Seventeenth-Century American Literature

1
Seventeenth-Century American Literature

• ????
• 2012/1/3
• Wesley Xi
• National Taiwan University

2
1584 ????????

• Captains Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlow led the
  first English expedition to the New World.

3
1584 ????????

• Barlow
• The soil is the most plentiful, sweet, fruitful
  and wholesome of the whole world, and the
  people the most gentle, loving and faithful, void
  of all guile and treason, and such as live after
  the manner of the golden age.

4
1587 ????????

• The Roanoke colony mysteriously disappeared.

5
1588 ????????

• Thomas Hariot A Brief and True Report of the
  New-Found Land of Virginia in Richard Hakluyts
  The principall navigations, voyages, traffiques
  and discoveries of the English nation.

6
1588 ????????

• The English defeated the Spanish Armada,
  solidifying English control of North American
  shipping lanes.

7
1607 ?????????

• Jamestown colony established.

8

• Catholicism ?
• Protestantism ?
• Calvinism / Puritanism (Separatists,
  Non-separatists)

9
Protestantism

• Three main doctrines of Protestantism
• salvation justified by the grace of God through
  faith alone ?? Catholic emphasis on salvation
  through good works
• 2. the supremacy of holy scripture in matters of
  faith (sola scriptula) ?? Catholic emphasis on
  the infallible authority of the Pope
• 3. access to the divine without the intercession
  of clergy ?? Catholic emphasis on pastoral
  mediation between God and the faithful

10
Calvinism

• The Five Points of John Calvin
• Total depravity. The natural man is vile, for in
  Adams fall we sinned all. No human being has
  any capability whatsoever to achieve his own
  salvation.

11
Calvinism

• 2. Predestined election From the beginning of
  time God has determined that the elect of His
  choice shall be saved, and all others shall be
  damned to perdition. Faith and good works are
  equally powerless to save someone doomed by the
  deity to the flames of hell.

12
Calvinism

• 2. Limited atonement Christs sacrifice upon the
  cross assures salvation solely to the elect.
• 3. Irresistible grace The saving, transforming
  power of God is freely bestowed and can neither
  be earned nor refused.

13
Calvinism

• 5. Perseverance of the saints The elect will
  proceed undeviatingly to their full reward of
  bliss. If man could be saved and then later
  choose to defy God, he would prove more powerful
  than God, a logical impossibility to Calvinism.
• (The above five points
  are quoted from A Handbook of American
  Literature, Martin S. Day)

14
The Puritan heritage and its variations

• Rigid morality.
• Material success.
• Self-reliance.
• Democratic liberty.
• Learning.
• A messianic complex.
• Conscience stirrings.
• (A Handbook of American Literature,
  Martin S. Day)

15
Edward Winslow (1595-1655)

• Our harvest being gotten in, our governor
  sent four men on fowling, that we might after a
  special manner rejoice together after we had
  gathered the fruit of our labors. The four in one
  day killed as much fowl as . . . served the
  company almost a week.

16
Edward Winslow (1595-1655)

• . . . At which time, amongst other
  recreations, we exercised our arms, many of the
  Indians coming amongst us, and among the rest of
  their greatest king Massasoit, with some ninety
  men, whom for three days we entertained and
  feasted. . . .

17
Edward Winslow (1595-1655)

• . . . And although it be not always so
  plentiful as it was at this time with us, yet by
  the goodness of God, we are so far from want that
  we often wish you partakers of our plenty. (1621)

18
John Smith (1580-1631)

• From General History of Virginia, New
  England, and the Summer Isles (1624)
• Smith little dreaming of that accident,
  being got to the marshes at the rivers head
  twenty miles in the desert, had his two men slain
  as is supposed sleeping by the canoe, while
  himself by fowling sought them victual,

19
John Smith (1580-1631)

• who finding he was beset with 200 savages,
  two of them he slew, still defending himself with
  the aid of a savage his guide, whom he bound to
  his arm with his garters and used him as a
  buckler, yet he was shot in his thigh a little,
  and had many arrows that stuck in his clothes but
  no great hurt, till at last they took him
  prisoner.

20
John Smith (1580-1631)

• who finding he was beset with 200 savages,
  two of them he slew, still defending himself with
  the aid of a savage his guide, whom he bound to
  his arm with his garters and used him as a
  buckler, yet he was shot in his thigh a little,
  and had many arrows that stuck in his clothes but
  no great hurt, till at last they took him
  prisoner.

21
John Smith (1580-1631)

• . . . Thinking thus to have returned to his
  boat, regarding them, as he marched, more than
  his way, he slipped up to the middle in an oozy
  creek and his savage with him, yet dared they not
  come to him till being near dead with cold he
  threw away his arms. . . .

22
John Smith (1580-1631)

• . . . then as many as could, laid hands on
  him, dragged him to them, and thereon laid his
  head and being ready with their clubs to beat out
  his brains, Pocahontas, the Kings dearest
  daughter, when no entreaty could prevail, got his
  head in her arms and laid her own upon his to
  save him from death, whereat the Emperor was
  contented he should live. . . .

23
John Smith (1580-1631)

• From A Description of New England (1616)
• What so truly suits with honor and honesty,
  as the discovering things unknown? Erecting
  townes, peopling countries, informing the
  ignorant, reforming things unjust, teaching
  virtue and gaining our native mother country a
  kingdom to attend her finding employment for
  those that are idle . . . ?

