American Southern
Literature
Southern Literature
“ ‘Southern literature’ announces the
conjunction of the U.S. South and an
expressive art—texts identified as
belonging to a particular history, social
organization, and cultural imaginary”
Purpose
One of the integral aspects of southern culture and
tradition, is of its colorful literature and storytelling.
Common themes of southern writers include:
significant familial relationships and realistic
characters. Writers in the South also had a sense of
historic background and a unique way of life worth
writing about.
Influences in Southern Writing
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Slavery
Civil War
Segregation
Revolution in culture
Poverty
Military/ War
Elements of Southern Writing
Style
Dialect Writing
 Not used often in other writings because it is
viewed as condescending to the race or ethnicity
being portrayed.
 Popular in Southern writing and incorporates
local speech and patterns i.e. ain’t, y’all etc. and
misspelling of words to display meaning i.e. yuh
(you) and lak (like)
Dialect Writing Cont.
Examples of books with dialect writing:
 Tom Sawyer
 To Kill a Mockingbird
 Their Eyes Were Watching God
 Huck Finn
 The Color Purple
Examples of Dialect Writing
Excerpts from Their Eyes Were Watching God
by Zora Neale Hurston
"At dat she ain't so ole as some of y'all dat's
talking."
"She ain't even worth talkin' after," Lulu Moss
drawled through her nose. "She sits high, but
she looks low. Dat's what Ah say 'bout dese ole
women runnin' after young boys."
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Common Themes
Chivalry
 This theme reflected southern culture where
women were treated with respect and were
delicate flowers to be doted upon
Themes Continued
Values and Morals
 Many values and morals in Southern literature
are a result of a strong Christian influence
 Family values are also very prominent. Usually
this theme is presented from a traditional
standpoint.
A Writing Culture
“the South, perhaps more than any other region,
we go back to our home in dreams and
memories, hoping it remains what it was on a
lazy, still summer's day twenty years ago”
- Willie Morris
Southern Poetry
“Like our folks, poetry here is hillbilly and gentry, downhome and intellectual, neighborly and reclusive, generous
and vengeful—like folks everywhere, I guess—but with a
more colorful vernacular and hand-rubbed vowels.”
—Wendy Carlisle
Southern Poetry was often written by men. Some
talented southern poets include: Edgar Allen
Poe, Sidney Lanier, James Weldon Johnson,
John Crowe Ransom and many more.
Southern Gothic Writing
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“Southern gothic, a genre of the American
South, retreats from the dark castles and
clanking chains of 19th-century European
literature to embrace the moody romance,
mystery, terror, and grotesqueries”
Examples: William Faulkner’s “A Rose For
Mary”, and novels by Eudora Welty.
Great Southern Novels
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To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
The Mind of The South by Wilbur Cash
Great Southern Writers
There are numerous famous Southern authors.
Each person had different life experiences, thus
they wrote and included varying themes in their
books. Themes vary from reader to reader but
prominent ones in Southern works include:
injustice, prejudice, standing up for your beliefs
and many more.
William Faulkner
Many say William’s short stories resembled
his life. They included struggles with rage,
alcoholism, and adultery. Each of these
hardships were sadly common in
Southern America during the 1920s
through 1950s and even today. His works
were famous in the South and encouraged
many more Southern novels.
Flannery O’Connor
Religion was a key factor in her life
and thus reflected in her writing.
She devout Roman Catholic but
many of the characters in her books
were Protestant.
“It was her observation that
Protestants expressed their faith
through dramatic action, something
she did not see in Catholics”
Impact of Southern Writing on
The Literary World
With the arousal of Southern literature came a
new more authentic style of writing. They went
against the grain by using small town issues and
“average joe” dialect that made “their” South
come to life. Many novels also aided in
awareness on issues like racism and poverty.
With the unassuming grace of the great South
these authors have enlightened us on a culture
filled with romanticism and family values.