History and Anthology of
American Literature

Part I. The Literature of Colonial America
 Part II. The Literature of Reason and
Revolution
 Part III. The Literature of Romanticism

How to define American Literature
 Anylytical approach
 Thematic approach
 Historical approach
Part I. The Literature of Colonial America

Historical Introduction
 Early American
writers and Poets
 Puritan
 Puritanism
Part I. Historical Introduction
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I. The native American and their culture–
Indians
 II. The historical background of the colonial
Time
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Christopher Columbus discovered the American continent in 1491.
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Captain Christopher Newport reached Virginia in 1607.
Puritans came the New England area, by Mayflower in 1619.
The first settlement was established in Plymouth in 1620.
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Early American Writers and Poets
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South, Jamestown, Virginia:
Captain John Smith---first American writer 8 works
Contributions: his description of America were filled with themes,
myths, images, scenes, characters and events that were a foundation for
the nation’s literature. He lured the Pilgrims into fleeing here and
creating a New land.
North, New England, Puritan Writers
William Bradford: first governor of Plymouth, The History of
Plymouth Plantation, simplicity, earnestness, direct reporting, readable,
moving.
John Winthrop: first governor of Boston, The History of New England,
candid simplicity, honesty
Two Poets: Anne Bradstreet, Edward Taylor
Puritans

One division of English Protestant. They regarded the
reformation of the church under Elizabeth as incomplete,
and called for further purification from what they
considered to be unscriptural and corrupt forms and
ceremonies retained from the unreformed church.
 The 17th century American Puritans included two parts:
Separatists and Massachusetts Bay Group
 Their Religious Doctrines: original sin, total depravity,
predestination and limited atonement through a special
infusion of grace from God.
 They regarded themselves as chosen people of God. They
embraced hardships, industry and frugality. They favored a
disciplined, hard, somber, ascetic and harsh life. They
opposed arts and pleasure. They suspect joy and laughter
as symptoms of sin.
Puritanism

A religious and political movement. Through it,
one sees emerging the right of the individual to
political and religious independence.
 Their religious doctrines: original sin, total
depravity, predestination, limited atonement.
 Their attitudes toward entertainment: joy and
laughter are symptoms of sin.
 Their attitudes toward work: work itself is a good
in addition to what it achieves, that time saved by
efficiency or good fortune should be spent in
doing further work.
Puritanism’s influence on American
literature
 Purpose: pragmatic
 Contents: practical matter-of-fact accounts
of life in the new world; highly theoretical
discussions of religious questions.
 Form: diary, autobiography, sermon, letter
 Style: tight and logic structure, precise and
compact expression, avoidance of rhetorical
decoration, adoption of homely imagery,
simplicity of diction.
Part II. The Literature of Reason and Revolution
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Historical Introduction
Benjamin Franklin
Thomas Paine
Thomas Jefferson
Philip Freneau
Part II. Historical
Introduction(1)
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Industrial Revolution: spurred the economy in
American colonies.
 Independence War: the industrial growth led to
intense strain with Britain. The British
government tried to suppress their growth
economically, and ruled them from abroad
politically and levied heavy tax on them. these
aroused bitter resentment in colonies. Constant
conflicts resulted in American revolutionary war.
Part II. Historical Introduction
(2)
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Spiritual life of the colonies—Enlightenment.
Philosophical and intellectual movement.
Advocated reason or rationality, the scientific
method, equality and human beings’ability to
perfect themselves and their society.
Agreed on faith in human rationality and existence
of discoverable and universally valid principles
governing human beings, nature and society.
Opposed intolerance, restraint, spiritual authority
and revealed religion
Benjamin Franklin (1)
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The only good writer of
the colonial period.
Printer, enlightener,
inventor, scientist,
statesman, diplomat
Aid Jefferson in writing
The Declaration of
Independence.
Seeking help from France
in American Independent
War.
Benjamin Franklin (2)