24
William Bradford (1590-1657)

• From Of Plymouth Plantation
• There was a proud and very profane young
  man, one of the seamen, of a lusty, able body,
  which made him the more haughty he would always
  be condemning the poor people in their sickness
  and cursing them daily with grievous execrations

25
William Bradford (1590-1657)

• From Of Plymouth Plantation
• and did not let to tell them that he hoped
  to help to cast half of them overboard before
  they came to their journeys end, and to make
  merry with what they had.

26
William Bradford (1590-1657)

• . . . But it pleased God before they came
  half seas over, to smite this young man with a
  grievous disease, of which he died in a desperate
  manner, and so was himself the first that was
  thrown overboard.

27
William Bradford (1590-1657)

• . . . in a mighty storm, a lusty young man
  called John Howland, coming upon some occasion
  above the gratings was, with a seele of the ship,
  thrown into sea but it pleased God that he
  caught hold of the topsail halyards which hung
  overboard and ran out at length.

28
William Bradford (1590-1657)

• Yet he held his hold (though he was sundry
  fathoms under water) until he was hauled up by
  the same rope to the brim of the water, and then
  with a boat hook and other means got into the
  ship again and his life saved.

29
John Winthrop (1587-1649)

• From A Model of Christian Charity (1630)
• We shall find that the God of Israel is
  among us, when ten of us shall be able to resist
  a thousand of our enemies when He shall make us
  a praise and glory that men shall say of
  succeeding plantations, the Lord make it like
  that of New England.

30
John Winthrop (1587-1649)

• For we must consider that we shall be as a
  city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon
  us, so that if we shall deal falsely with our God
  in this work we have undertaken, and so cause Him
  to withdraw His present help from us, we shall be
  made a story and a by-word through the world.

31
Anne Bradstreet (1612?-1672)

• My head, my heart, mine eyes, my life, nay, more,
• My joy, my magazine of earthly store,
• If two be one, as surely thou and I,
• How stayest thou there, whilst I at Ipswich lie?
• . . .

32
Anne Bradstreet (1612?-1672)

• In this dead time, alas, what can I more
• Than view those fruits which through thy heat I
  bore?
• . . .
• I wish my Sun may never set, but burn
• Within the Cancer of my glowing breast,
• The welcome house of him my dearest guest.
• A Letter to Her Husband, Absent upon Public
  Employment (1678)

33
Anne Bradstreet (1612?-1672)

• Thou ill-formed offspring of my feeble brain,
• Who after birth didst by my side remain.
• Till snatched from thence by friends, less wise
  than true,
• Who thee abroad, exposed to public view,
• Made thee in rags, halting to th press to
  trudge,
• . . .

34
Anne Bradstreet (1612?-1672)

• I washed thy face, but more defects I saw,
• And rubbing off a spot still made a flaw.
• I stretched thy joints to make thee even feet,
• Yet still thou runst more hobbling than is meet.

35
Anne Bradstreet (1612?-1672)

• In better dress to trim thee was my mind,
• But nought save homespun cloth i th house I
  find.
• In this array mongst vulgars mayst thou roam.
• In critics hands beware thou does not come. . . .

36
Anne Bradstreet (1612?-1672)

• In better dress to trim thee was my mind,
• But nought save homespun cloth i th house I
  find.
• In this array mongst vulgars mayst thou roam.
• In critics hands beware thou does not come. . .
  .
• The Author to Her
  Book (1678)

37
Edward Taylor (1645-1729)

• Unkey my Heart unlock Thy Wardrobe bring
• Out royal Robes adorn my Soul, Lord so,
• My Love in rich attire shall on my King
• Attend, and honor on Him well bestow.
• In Glory He prepares for His a place
• Whom He doth all beglory here with Grace.
• Meditation 42 (1691, 1939)

38
Edward Taylor (1645-1729)

• Unkey my Heart unlock Thy Wardrobe bring
• Out royal Robes adorn my Soul, Lord so,
• My Love in rich attire shall on my King
• Attend, and honor on Him well bestow.
• In Glory He prepares for His a place
• Whom He doth all beglory here with Grace.
• Meditation 42 (1691, 1939)

39
Edward Taylor (1645-1729)

• But Oh! A glorious hand from glory came
• Guarded with Angels, soon did crop this flower
• Which almost tore the root up of the same,
• At that unlooked for, Dolesome, darksome hour. .
  . .

40
Edward Taylor (1645-1729)

• But pausing ot, this sweet perfumed my thought
• Christ would in Glory have a Flower, Choice,
  Prime,
• And having Choice, chose this my branch forth
  brought.
• Lord taket. I thank Thee, Thou takst ought of
  mine

41
Edward Taylor (1645-1729)

• . . .
• The which the former hand soon got away,
• But Oh! the tortures, Vomit, screechings, groans,
• and six weeks Fever would pierce hearts like
  stones.

42
Edward Taylor (1645-1729)

• . . .
• That as I said, I say, take, Lord, theyre Thine.
• I piecemeal pass to Glory bright in them.
• In joy, may I sweet flowers for glory breed,
• Whether thou getst them green, or lets them
  seed.
• Upon Wedlock, and Death
  of Children (1682, 1939)

43

• Q A
• Thank You