoughts more in evidence than in the story of Benjamin Franklin, whose history merges Puritan ideas of morality with Enlightenment philosophy Benjamin Franklin and Secularization of Puritan Beliefs

Born into modest circumstance in Boston Rose to international prominence through hard work and honesty in all his dealings Taught Puritan Work Ethic as a child – the importance of hard work and integrity in all business dealings (appears as “early to bed, and early to rise…) Self-made success as a printer (again, sheer “sweat equity) Influenced by early studies of Puritan text Accepted, without question, the idea that personal wealth was the reward of a virtuous life (American capitalism?) When Franklin describes his self help plan in Autobiography, he is not only writing the first American self-help book and a prescription for people who will follow his lead, he is also reflecting Puritan ideas of self-improvement to be acceptable in God’s sight. Franklin’s Puritan Foundation

As much as Franklin was influenced by his Puritan roots, he was much more influenced by the ideas of the Enlightenment, or the Age of Reason: Human beings had natural right to anything that demanded their labor. These rights existed before nations were created Materialism mixed with a sense of the public good A strict Deist – rejected religious authority and God’s intervention; believed deeply in religious tolerance Moral Perfection – Thirteen Virtues one at a time. Interest in science – responsible for many inventions – bifocals, Franklin stove, lightening rod (no patent) A diplomat – in France during the Revolution and responsible for ensuring many American victories. Franklin’s Enlightenment Influence

Franklin’s Autobiography • Autobiography: inspiring account of a poor boy’s rise to a high position. It is a how-to-do-it book, one on the art of self-improvement. • Contents: It covered Franklin’s life only until 1757 when he was 51 years old. It described his life as a shrewd and industrious businessman and narrates how he owned the constant felicity of his life, his long-continued health and acquisition of fortune. • Significance: It presents a prototype of American success which inspired generations of Americans. It is an embodiment of Puritanism and enlightening spirits.

Autobiography and the Emergence of the American Myth Franklin writes very self consciously – he is very much aware of certain literary COVENTIONS. • He tells his own story, he is aware he is creating an AMERICAN MYTH • Connect to Audience • Selects those events from his life that contribute to the myth • Man of humble beginnings who rose to prominence through • Hard work • Honesty • His own efforts • Outcomes • Blessings of success and happiness • Lessons learned (self improvement) • Style: • Didactic style. • Simplicity, frankness, wit, clarity, logic and order.

So…Consider American Identity Thus Far What is an American so far?

Further Emergence of the American Identity • The colonists who came to live in what was to become the United States of America did not, until around the 1770s, think of themselves as "Americans.“ • Most colonists in the New World identified themselves as English citizens. They may have come to live in a place far away from England, but they still identified with that nation. • For many colonists, the process of American identification took place naturally throughout the late 1700s as ideas about self-government grew into reality. • Colonists began to develop a greater national identity as various events led them to grow frustrated with England’s policies, declare independence, rebel against English rule, and finally form their own government. • Ben Franklin laid out the American Myth in the late 18th century, but the process of individuation began long before. • It was not until the Declaration of Independence that colonists formally and publically (though not officially) broke with the mother country.

The emergence of an American identity began with the end of the French and Indian War in 1763. The war left England in control of virtually all the land east of the Mississippi River. The war doubled the national debt of England and quadrupled the cost of administering the empire in America. The British expected the colonies to help pay the costs of the war To that end, the British government began imposing various taxes and laws on the colonies, which colonists felt violated the rights from their English heritage. As colonists grew more angry with the English government, they naturally stopped identifying themselves with the enemy country. The French and Indian War - 1763

The Stamp Act the Boston Tea Party. The Intolerable Acts Another law gave the French-Canadian—and Catholic—royal province of Quebec all of the land west of the Appalachians lying north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi. This act alienated much of Protestant America. These and other acts helped muster broad support for a "general congress of all the colonies" proposed by the Virginia and Massachusetts assemblies. The First Continental Congress The call for a "general congress" was well received Adopted a Declaration of Rights & Grievances against all British acts to which "Americans cannot submit" and approved commercial boycotts of many goods traded with England. The delegates adjourned in late October, agreeing to meet the following May if necessary. The Roots of Rebellion

Rumblings of the New Nation • In England King George III declared the colonies were "now in a state of rebellion.“ • Events escalated, which led to war. • Colonists convened the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia on May 10, 1775. • Most delegates still hoped to avoid war with England. However, due to the outbreak of violence at Lexington and Concord, delegates agreed to raise an army and ask the colonies for funds to pay for it. • George Washington, a delegate from Virginia, was made the Continental Army's commander in chief. • The delegates approved a petition to the king asking for a "happy and permanent reconciliation" between the colonies and England. • The king was not pleased and in August he proclaimed a state of rebellion in the colonies.