Main Works: Poor
Richard’s Almanac
 It contains many
proverbs
 Autobiography
 With it he set the form
for autobiography as a
genre.
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Style: he developed an
utilitarian and didactic
style.
 His style is
characterized by
simplicity, frankness,
wit, clarity, logic and
order.
Benjamin Franklin (3)
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Autobiography: inspiring account of a poor boy’s rise to a
high position. It is a how-to-do-it book, one on the art of
self-improvement.
Contents: It covered Franklin’s life only until 1757 when
he was 51 years old. It described his life as a shrewd and
industrious businessman and narrates how he owned the
constant felicity of his life, his long-continued health and
acquisition of fortune.
Significance: It presents a prototype of American success
which inspired generations of Americans. It is an
embodiment of Puritanism and enlightening spirits.
Benjamin Franklin (4)
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Analysis of Selected Parts
A. 3 paras a. He was interested in reading as a child.
b. Being an apprentice to his brother, he began writing.
c. How he improved his argumentation.
Summary: Franklin was thirsty for knowledge and improved his
writing with practical methods. How he gained success through one’s
consistent effort and hard working. (self-improvement/education)
B. 5 paras a. The way of learning language.
b. Practice makes perfect---a piece of advice on how to teach language.
c/d. Relations with his relatives. Life experience.
e. Learning Club: devoted on the improvement of young man,
influence public opinion.
Summary: Franklin was a practical, diligent man. In learning
language, he had a great power of endurance and clever mind. He
always tried his best to achieve his goal, no matter in life or study.
(self-reliance)
Why Franklin is admired and read widely?

