Puritan America

Puritans were members of the Church of England who felt that, in its reformations, the Church of
England had maintained too much of its Roman Catholic heritage. Separating Puritans were
those who believed they should set up their own churches independent of the Church of England,
it was a group of separatists who formed the Pilgrims. It was mostly non-separatist puritans who
settled in New England in the 17th century, in what was known as the Great Migration.
Work within the family was dictated by the patriarch but women were given the responsibility of
instilling Puritan values in their children. The successful establishment of the Puritan settlements
was assigned to the role of the women as they were the ones who raised children to be what was
desirable to the Puritans.
The aging of the first generation, who were most passionate about the church meant that church
members were declining and demographics were changing, for example, fewer men were
joining. This was a problem as it was the men who were the leaders of the church, if men were
not present then their power came into question. This led to the banishment of many church
leaders and their followers from the Massachusetts Bay Colony which contributed to the
establishment of new colonies which allowed people to live outside the religious norms of the
time.
The American Revolution
Also known as the American Revolutionary War occurred in 1775-1783, however for over a
decade before the outbreak of the war tensions had been rising. Members of the colonies were
not happy with being treated differently to other British citizens, for example, higher tax rates.
This led to protests such as the Boston Massacre in which five citizens were killed by British
soldiers. At first the people of the colonies did not demand independence, they simply refused to
be taxed without representation in parliament. By June 1776 the majority of colonists had
decided they needed full independence from Britain. Though it was not an official victory, the
American forces essentially won at Yorktown. However the removal of British troops from
Charleston and Savannah marked the true end of the conflict in 1782 and Britain officially
recognised the United States as independent in 1783.
American Romanticism
The first literary movement in the United States, American Romanticists focused on emphasising
feelings and imagination. The history of the United States shaped American Romanticism, they
idealised democracy, freedom and other concepts related to the formation of their state. Novels
made up a large portion of American Romanticism whereas the opposite occurred in Britain.
Symbols were an important tool that allowed authors to create bigger ideas that were difficult to
portray simply through words. Another characteristic is heavy emphasis on nature, as the
Romantics believed nature allows us to be more free than we can be within the restrictions of

society. A continuation of the rejection of society is the theme of individualism, the Romantics
did not conform to the norms of the time, they followed their own desires. They were writing
after The American Revolution but before The American Civil War, this meant that they were
very optimistic about the current and future state of the country.
The American Civil War
The Civil War took place between 1861 and 1865, it was triggered by the confederates opening
fire on the federal garrison in Charleston Bay. It was the result of opposing views in the North
and the South with the Souths economy depending on large scale farming involving the use of
slaves. The spreading of anti-slavery sentiment to the new western territories meant that the
existence of slaves in the United States was beginning to be under threat. In 1863 Abraham
Lincoln called for the slaves in the rebelling states of the south to be freed which released 3.1 of
the 4 million slaves at the time, this was called the Emancipation Proclamation. Later the same
year the Battle of Gettysburg marked the Confederates last invasion of the North. On the 9th of
April 1964, the Union accepted the Confederates surrender. However, later that same month
Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, marking the end of the conflict.
The American West
The West harboured many economic opportunities such as farming, ranching, mining and
railroad construction. This is because it had much more available land than the heavily populated
East. This translates into literature as the theme of the land of opportunity, Western life is
presented as being shaped by geography. However, Western life also comes with hardships as it
brought out more conflict between Native Americans and American settlers. In addition,
migrants often faced struggles in relation to corporations taking over industries such as mining
and farming, this led to the rise of populism which is a political philosophy supporting the rights
and power of the people in their struggle against the privileged elite. This manifested itself in the
West as a movement of farmers in the late 1800s that demanded government aid for the common
farmer and worker.
Realism and Regionalism
Realism is a movement within the arts in which artists aim to portray their subject in a truthful
way, avoiding romanticisation and idealisation. Realists include heavy detail within their work as
a way to achieve a very realistic image. In addition, they used common, easy language in order to
reflect real life and omit embellishment. Much realist literature involves an omniscient narrator,
however, some choose to utilise a first person narrative. The realist movement occurred at the
same time as psychology was emerging as a discipline and the ideas of Freud were becoming
popular, this meant that many realist writers focused on character as their story arcs. Due to the
realistic representation of society, realist novels were often very socially critical. Realist texts