The Declaration of Independence • By the following summer, the Continental Congress was under increasing pressure from the most vocal radicals in the colonies to move to independence. • In June 1776 a group of delegates was named to draft a declaration, but the actual writing fell largely to Thomas Jefferson. • The Declaration of Independence, celebrated by Americans every year on July 4, was in large part a recitation of every grievance against English colonial policy that had emerged since 1763. • The Declaration of Independence committed the colonies to wage a war that was already under way (for one year) • The war would drag on for more than five years before England gave up the struggle.

Purpose was NOT to declare independence but to proclaim to the WORLD the reasons for declaring independence. Attempts to lay before the WORLD the causes which impelled the colonists to separate Went beyond justified engaging in rebellion against a rightful (and some think divine) authority – a king. Think how serious a matter that would be. Shows a general philosophy upon which the case of the colonies would rest. Enumerate specific grievances that would cause rebellion Show that these causes existed Show that the king’s deliberate and persistent purpose was to establish an absolute tyrany over the colonies Show that the colonies had been temperate and measured in their response. Facts about the Declaration

In essence… • The framers of the Declaration presented their case. • Having formulated a philosophy of government that made revolution right under certain conditions, they endeavored to show that these conditions prevailed in the colonies, not on account of anything which the people of the colonies had done, or had left undone, but solely on account o the deliberate and malevolent purpose of their king to establish over them an ‘absolute tyranny. The people of the colonies must, accordingly either throw off the hyoke or submit to be slaves. • As between these alternatives, there could be but one choice for men accustomed to freedom

Structure of the Declaration • The work is written in the form of an argument with three parts: • What is • What we wiil do • Why we must do it • It includes all the forms of rhetorical persuasion • It works like this: 1. Preamble – context “when in history 2. Intro – reasoning that drives argument 3. List of grievances (indictment of George III) 4. the denunciation of the British people 5. Conclusion/resolutions

Structure of the Argument Argument Thesis Ethos Pathos Logos Evidence Evidence Evidence Conclusion

Rhetorical Forms • Ethos – the authority/credibility behind the argument…men of good sense, good character, goo will • Pathos – emotion, empathy for the people who have suffered tyranny (literary devices) • Logos – appeals to reason, lays out the hard facts of the case. Follows a line of reasoning that explains why they must rebel

Syntax Diction Images Parallelism Personification Catalogues Anaphora Repetition Alliteration Note: Speaker Occasion Audience Point of View Thesis (where is it?) How is it a perfect essay? Note the mastery in the persuasion

As anger with the “Mother Country” grew, war erupted, independence was won from England, and the united colonies formed their own government. Thus, identification with Britain naturally lessened. Beyond government and war, everyday life in the American colonies was occurring (people were building homes, working, forming communities…) and thus the emergence of an American society was taking place. The Spark of Revolution

Words of the Dispossessed • For all the focus on equality and the natural rights of men, Enlightenment ideas did little to elevate the status of the most marginalized citizens within the new settlements. • They did not prevent the growth of slavery • Nor did they promote equality for women

Slavery in America • Nothing could have been more disingenuous to the principles of Enlightenment then the growth of the slave trade in the southern colonies. • Slavery in America rose gradually. Some causes: • New England settlers immigrated for an idea while Virginia and the Carolinas were settled with profit in mind • No wealth in precious metals or gemstones but plenty of wealth to be found in tobacco and rice – very labor intensive • Reduction in number of indentured slaves from England (plague, fire in London) • Slavery was driven by economics, but to justify it, people began to assert the theory that Africans were subhuman and inferior to all whites

Much of what we know about slavery comes to us from the slaves themselves (slave narratives) Olaudah Equiano – autobiography by a freed slave living in England, uses vivid and disturbing imagery to describe conditions aboard a slave ship The Slave Experience

The Literature of the American Revolution • Colonists began to develop a greater national identity as • various events led them to grow frustrated with England’s • policies, declare independence, rebel against English rule, and • finally form their own government.

The Emerging American Identity Through Early Writings