He is a typical American, model of the self-made
man, a cultural hero whose life exemplified the
American dream of the poor boy who made good.
 He stressed the importance of working hard to
make money, happiness depending in the first
place on economic success and optimistically
believed that every American could do so.
 He was convinced that no man could be virtuous
or happy unless he did his best to improve the life
of his society and his own life.
Why say Franklin is the representative of
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American Enlightenment?
1.He believed in reason or rationality, the
scientific method, equality and human beings’
ability to perfect themselves and their society.
2. He opposed intolerance, restraint, spiritual
authority and revealed religion. Deist
3. He favored the education. Self-education,
educating and disseminating knowledge among
people by his newspaper and Autobiography,
establishing learning club, college and library.
4. He favored freedom of thoughts. He set up the
ideas of democracy in the USA.
Thomas Paine (1)
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Propagandist, pamphleteer,
a master of persuasion
who understands the
power of language to
move a man to action.
 Main works:
 The American Crisis
 Common Sense
 The rights of man
 The Age of Reason
Thomas Paine (2)
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Study of the Selected Part
 1. In what sense does Paine use the verb “try” in the first
sentence of the essay?
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Paine used the word in the sense of “test to the limit”,
“subject to great hardships”.
 2. To what 3 types of criminal does Paine indirectly
compare George III? What is Paine’s attitude toward the
British troops?
 3. What does the writer think of the Tories?
 4. What does Paine mean by an offensive war? What
reasons does he give for not supporting such a war?
 5. What kind of war does he believe the American
revolution to be?
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6. How do you understand the title of the essay?
Thomas Jefferson (1)
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Enlightener, planter, aristocrat, lawyer, a
symbol of American democracy.
 Man of many talents: scientist, inventor,
musician, linguist, architect, diplomat and
writer.
Thomas Jefferson (2)
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Political Career: He served his country as Minister to
France(1784-1789), Secretary of State(1789-1793), Vice
President(1791-1801) and third President(1801-1809).
Thoughts: Jeffersonian Democracy, which includes faith in
the individual and common man, dislike an overly strong
government, and emphasis on the importance of education
and on agrarianism and land ownership as they brought
responsibility and true judgment. Politically, he is
considered the father of the democratic spirit in his country.
The society he thought of as ideal was one where
landowning farmers could live under as little government
as possible.
Style: dignity, flexibility, clarity, command of
generalization
Thomas Jefferson (3)
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The Declaration of Independence: The essay, adopted July
4, 1776, not only announced the birth of a new nation, but
also set forth a philosophy of human freedom which served
as unimportant force in the western world.
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It is a statement of American principles and a review of the
Causes of the quarrel with Britain, presented the American
view to the world with classic dignity.
It instilled among the common people a sense of their own
importance and inspired struggle for personal freedom, self
government and a dignified place in society.
Philip Freneau (1)
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Father of American
Poetry
 Teacher, political
journalist, seaman,
humanitarian, polemist,
propagandist, satirist,
loyal follower of
Jefferson
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Main Works:
The Rising Glory of
America (1772)
The British Prison
Ship (1781)
The Wild Honey
Suckle (1786)
The Indian Burying
Ground (1788)
Part III. The Literature of
Romanticism
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Historical Introduction
Washington Irving
James Fenimore
Cooper
William Cullen Bryant
Edgar Allan Poe
Ralph Waldo Emerson
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Henry David Thoreau
 Nathaniel Hawthorne
 Herman Melville
 Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow
Part III. Historical Introduction
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Stability, Prosperity, Freedom
 Geographically, America expanded its
frontier. Economically, it began the
industrialization and urbanization.
Politically, people enjoyed more freedom.
Culturally, cultural business prospered.
 Literary Ideas:Romanticism and
Transcendentalism
Romanticism (1)
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2 stages: pre-romanticism (1770s-1830)
post-romanticism(1830-60,65-75)
Rise of Romanticism: appeared in England in the
18th century. Reaction against the prevailing
neoclassical spirit and rationalism during the Age
of Reason.
Romanticism (2)
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Moral enthusiasm: passion, emotion, fancy and
imagination.
 Faith in the value of individualism and intuitive
perception: display personalities, express feelings
and ideas, stress men’s rights for freedom and
happiness. Human nature is of good will. Man can
know the world through his own
ability/conscience/intuition.
 Nature was a source of goodness and man’s
societies a source of corruption.
Romanticism (3)
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The literary works of romanticism mostly
reflected the fantastic and thrilling stories taking
place long ago and far away, rich in mystic color.
The romantic had a persistent interest in the
primitive literature, in which he found inspiration
of various kind.
 The romantic showed a profound admiration and
love for nature. The beauty and perfection of
nature could produce in him unspeakable joy and
exaltation.
Transcendentalism (1)
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Appeared in 1830, marked the maturity of
American romanticism and the first renaissance in
the American literary history.
 The term was derived from the Latin verb
transcendere: to rise above , to pass beyond the
limits.
 Rise of Transcendentalism: the product of
combination of foreign influence (German
idealistic philosopher, neo-Platonism, Oriental
mysticism, Confucius and Mencius) and American
native Puritan tradition.
Transcendentalism(2) romantic
idealism, philosophical romanticism
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Spirit or Oversoul: the universe is composed of Nature and
Soul. Spirit is everywhere.
 Individualism: the most important element in society, the
divinity of individual.
 Nature: is a connecting link between God and man. It is a
symbol of the Spirit.
 Community living and dignity of manual labor.
 Relying on Intuition and Conscience, man can transcend
the limits of the senses and of logic and directly receive
higher truths and greater knowledge denied to more
mundane methods of knowing.
Ralph Waldo Emerson(1)
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Transcendentalist
Bring
Transcendentalism to
New England
 Believe in
individualism,
independence of mind,
self-reliance
 Prose, poetry, speech
Reading Nature
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Para 1: Nature has a restorative, comforting,
