The assignment for the first week is to answer the Course Orientation questions and to send your work to me as a Microsoft Word file attached to an email message.
Click here to view the questions.
The due date is January 15.
Attention: The reading assignment for your first essay is a long one, so get started now.
What you take from the primary sources serves as evidence to support the generalizations that you make about the reading. It is not sufficient to just summarize the information in the introductions, although this may be appropriate as a way of beginning your own essay. And although it is acceptable to use secondary sources to help you understand the reading, information about the writers or their works from the secondary sources is not a substitute for evidence taken directly from the assigned reading material. If you do use secondary sources, whether they are from the textbook introductions or some other book or article, you must document them. I know that some of the reading assignments are difficult, but when you signed on for the course, this is the work you agreed to do. I am looking for evidence of a good effort.
Week 2 - January 15
Introduction: "Literature to 1700" (1-15)
Bernal Diaz Del Castillo (web)
Christopher Columbus (25-29)
Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca (29-36)
Bartolome De Las Casas (web)
Your textbook introduction, "Literature to 1700," deals with the motivations of the European explorers who wrote about the new world. What were the three principle motivations for writing about the new world, and which of these are represented by the authors assigned for this week? Read page nine of the introduction carefully. Make specific references to the authors to support your answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
For your third assignment, you may complete this assignment on Bradford and Winthrop and send it to me by February 5, or you may wait and do the next assignment on Mather and Edwards and send it to me by February 5.
William Bradford - "Of Plymouth Plantation" (75-94)
John Winthrop - "A Model of Christian Charity" and other writings (94-114)
"American Literature 1700-1820" (171-179)-- Note that this introduction is important background for the readings beginning next week, but I had to put it here in order to balance the readings assignments. The introduction "Literature to 1700" also has helpful information on the following question.
William Bradford and John Winthrop were the leaders of two different groups of early New England settlers although they were similar in a number of ways. From the textbook introductions and other sources tell why they came to the new world, describe their attitude was toward the Anglican Church, and describe their Calvinist beliefs. Then using Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation and Winthrop's journal, find evidence for the following statement:
| Both writers, steeped as they were in the strictest traditions of Calvinism, noted down everyday incidents as well as colonial affairs, hoping that the facts would demonstrate that God's providence had always been singularly devoted to their people. (From the introduction to Of Plymouth Plantation. Harvy Wish ed.) |
Note: Some knowledge of Calvinism is helpful in responding to the writing assignments over the next few weeks. Links to useful sources can be found on this page. Look for information on election and predestination in particular.
A through familiarity with the writings of Bradford and Winthrop is important for both this assignment and for the next one. The reading is not easy, but I expect you to make the effort. You must include direct references to the reading and specific quotations to illustrate your points.
Week 4 -- January 29
Cotton Mather - Magnalia Christi Americana(161-169)
The Biographies of Bradford and Winthrop
Jonathan Edwards - (182-207)
"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" (207-219)
Cotton Mather and Jonathan Edwards were New England divines of a generation younger than that of Bradford and Winthrop, and they wrote for different purposes. What were the motivations of Mather and Edwards, and how do these motivations make the content of their works different from that of Bradford and Winthrop? Make specific references to the authors to support your answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
For this assignment, you should first summarize Bradford's and Winthrop's motivations for writing and then contrast these to the motivations of Mather and Edwards.
For your fourth assignment, you may complete this assignment on Bradstreet, Taylor, and Wigglesworth and send it to me by February 19, or you may wait and do the next assignment on Franklin and send it to me by February 19.
Anne Bradstreet - Poems (114-134)
Edward Taylor - Poems (152-160)
Michael Wigglesworth - The Day of Doom (Web)
The poets, Bradstreet, Taylor, and Wigglesworth come from the same New England culture as the prose writers that you have read in the previous weeks. Underlying the thought of all of these writers is a religious doctrine known as "Calvinism" named for the protestant theologian, John Calvin. Using Internet and library resources, explain the basic tenets of Calvinism including the doctrines of grace, election, and damnation. Make specific reference to the works of Bradstreet, Taylor, Wigglesworth, as well as the authors you have read previously, to illustrate how Calvin's ideas are reflected in their works. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
Refer to this page for information on Calvinism.
Refer to your English grammar handbook of information on how to quote from and document poetry.
Week 6 -- February 12
Benjamin Franklin --The Autobiography (219-276)
Benjamin Franklin is a representative American of his generation. He exemplifies many American character traits which lead to his financial, intellectual, social, and political success. Identify and explain the character traits of this great man. Make specific references to the reading to support your answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
For assignment five, you may complete this assignment on Paine and Jefferson and send it to me by March 5, or you may wait and do the next assignment on Freneau, Wheatley, and Bryant and send it to me by March 5.
Thomas Paine - Common Sense (320-328)
Thomas Jefferson - From Autobiography (334-342)From Notes on the State of Virginia (342-345)
Paine and Jefferson were both born after 1700 and represent the period before and during the American Revolution. For background on this period, look again at the introduction, "Early American Literature 1620 - 1820," and read the sections "An Expanding Universe," "The Enlightenment," and "The American Crisis."