often involve social criticism of areas such as class since there were rising rates of literacy at the
time, meaning novels were becoming accessible to a wider audience.
Regionalism is similar to realism but related to a specific intersection of American society, for
example the experience of a white woman in the midwest or the experience of a black man postslavery in the South. Texts focus on the customs, character and landscape of a certain region, this
can be shown through language by the use of dialect and colloquial speech.
Naturalism
A movement occurring in 1880-1940 that began as a branch of Realism. It focuses on the
introduction of observation and the scientific method to fiction. Naturalists chose to portray the
more negative aspects of society rather than the whole picture, which meant they were often
accused of pessimism.Naturalists used the novel as an experiment into the forces that affect
behaviour such as emotion heredity and environment. Naturalistic literature is characterised by a
detached narrative voice, they also often include deterministic beliefs. It could be argued that
naturalistic literature is paradoxical as it states that all behaviour is predetermined yet also
affected by free will.
Social Issues
The early 1900s has been labelled as the Progressive Era, this involved many rapid social and
political changes. For example, prohibition and the suffrage movement played big roles in the
social climate of the United States. In this time child labour laws were drastically reformed.
During the Industrial Revolution children may have been required to go without an education
and receive little pay in return for their work. In 1918 child labour was declared unconstitutional
by the Supreme court and in 1938 the employment of children under 16 in dangerous position
was entirely prohibited. The temperance movement, which aimed to reduce alcohol
consumption, was active in the 19th century but did not call for a complete ban on alcohol until
the early 1900s. According to the Library of Congress prohibition was meant to emphasise the
importance of social morality and control the corruption within the liquor industry. In 1918 the
18th amendment was passed banning the manufacture, transportation and sale of alcohol. In
1890 the Womens Suffrage Association was established, renewing the womens suffrage
movement which had died out during the Civil War. Some Western states allowed women to vote
between 1910 and 1912 but it was not until after World War I that the 19th amendment was
passed allowing women to vote in 1920.
American Modernism and the Roaring Twenties
The movement of Modernism occurred between 1900 and 1930, it was based upon breaking the
rules of literature. This was inspired by huge leaps made in physics at the time and the discovery
of new societies. Furthermore, religious beliefs were starting to recede in favour of scientific

explanations. Authors were experimenting with their styles in order to create a new role for
literature in society. Modernists were influenced by the ideas of Freud, the id, ego and superego,
as well as placing a heavy emphasis on dreams. The ideas of the James brothers such as the
stream of consciousness frequently made their way into Modernist literature. Many Modernist
writers were also members of the Lost Generation, so this theme was prevalent in a large amount
of Modernist texts. Rather than rejecting literary traditions of the past, Modernists aimed to
improve on old ideas and add their own voice to them. Ezra Pound coined the idea of imagism
which had three criteria, it had to be direct and unornamented, economical in its language and
composed in free verse. These writers gathered in the major cities of the world and used these as
their inspiration. This movement took place throughout the Roaring Twenties, meaning issues
relating to the Jazz Age are often evident in Modernist literature, for example, The Great Gatsby.
The First World War
For two and a half years the United States had attempted to remain neutral in matters concerning
the war. When Germany began to sink American boats in the Atlantic and offered to assist
Mexico in regaining territory in North America, it became evident that Germany intended to
include the United States in the war. The president at the time, Woodrow Wilson, declared war
against Germany in April 1917. Although the United States entered the war relatively late, there
was little planning involved despite troubles shown in the United Kingdom. This meant that in
the first year of the war there was a large amount of confusion on the home front before the
country had become systematically mobilised. As the war took place in the progressive era there
was emphasis placed on efficiency and expertise, therefore, temporary agencies were established
to maximise production of munitions and food. Germany surrendered on November 11th 1918,
from which all nations agreed to cease fighting while the terms of peace were negotiated. The
war was officially over on June 28th 1919, marked by the Treaty of Versailles.
New Technology
World War I sparked a move towards industrialism, mass production methods were used in order
to manufacture everything needed for the war effort. New weaponry such as machine guns, tanks
and aeroplanes were introduced. Once the war was over, these advances in technology could be
applied to commercial products, this meant that the 20s were full of new inventions. Henry
Fords assembly line enabled him to produce the first car. Entertainment such as radio grew to be
very popular and became a staple in the majority of peoples homes, silent movies were
introduced in 1922 and became the third leading business of the 20s, later in 1926 movies in
colour became available. These inventions were spurred on by Americas economic prosperity at
the time as people became more willing to spend their money. As well as commercial products,
advancements were also made in medical technology. For example, the addition of new
vaccinations significantly reduced the rate of deaths by diphtheria. Furthermore, the discovery of
vitamins and their effect had a positive impact on the nations health.