purifying influence on Men.
Para 2: Nature is sublime, respectable, kind,
profound and inspiring.
Para 3: The definition of Nature.
Para 4/5: Men always feel delightful and young in
Nature.
Para 6: The power of delight resides in men or in a
harmony of both.
Washington Irving (1)
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Father of American Short Stories
 First American author to make a living by
his pen, first great prose stylist of American
romanticism,.
 author of the first American short stories
and familiar essays.
 the first American author of imaginative
literature to achieve international distinction
Washington Irving (2)
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Main Works:
 The Sketch Book
 Tales of a Traveler,
 The Life of George
Washington
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Style: simplicity,
lucidity, poise and
ease flow, discursive
and leisurely, slow,
graceful presentation,
careful phrases and
cadences.
Washington Irving (3)
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Significance: his literary innovations
 1)author of first modern American short stories and the
first great American juvenile literature. It was him who
introduced the familiar essay from Europe to America.
 2)He ranked among the first of the modern men of letters
to write history and biography as literary entertainment.
 3)He was the leaders of the world-wide Romantic
Movement.
 4)His humor, which gave an impetus to the growth and
popularity of American indigenous humor. His humor was
always well-meaning, mild and prone to be accepted.
 5) Irving’s genial writing also improved the feeling of
American toward the British.
Washington Irving (4)
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The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: tells a miraculous
story about the unsuccessful love affair of Ichabod
Crane, a country teacher, which is combined with
the legend of a headless horseman. The two stories
share legendary elements, which the critics either
interpret as an expression of the author’s
conservative attitude toward the American
Revolution and his nostalgia for the life before the
Revolution, or doubt for their credibility.
James Fenimore Cooper(17891851)
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Cooper’s life experiences: Cooper town Yale college sailor
Precation(1820) The Spy(1821) The Pioneers （1823）
His literary achievements: thirty two novels social critic—
conservative themes in his novels are wildness vs civilization,
freedom vs law, order vs change, aristocratic vs democrat, and
natural rights vs legal rights.
He developed three kind of novels: 1. novels about
revolutionary past. The Spy. 2. sea novels: The Pilot(1824) 3.
Novels about American frontier
Leatherstocking series: Natty bumppo—an ideal, innocence
and purity， wildness and the frontier for the first time
William Cullen Bryant(1794-1878)
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Life Experence: born on a farm at
Cummington, Massachusetts,loved nature,
translated Homer’s Iliad and Odessey, his
first poem The Enbargo(1808) published
when he was 14; editor in chief in New
York Evening Post;
Main works
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Thanatopsis (1811)
 The Fountain(1842)
 The White-Footed(1844)
 The Food of Years(1878)Library of Poetry
and Song(1871-1872)
 Translation:Iliad(1870) and Odeyssey(1871)
Thanatopsis
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Look up the word thantopsis in a dictionary and explain its origion and
meaning.
Bryant divides his poem into three parts. Discuss why you think he
made these particular divisions.
What advice does the speaker give those who shudder at the thought of
death?
What does the speaker mean when he ways that the person who dies
does not retire alone? Why does he choose the “retire”?
Interpret the following passag:”each one as before will chase/His
favorite phantom…”
Explain how the person addressed as “thou” gains in stature and
importance as the poem progress.
What is the “message” of the poet?
Edgar Allan Poe
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Poet, editor, critic,
first writer of the
detective story, writer
of fiction, a pioneer in
poetic and fictional
techniques
 Life story: disastrous
 Artistic principles
Poe’s Artistic theories
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Poe argued for the creation of beauty and intensity
of emotion, against the didactic motive for
literature.
 Poe felt that literature should have no social
function or responsibility but should be an
expression of the isolated artist.
 Poe thought that the artist should be concerned
solely with beauty, of imagination. The real world
is cruel, ugly and fast into decaying. The artist’s
life is lonely, painful and hopeless. The only
happiness arose out of the creation and
contemplation of beauty.
Poe’s theories on Fiction
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A good fiction should only tells one event, which
can be finished once.
 Fiction should stimulate readers and impress them
deeply. It should have a consistent effect
throughout the whole text.
 He showed in his fiction the impulse to selfdestruction, the fascination with horrible
catastrophe, whimsical and abnormal psychology.
 He depicted the inner world or psychology of his
characters.
To Helen
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1. Although the poem is about a real person , Poe addressed it to Helen,
why might he have done this?
2．In the final stanza, Helen is addressed as Psyche the Greek word
for “ breath” or “soul”. How do you reconcile this with the earlier
references to Helen of Troy, whose legendary beauty led to the Trojan
War?
Beauty---to truth---to soul
3. Note that all three stanzas end with a reference to a place---native
shore, Greece and Rome, and Holy land. How are these related to each
other? To the meaning of the poem as a whole?
Beauty is truth and leads to spiritual oneness and artistic integrity
Lines written in passionate boyhood to the first purely and ideal
woman in my soul.
Stanza 1
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The poet first mentioned Helen, the most famous
beauty in Great mythology. Then Poe compared
himself to Odysseus, who wandered for ten years
over the sea to get home. As Odysseus, Edgar
Allan Poe was persistent in his chasing after fine
arts with the sincere belief that art, or beauty and
truth, is the ultimate aim, the home, for the
wandering poet; while Helen, the embodiment of
ancient beauty, is the guider to that dreamland.
Stanza 2
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All the art and literature originated from one
thing---beauty. Having taken Helen as the
embodiment of beauty, the poet was
confident that once he saw Helen, he was
sure to be led by Helen to the home of
beauty---fine and pure literature. Poe
insisted that Greece and Rome are the
homes of beauty, the treasure houses of fine
art and literature.
Stanza 3
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The speaker sees Helen standing in the bright
niche and holding in her hand an agate lamp. She
is quite similar to goddess Psyche from Greek
Myth. Through his description of his passion to
Helen, Poe expressed his pursuit and sincere
devotion to beauty.
 In the poem, three beauties in ancient Greek
mythology—Helen, Naiad and Psyche---are
mentioned just to show that beauty is something
that existed; it is very holy but it is hard to reach.
The Raven’s symbolic meaning

