colonial literature 美国文学课件[精品].ppt

Colonial Literature I. General Features: Humble Origins: Personal Literature occupied a major position. diaries, histories, journals, letters, commonplace books,, travel books, sermons, etc. 2. Content: to serve either God or colonial expansion or both. a. Some of the earliest forms of American Literature were pamphlets and writings extolling the benefits of the colonies to both a European and colonist audience. b. The religious disputes that prompted settlement in America were also topics of early writing. c. Other late writings described conflicts and interaction with the Indians. 3. Form: faithfully imitated and transplanted English literature II. Representatives of Colonial Literature John Smith Captain of Virginia Founder of the colony of Jamestown, Virginia Association with India Princess, Pocahontas A Description of New England He gave the name New England to that region, and encouraged people with the comment, Here every man may be master and owner of his owne labour and land...If he have nothing but his hands, he may...by industrie quickly grow rich. His message attracted millions of people in the next four centuries. * 2. Anne Bradstreet (1612-1672) Anne Bradstreet was an English-American writer, the first notable American poet, and the first woman to be published in Colonial America. Her work was very influential to Puritans in her time. “The tenth Muse” A quotation from Bradstreet can be found on a plaque at the Bradstreet Gate into Harvard Yard I came into this Country, where I found a new World and new manners at which my heart rose. * ﹡Born in Northampton, England, 1612. ﹡Grew up in cultured circumstances, well-educated, being tutored in history, several languages, and literature ﹡Married at eighteen, eight children ﹡Immigrated to America in 1630 ﹡The Bradstreet home burned down in a fire ﹡Suffered from smallpox and fall prey to illness ﹡Suffered from tuberculosis ﹡Loss of her daughter and son ﹡Died on September 16