What arguments does Paine make for American independence, and which of these are reflected in the Declaration of Independence? Make reference to the reading to support your answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
Week 8 -- February 26
Philip Freneau -- Poems (361-366)
Phillis Wheatley -- Poems (366-377)
William Cullen Bryant -- Poems (469-475)
The three poets you will read this week represent a historical progression. While Phyllis Wheatley is the most Neoclassical, and William Cullen Bryant is the most purely Romantic, Philip Freneau is a transitional figure reflecting characteristics of both traditions. Explain what Neoclassical and Romantic elements exist in the works of these writers.
For background, read about the English Neoclassical Period and the Romantic Period in A Handbook to Literature by Harmon and Holman. The article on the Romantic Period in England is the most helpful. Introductions to these periods in English literature anthologies will also be helpful. Make specific references to the reading to support your answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
See your English grammar handbook for information on how to quote from and document poetry.
For assignment six, you may complete this assignment on Emerson and send it to me by March 19 or you may wait and do the next assignment on Hawthorne and send it to me by March 19.
Ralph Waldo Emerson - Nature (482-514)
Poems (web)
Explain the uses of Nature according to Emerson. Make specific references to the reading to support our answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
Take Note: Follow the same topical organization in your discussion that Emerson uses in his essay and be sure to comment on the sections titled "Commodity," "Beauty," "Language," "Discipline," "Idealism," and "Spirit."
In order to understand Emerson, you need to understand Transcendentalism. An understanding of this concept is also important in reading Thoreau. The Handbook to Literature has a good brief article, but you need to do additional reading as well. Make a Google search and consult reference sources in the library.
Week 10 -- March 12
Nathaniel Hawthorne - "My Kinsman, Major Molineux" (581- 597)
"Young Goodman Brown" - (610-619)
"The Maypole of Merry Mount" (619-626)
Nathaniel Hawthorne often employed symbols in his stories. Using Internet and library sources define the term "symbol," and then point out the symbols in Hawthorne's stories and tell what they represent. Make specific references to all three of the stories to support your answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
For assignment seven, you may complete this assignment on Poe and send it to me by April 2 or you may wait and do the next assignment on Stowe and the slave narratives and send it to me by April 2.
Edgar Allen Poe - Poems (694-704)
"Ligeia" (704-714)
"The Fall of the House of Usher" (714-727)
"The Cask of Amontillado" (743-748)
It was once claimed that Poe's tales of horror are the products of a disordered mind. However, a careful reading will reveal how they are consciously designed to produce a chill in the reader. "The Fall of the House of Usher," "Ligeia," and "The Cask of Amontillado" illustrate how Poe prepares for the climatic endings of the stories through a technique called "foreshadowing." Using Internet and library sources, define this term and show how Poe used it in these stories. Make specific references to the reading to support your answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
Attention: The next reading assignment is a long one, so get started now.
Week 12 -- March 26
Harriet Beecher Stowe -- From Uncle Tom's Cabin (771-806)
Harriet Jacobs -- From Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl (812-834)
Fredrick Douglas -- Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass, an American Slave, Written by Himself (939-973)
Olaudah Equiano From The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavas Vassa, the African, Written by Himself(350-361)
While Harriet Beecher Stowe imagined the lives of slaves in her novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin, a first hand report of slavery is given by Olaudah Equiano, Harriet Jacobs, and Frederick Douglas. What aspects of slavery depicted by Stowe are confirmed by the writing of Equiano, Jacobs, and Douglas? Are there ways in which the imagined account and the first hand accounts differ?
For assignment eight, you have four choices. You may complete this assignment on Thoreau and send it to me by April 16 or you may choose to write on Irving and Cooper, on Whitman, or on Dickinson and send me your essay by April 16.
Your reading assignment is the first chapter of Walden by Henry David Thoreau. The title of the chapter is "Economy." What do you think Thoreau has in mind when he talks about economy? Is it just dollars and cents, or is he thinking about something else as well? Make specific references to the reading to support your answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
Week 14 -- April 9
Washington Irving - Rip Van Winkle(446-460) and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (Web)
James Fenimore Cooper - Chapter III from The Pioneers (460-469)
Washington Irving and James Fenimore Cooper were contemporaries and the first American authors of belle-lettres to gain international recognition. They both wrote about American and Americans. How do the selections by Irving and Cooper differ in their tone, style, and the picture they present of American and its people?
Do one of the four assignments listed above and send it to me by April 16.
Week 15 -- April 16
Walt Whitman - (985-1003)Preface to Leaves of Grass Poems (1054-1080)
Whitman's elegy for President Lincoln, "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd," contains a number of symbols. What are some of the symbols in the poem and what do they represent? Make specific references to the reading to support your answer. Include appropriate quotations. Document your sources.
See your English grammar handbook for information on how to quote from and document poetry.
Week 16 -- April 23
Emily Dickinson -- Poems (1167-1188)
Emily Dickinson's poetry has been described as being about four great themes: nature, love, death, and immortality. Taking one of these themes as a focus, read Dickinson's poetry and tell what the poems say about this theme. Make specific references to the reading to support your answer. Document the sources you use.
See your English grammar handbook for information on how to quote from and document poetry.
No work will be accepted after May 1, the last day of classes.