A. it symbolizes disaster and misfortune.
 B. it may symbolize the soul of the radiant
maiden, the “lost Lenore.”
 C. it may symbolize the sub-consciousness
of the poet.
 D. it is the symbol of modern reality.
Annabel Lee
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Stanza 1. The pretty young girl Annabel Lee used
to live in a kingdom by the seaside. Before her
death, the only thing in her heart was to love or to
be loved by me.
 Stanza 2. Our love was so strong and beautiful that
angels in heaven, who are with wings and living in
heaven and likely to be freer and abler than any
human beings, envied us. Seldom did any angels
envy anything of the human world. If they did,
there must be something spectacular in the object
of their admiration.
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Stanza 3.My Annabel Lee was taken away
from me. The faithful lovers were
mercilessly separated by a superpower. Poe
was indicating that Annabel Lee might be
an angel from heaven, because she was
“brought back(and taken away”) to heaven
and she had some “highborn kinsmen” up
there.
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Stanza 4: The poet was quite clear about the reason of
Annabel Lee’s being taken away from him. The evil wind
came out by night and Annabel Lee was taken away by
night, that indicates that somebody may appear as angels in
daytime, but as devils during night.
Stanza 5. Though the evil wind and the highborn kinsmen
are very powerful to take my beautiful Annabel lee away
from me, they are not so powful as to take her soul away
from me. Our love is more powerful than death. After the
dath of one, our souls are still together.
Stanza 6
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My Annabel Lee had gone to heaven. She
reminds me of her bright face by the moon,
so that I can see her in my dream; hen I see
the stars in the sky, I see her bright eyes, too.
We are together and nothing can separate
us;, neither the human power nor the God of
death is possible.
Poe’s theories on Poetry
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His poetry express the same deep hopelessness
and rejection of the world as his prose, but in a
different way.
 He avoids the intrusion of ugliness and tries to
create a vision of beauty and a melodious sound.
The basic tone is melancholy.
 The function f poetry is not to summarize and
interpret earthly experience, but to create a mood
in which the soul soars toward supernal beauty.
 The creation of work of art requires the utmost
concentration and unity, as well as the most
scrupulous use of words.
Nathaniel Hawthorne(1804-1864)
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Romantic novelist, shortstory writer.
Advanced the art of short
story and gave to the form
qualities that are uniquely
American.
First great American
writer of fiction to work in
the moralistic tradition.
Combined the American
romanticism with puritan
moralism
Romances: an imaginative
fictional projection of moral life.
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Contents: sensational
material, poisoning,
murder, adultery,
crime.
 Methods: the New
England Past,
theocratic society,
puritan, witchcraft, the
Indian life, symbolic
and allegorical form.
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Themes: explore the
human soul/ nature of
man, deal with moral
or ethical problems,
study the effects of sin
on man.
 Purpose: to show the
inner world of man is
the source of evil in
society, to criticize the
present age.
Reasons for Hawthorne’s creation

