Age of Reason
1750-1800
Background
Mid-1760’s and mid-1770’s attitudes
toward Great Britain changed
 King George III and Parliament imposed
new regulations
 Outrage in America grew
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Timeline
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After the French & Indian War, taxes were raised
to cover war costs
1765 Stamp Act
1767 Townshend Acts
1770 Boston Massacre
1774 First Continental Congress
1775 “shots heard around the world”
1800 America elected T. Jefferson
Age of Reason
Also called the “Enlightenment”
 Spurred on by scientists (Galileo and Sir
Isaac Newton), philosophers (Voltaire),
and political theorists (John Locke)
 Valued reason over faith
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Cultural Scene
Theaters were built
 New colleges established
 Singers and artists abounded
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Literature of the Period
Mostly public writing
 Many newspapers and magazines
established
 Almanacs were popular
 Fixed on politics
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Anaphora
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Anaphora is emphasizing words by repeating them at
beginning clauses.
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Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which
has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and
seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never
shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I
saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky.
Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith
forever. Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which
deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I
forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul
and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these
things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God
Himself. Never.
 — Elie Wiesel, Night
Aphorism
It is a short, concise statement expressing
a wise or clever observation or a general
truth.
 Lost time is never found again. Ben Franklin
 That which does not destroy us makes us
stronger. Nietzsche
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Parallelism
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Parallelism is the use of repeated
sentences or phrases within a piece of
literature.
Famous Works
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Ben Franklin
 From
 From
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Thomas Jefferson
 The
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Declaration of Independence
Thomas Paine
 From
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The Autobiography
Poor Richard’s Almanac
The Crisis, Number 1
Patrick Henry
 Speech
in the Virginia Convention