Hakluyt- always wanted to go to America but he never did it. Minister, well educated, devoted to geography and art of making maps. Advisor to traders & government. London became the centre of Discovery & Aspiration lit. “Principle navigations” (Columbus’ letters, Cortez, Cabot, Raleigh)

Connecticut wits- (john Trumbull, timothy Dwight, Davis Humphreys, Joel Barlow.-conservatives, federalist, Calvinists, neo-classicists

Thomas Jefferson-authorship of declaration of independence (1776), founding of the University of Virginia chartered by the general assembly (1819), the Virginia Stature for religion &freedom (1786), opposed slavery

Franklin-helped draft the declaration, served as ambassador of France, founded Pennsylvania University &hospital, invented stove, lightening rod, first subscription library in America

Jonathan Edwards: philosopher, he wanted to revive religion in Massachusetts, embarked several movements- great awaking, wrote series of sermons, about promise of transgression, punishment (“sinners in angry god’s hands”- example of sermons, aim- frighten people to fear them back to religion, only God can give us protection, only god know the time of condemnation) sermons had impact on his congregation, many evolvements were designed to excite fear from the idea of punishment. He started to convert Indians. He died of smallpox, “personal narrative” – he drives into conclusion that soul should be opened to God like flower to sun. There is a boy & man obsessed about religion, desperate to come to terms with dogmas unacceptable at the beginning. He was concerned with his spiritual condition from his childhood. He was abandoned in his religious duties, experiencing delight in the religion. “Notes of the Apocalypse” Edwards read all lit. & draw into conclusion that the estimated the end of the world was wrong. - Rational, scientific approach to religion, religion-emotional matter for him, great awaking- sense of God

Arthur Miller- “all my sons”, death of a salesman, a view from the bridge, after the fall, the last Yankee.

Henry Miller- “black spring”, Tropic of Cancer, tropic of Capricorn

Hawthorne-(“Blithe dale”, “ house of 7 gables” marble Faun”) struggle with pride&intellectual arrogance & egoism, man isolated, sinful, conflict between intellect & heart, man suffering from the effects of their ancestors

Melville: human overwhelmed by mysterious forces of the universe, his knowledge is very limited, man seeks to confront & struggle against this forces

Faulkner: man of passion- anger, hatred, obsession, struggles with his own nature, will to power, alienated, victim of fate

William Faulkner-the sound & the fury, as I lay dying, light in august, the unvanquished.

Whitman: tenderness, he sees beauty, there is alienation, contradiction & despair but only sentimental resignation

Dickinson: lack of beauty & tenderness, only suffering, despair, fear, loss, perceiving pain as the central experience of life

Puritan prose: j.winthrop” a model of Christian charity, W.bradford” Plymouth Plantation, A Bradstreet, “upon the burning of our house, the prologue, before the birth of the child, E..Taylor-housewifery, meditation 8, j.edwards- sinners in the hands of angry God.

Puritan vision of new world- they were chosen by god, everyone has to work, model of Christian charity, people working together for common good, there must be poor & rich, community of love & equality,

“Model of Christian charity”-ideal community, hierarchy is normal, justice &mercy, love to enemy & god, giving, lending, forgiving, they established religious way of life, they need spiritual guide, bible is important, they should unite, adultery=death, charity, ethical rules, personal relationship with God (Plymouth plantation)- people & place chosen by God, growing fear of evil, special work of God providence, puritans-saints.

Puritan literature: lack of novels, poetry, metaphysical poetry (Taylor), and literature based on work ethic, pervaded with religion, represents life, plain style, rational, examples, the bible, it is religious based on bible, serious, rejected elaborated style, beauty not important but simplicity & practicality.

Renaissance- half of 19 century, issues: fantasy and the supernatural symbolism, transcendentalism, expansion of immigrants, emerging materialism and conformity, politics and democratic (reforming),artistic awaking, problem of war and slavery

Federalist papers-a collection of American essays published as a series in newspaper in 1787-8. The aim was to persuade citizen in New York to support proposal for American constitution. The papers gave complete explanation of the USA system government. They were written by Hamilton. Madison, john jay. .

Puritans features in Winthrop: spiritual and practical guidance, not retrospective narration, style plain, less appealing, less personal, chronicle of events, description of everyday life-cruelty of puritans, execution, epidemics, condemnation of elicit sex

In Bradford: the overall heroic tone mixed with melancholic, simple &plain style, retrospective narration, sense of humour, dealing with Indians, religious consideration, the vision of America as new world chosen for special purpose.

Transcendentalism- group of ideas in literature, religion, culture & philosophy originated in new England in mid-19. it was a protest against the state of culture. If focused on spirit which transcends physical & empirical by one’s institution & not through religious doctrines, individualism-most important, need to renew &regeneration , history is not important, education, nature, reject of traditional church, extremely optimistic, William Prescott, Edward Everett, Emerson, Thoreau, Hawthorne

Great awaking-period of religious revival in American history. 4. the first awaking of puritan religion and strict moral principles was initiated in 1730 by Jonathan Edwards and his sermons.

Determinism-philosophical proposition that every event, decision and action is usually determined by unbroken chain of prior occurrences. Everything is pre-arranged &nothing can be done to change it. This pessimistic approach is applied to literature in order to show that man efforts to change bad situation are useless. Henry James-the portratThomas hardy- Tess of thed Urberviles

3xNaturalism writers: Stephan Crane, Frank Norris, Theodore Dreiser, Jack Londo

Melville &Poe(similarities)- symbolism, darkness human soul

Poe- writer of romantic period, beautiful woman as common motif, numerous relationships, writing should produce effect on the reader not just tell story, creator of moods, philosophy of composition, work of art in an object created in the course of beauty & not a fragment of author’s life

Herman Melville- works deal with survival and the fall from innocence into wisdom or happiness of experience. Search way to live in dark world, his books are introspective, meditative, describe life at sea and on ship, his fiction is transcendentalism

Philosophy of composition- a critical essay which describe the procedure of composing poetry. The poem can not be too long, the best theme is death of women & speaker should be a lover. Poem should be melancholic- climax is important.

Feature of America which influenced Mrk Twain? Wealth, money, fame, boom&bust, he dislike European culture, refuse to celebrate ancient art, his fiction is autobiographic, America is the best, idealization was a spontaneous response to current events that carried the post-civil war, he describe place and people he knew

Hemingway’s works: The old man and the sea, a farewell to arms, to whom the bell tolls

Steinbeck’s themes: simple man, rural labourer, the poor, working class, proletariat, man’s longing for his own peace of land, conflicts,

Issues in 20 century in American lit.:

Lost generation, war, social realism, determinism, American dream, Jews-sadistic treatment, holocaust, individuality destroyed by great city

–ultimate text, allegories

Romantism: problem of war &slavery, examined sexuality, relationships. Struggle for independence, symbolism, idealism, individualism, and emotions, romantic, natural beauty,

Jefferson “letter to Peter Carr”

-man is able to recognize between good & evil, he’s rational, man can choose the courses,

-foreign languages: most important is Spanish, moral philosophy- we should read books,

-religion: J. calls for rational approach to religion, read bible like other books. My mind is my own church. We have mind so we can accumulate all knowledge, make judgments abut the gods existence

-traveling broaden our mind, female education