1. His exploration of the soul resulted from his
skeptical attitude toward the social reality and
from his ambition to probe into the nature of man.
 2. His selection of themes and skillful use of the
historical materials resulted from his personal life
and family history. reclusion, judge ancestor.
 3. His concentration on the human mind and
character on conscious and unconscious desires, is
an outgrowth of the Puritan emphasis on the
individual conscience. He scolded the harshness of
Puritans, yet took the Puritanism as his living
criteria. Freedom of will, a conscious choice
between good and evil.
Hawthorne’s Style

Rich imagination, well-woven structure,
psychological analysis, various symbols, delicate
imageries, ambiguity, mystery.
 Wide and well-controlled vocabulary, formal
words with pleasant sound, long and complex
sentences, fresh and effective metaphors and
similes, summarized historical narrative, but links
scenes dramatically.
Main Works

Twice-Told Tales,
1837
 Mosses from an old
Manse, 1846
 The Scarlet Letter,
1850
 The House of the
Seven Gables, 1851
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Blithedale Romance,
1852
 The Marble Faun,
1860
 Our Old Home, 1863
The Scarlet Letter (1850)
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The Scarlet Letter is a complex story of
guilt/sin, its moral, emotional and
psychological effects on various persons,
and how deliverance is obtained for some of
them.
 In the fiction, Hawthorne approached the
question of evil more profoundly. He
considered the effect on an individual’s
character of enforced penance, of hypocrisy,
and of hatred.
What sin, how to deal with,
Hawthorne’s attitudes
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Hester: disloyalty, betrayal, deception, sexual
desire, adultery. Face, correct, redeem, purify.
Praise, content, conform.
 Dimmesdale:adultery, cowardice, hypocrisy,
dishonesty, selfishness, too coward to confess,
tortured by his conscience. Sympathetic, disfavor
his hesitation, indecisiveness and cowardice.
 Chillingworth: revenge. Tortured by the desire of
revenge, twisted and reduced to nothing. disgusted,
think he committed greater crime.
Puritanism in The Scarlet Letter

Puritan background: setting, events, characters,
thoughts, behaviors.
 Puritan doctrines: original sin, total depravity,
predestination, limited atonement.
 The novel expresses Hawthorne’s attitudes toward
Puritanism. Like puritans who concerned
themselves with the original sin and developed it
into their beliefs, Hawthorne concerns the novel
with the same theme, and tries to establish his
doctrines around it.
Puritanism in The Scarlet Letter

Through challenging Puritanism, Hawthorne
establishes his own “Puritanism”:
1. Their religious doctrines. Conclusion: he
believes in men’s ability to redeem themselves or
advocates individuality.
2. Their rigid, inhuman attitude toward life and
enjoyment: suppress men’s all desires, live a hard,
disciplined and ascetic life, discriminate men’s
rights for happiness. Conclusion: stress men’s
rights and desires for pleasure.
3. Their hypocrisy: clergymen commit crimes
against their preaching and beliefs.
Through challenging Puritanism, Hawthorne aims to
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1. Explore the source of evils: unreasonable and
inhuman social system; men’s inner world, defects
in men’s nature: strong desire, dishonesty,
cowardice, revenge.
2. Explore the influences on different characters:
To brave men: gain moral rebirth, redeem their sin,
win respect/ love again.
To coward men: torment of conscience, suffer in
hell fire.
To vicious and vengeful men: reduce them to
demons, make them deteriorated, malicious, mean.
3. Explore ways of redeeming sin: brave to
confess and face it, correct it through love,
devotion, generosity and forgiveness.
Hweman Melville(1819-1891)

