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Colonial literature

Colonial literature. American Literature pages 98-130, selected handouts. Colonial Literature. Colonial literature refers to the literature written during the period when Europeans settled the colonies. It was not literature as we think of literature…there are several reasons for this

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Colonial literature

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  1. Colonial literature American Literature pages 98-130, selected handouts

  2. Colonial Literature • Colonial literature refers to the literature written during the period when Europeans settled the colonies. • It was not literature as we think of literature…there are several reasons for this • Survival was more important than entertainment • The Puritan belief system held that “idleness” was wicked…and entertainment was idleness.

  3. Colonial literature • The early colonists (mostly Puritan) wrote about what was most important to them: • Religion • Politics • History • Most of what they wrote survives in the form of diaries, histories, sermons, and journals

  4. John smith • Soldier at 16, imprisoned in Turkey by age 20 • Founded the first permanent American settlement in Jamestown (1607). • Returned to England after being injured in a fire • Wrote A True Relation of Virginia after he returned to England. • This was the first “American” book in history. • His story—page 98

  5. William bradford • Known as “the father of American History” • He wrote Of Plymouth Plantation, which is regarded as our first history book • Served as governor of Plymouth for 32 years. • He is the source of most of our Puritan heritage—the Thanksgiving story, the Mayflower Compact, the Puritan work ethic—these are ideas contained in his writings • His story—101-105

  6. John winthrop • Governor of Mass. Bay Colony • Landed in Massachusetts 10 years after the Plymouth pilgrims arrived in America • His group was different—wealthy, upper class • Winthrop’s literary contribution was a journal that he kept for years, documenting Puritan life in the colonies • His story—99-100

  7. What is puritanism? • It was the dominant mode of thought in early colonial America • They sought to “purify” what they saw as a corrupted church—when they couldn’t, they left Europe • Did not believe in “popery”—things that seemed Catholic to them • Strict religious discipline, sometimes veering into asceticism

  8. What is puritanism? • Lutheran—believed in the “believer’s priesthood” • Calvinist—believed in God’s sovereignty (all the way to election) • Believed that God’s kingdom was destined to invade the earth, and that Christians were an important part of that process • Saw America as “a city on a hill” that could be claimed for God.

  9. What is puritanism • Results-oriented (because prosperity and election are intertwined) • Didn’t approve of “vain and idle” pursuits—so theatre and fiction (unless religious) were sinful • All of this led to what is now referred to as “The Puritan Work Ethic” • The Puritan Work Ethic (laboring in a secular vocation as evidence of grace) led directly to capitalism…how fortunate

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