Lecture 1 early American Literature 英语专业教学课件.pptVIP

Lecture 1: The Literature of Colonial America(1607-1775) The English settlements in Virginia and Massachusetts began the American national history The earliest settlers included Dutch , Swedes, Germans, French , Spaniards, Italians and Portuguese. Frenchmen: Northern Colonies, along the St. Lawrence River. Swedes : along the Delaware Dutch: along the Hudson Germans : New York Scotch-Irish: Pennsylvania Spanish: Florida Negroes: New England, the Middle Colonies American Indians The early settlers: Puritanism in America They follow the ideas of the Swiss reformer John Calvin. Doctrines:- Predestination- Original sin and total depravity (human beings are basically evil.)- Limited atonement (or the Salvation of a selected few) Puritan values (creeds):Hard work, thrift, piety, sobriety, simple tastes.Puritans are more practical, tougher, and to be ever ready for any misfortune and tragic failure.They are optimistic. 4.Why did Puritans come to America?- to reform the Church of England- to have an entirely new church- to escape religious persecution* God’s chosen people* To seek a new Garden of Eden* To build “City of God on earth” 5. Influence - American Puritanism was one of the most enduring shaping influences in American thought and American literature.- American literature is based on a myth, i.e. the Biblical myth of the Garden of Eden.- Puritanism can be compared with Chinese Confucianism. Literary Scene 1. The first writings were the narratives and journals . 2. The writers of the Southern and Middle Colonies: Age of Reason and Revolution. William Byrd II , Thomas Jefferson 3. The first American writer: Captain John Smith: A True Relation of ….. A map of Virginia…. General History of Virginia Make a brief comment on Anne Bradstreet’s poem This short poem offers the reader an insight into the mentality of the early Puritan pioneering in a new world. When she, the poet. Heard the grasshopper and the cricket