Life experience:born in New York City, his father
died and left large debts and his mother lived with
her family. He dropped school early and went to
work as a bank clerk, salesman farmhand school
teacher and a seaman; in 1841 he signed on a
whaling cruise to the South seas.
 After three years of sea life, he returned to
Boston.These experience provided him materials
for his writings.
Literary career

Main works:
 Typee(1846)
Omoo(1847)
 Mardi(1849)
Redburn(1849)
 White-Jacket(1850)
 Moby Dick (1851)
 Some poems and short stories
Moby Dick(1851) Chapter 54




This chapter contains two aspects of events. It is gone
through the narration of boatman. He told the story
happened on a whaling ship.
1. theconflict between lakeman—Stilkilt and his rebels and
the mate.
2. the conflict between the mate and the white whale.
In both cases, Lakeman failed in the stuggle against the
unfair treatment and the mate died in the mouth of a whale.
Though the tory, we got to know the life of boatman in
whaling industry and the fieresness of the white whale.
The Town-Ho’s story

The watery region around the cape of Good Hope
is a place where you meet more travelers than in
any other part of the oceans. Soon after speaking
to the Albatross, the Pequod encounters another
whaler called the Town_ho. Ahab relents and
there is a regular gam. The ship is manned mainly
by Polynesians and the treason is found in this
story secretly bbrought aboard the Pequod and
never told to Captain Ahab.

As the Town-Ho was sailing in the Pacific the ship
sprung a leak. Forced labor at the pumps as the
ship headed for the nearest island created a mutiny
which was interrupted by the appearance of Moby
Dick. The boats were lowered but the harpooner
on the boat nearest him was devoured by the Great
White Whalte. The ship made harbor and most of
the crew deserted for fear of encountering Moby
Dick. Polynesians agreed to help sail the ship the
rest of its voyage.
The novel can be understood
from three levels

1. It is a novel of journey and whale
catching.
 2. It is a conflict between Catain Ahab and
Moby Dick.
 It is a story of Ishmael, his thought about
human body’sego realization, the
relationship between man and nature, mand
and God, man and man, etc.
The style of Moby Dick


1.His writing is consciously literary.
2. There is a threefold quality in his writing; the
style of fact, the style of oratory celebrating the
fact, and the style of meditation.
 3. His style is highly symbolic and metaphorical.
 4.The novel has many non-narrative chapters, and
this is how Melville changed an adventural story
into a philosophical novel.
 5. He used the technique of multiple views to
achieve the effect of ambiguity.
Henry Wordworth
Longfellow(1807-1882)

His life: born in Porland, Maine, studied at Bowdoin College,
published his poems at the age of 13, went to Europe to study language,
after 4 years and returned to be a professor in Boweoin College. In his
poems, the themes like love of nature, love for the past, his poems is
famous for spiritual aspiration, simple piety, homely affection, love of
beauty, refined of thought and manners. He always took active attitude
towards life. He adopted European ideas in American subject, and
always in European styles. In his lyrics he drew on the techniques of
European poetry as well as on his own native creativity, and acquired a
mastery of rhyme and rhythm. The ideas he expressed are generally
simple ones and his techniques display them to advantage. He
expressed his ideas musically and powerfully. His works are highly
spiritual. He emphasized the mysteries of birth, death, and love. Most
of his works are simple and easily read so that even children can
understand them.
A Psalm of Life


It was first published in Voices of the Night
In the September edition of New York Monthly in
1839. It is very influential in China, because it is
said to be the first English poem translated into
chinese.
 The poem was written in 1838 when Longfellow
was struck with great dismay : his wife died in
1835, and his courtship of a young woman was
unrequited. However, despite all the frustrations,
Longfellow tried to encourage himself by writing
a piece of optimistic word