Sex and Politics

With the Suffrage movement achieving its main goal of women getting the vote in 1920, the
Womens Suffrage Association lost a clear focus and agenda. This meant that they lost their
momentum and would not have a successful movement again until the 60s. However, despite
feminist involvement, womens sexuality became a lot more liberated. The idea of the flapper
was born and women no longer dressed in ways to please men. In addition, the popularisation of
Freuds ideas changed peoples traditional understanding of sexuality. Therefore, though it may
not have been an organised movement, there was certainly changes in political thinking taking
place.
The Harlem Renaissance
An artistic explosion taking place in Harlem, New York in the 1920s, although it also included
other areas in the North-East and Midwest. It was considered the rebirth of African-American
arts. As jazz began as an African-American music genre, there was a large cross-over between
those involved in the Harlem Renaissance and the Jazz Age. As the Harlem Renaissance
occurred at the same time as the Modernist movement, many writers took inspiration from
Modernism. The great migration was the movement of black people from South to North as job
opportunities opened up in factories, many moved to New York City, a location that inspired
many writers, which enabled the Harlem Renaissance to take place. Although segregation was
still officially in place, there were still people attempting to cross the line such as white people
attending black clubs. This had an impact on literature of the time as it meant an exposure to
more diverse cultures. Duality or twoness is the idea that you see yourself differently to how
others see you. Due to the fact that society enormously favoured white people, it meant black
writers often wrote about the contrast between how they understood themselves and how white
people understood them. Because of the vast inequality between black people and white people,
the majority of Harlem Renaissance writers favoured socialism and communism as these
ideologies promote the redistribution of wealth.
The Wall Street Crash and American Disillusionment
The wall street crash took place in October 1929 and its effects lasted until 1939, however there
were signs it was coming from 1926. When the stock market crashed the economy was sent into
the Great Depression, by 1932 America was in the largest economic depression it had ever seen.
This caused problems such as unemployment rising to 13 million people being out of work,
industrial production dropping by 45%, house construction falling by 80% and 5,000 banks
going out of business. It also had psychological impacts on American citizens. The sheer length
of the Great Depression caused many people to become disillusioned, this loss of hope meant
they no longer trusted the government and believed in the American Dream. This is evident as

fewer people got married and fewer people had children, showing people were not planning for
the future.
The New Deal
A series of social liberal programs conducted by president Roosevelt in 1933-1938. These were
carried out in response to the Great Depression, they aimed to provide relief for unemployed and
poor people, recover the economy to normal levels and reform the financial system to prevent
another depression. This can be divided into two, the first being 1933-1934 and the second being
1935-1938, with the second being more liberal and controversial. The First New Deal focused on
solving the banking crisis by providing relief, for example $500 million was provided for relief
operations by states and cities. The Second New Deal was more aimed at the social problems and
included things such as the Wagner Act to promote labour unions.
The Influence of the Media
The rising popularity in new media such as radio and film provided new ways for people to be
reached. For example, the radio was utilised by Roosevelt who became the first president
campaign successfully through the radio to win support. This increase in reliance on the media
was encouraged by the Great Depression as people wanted an escape from their reality. Not only
did the media affect literature through the increased availability but also many writers such as
Fitzgerald worked in Hollywood writing scripts to earn more money.
Black Writers
After the Harlem Renaissance, black writers began to feel unsettled and disenfranchised during
the Great Depression. The camaraderie and community from the previous era gave way to an
uncertain and agitated mood. The need for social progress meant that some authors began to
write more authentic representations of black culture and dialect rather than creating universal
literature. However, for those such as Hurston, this sort of work was not well received at the time
and not recognised for what it truly was until much later after she had died. Therefore, many
others continued to produce more universal work that would satisfy white consumers.
The Struggle to Earn a Living and Class and Economic Oppression
Even authors who were popular before the Crash struggled to earn a living afterwards in the
Great Depression. This is because people did not have the money to be spending as much on
things that were not entirely necessary. Some writers used Hollywood for extra income and
others moved abroad to live cheaper lives. However, for some this was not an option and they
had to perform more common jobs in order to have enough money.

The social and economic state of the United States in the Great Depression led to a rise in the
American Communist Party, who made racial justice an important part of its programme. They
argued that the ideal of working-class solidarity crossed the colour line.