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LITR 4326 Early American Literature Model Assignments |
Final Exam Essays 2016 Sample answers
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Eric
Howell
9 May
2016
Early American Buffet
In
all honesty, when I first registered for Early American Literature I was hopeful
that we would possibly be reading early American classics such as Joseph
Heller’s Catch-22 or Ernest
Hemingway’s The Old Man and The Sea.
Needless to say, I was off by about two hundred and seventy five years. Instead,
I was greeted with great foundational pieces of American Literature, presented
in an inclusive manner, which offered a multitude of traditional and
non-traditional viewpoints, as well as quality reading substance.
Although I had underestimated the
timeline of Early American Literature, I was actually more satisfied learning
about these traditional American literary works than I could have ever imagined.
From Anne Bradstreet’s In
Reference to Her Children to Charles Brockden Brown’s
Edgar Huntly, Or, Memoirs of a Sleep
Walker, this course covered a broad scope of written material while allowing
students to experience the multiculturalism of early America and the rich
characters of American literary history. As we moved along throughout the
semester, I began to become more enthralled with the works of these early
writers and piecing together the bigger picture of American literature and the
American narrative. I had been
exposed to certain works throughout my scholastic career such as Thomas Paine’s
Common Sense and Jonathan Edwards’
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God;
however, we never fully dove into what these literary pieces truly meant to
American literature as a whole, nor did we discuss works of this magnitude in
the manner of which we did in Early American Literature.
Each class was always exciting and interesting, largely in part by Dr.
White’s enthusiasm for the given content, but also from the peer presentations
given by fellow classmates. Through this method, the monotony of class was
broken up each week with a different twist and viewpoint on whichever piece of
literature we were covering for that week. A particular presentation, which
stood out to me, was a presentation given over
Charlotte Temple by a fellow
classmate named Shanna. I had read through the assigned portions of Susanna
Rowson, and although I appreciated what had been read, I felt as if I had missed
the boat on several of the discussion questions. Shanna eloquently summed up the
importance of Susanna Rowson and
Charlotte Temple in the grand scheme of American literature, and provided me
with insight over one of America’s first novels.
Both Charlotte Temple and
Edgar Huntly were interesting reads
for myself because of the importance they hold with the birthing of America’s
novelists. Each respectively holds an origin story of their own, a familiar
theme throughout this course; Rowson being one of the first female novelists for
the country, and Brockden Brown for introducing and unleashing the
gothic era upon American citizens.
These novels may not be the easiest to read but offer readers a window of
opportunity to see the early roots of American novels and how they were the
keystones of their time for future writers to build upon.
This particular course also encouraged independent learning, which is
always an interesting challenge. Through research posts, Dr. White allowed us to
decide upon a selected topic in which we felt some sentiment toward and expand
upon our chosen material through research and composing essays. My interests
were captivated by Thomas Paine and the lack of his presence post-Common
Sense, and through my research posts I formulated my own suspicions and
opinions concerning how one of the greatest Founding Fathers was snubbed out of
the pages of American History. This particular exercise was highly stimulating
because Dr. White was so broad with the parameters of the project. Essentially,
he gave us free reign over the assignment and allowed us to come up with a
topic, which interested us and was outside of the course objectives of the
class. The lack of typical structure given with assignments forced me to
challenge myself and really conjure up a topic, which had meaning relevancy.
After each research post and essay assignment, Dr. White was always
prompt to respond and offer comments and suggestions as to how to improve my
writing style and thought process over given topics. These responses were always
very helpful, in that Dr. White understands writing and literature in such a
complex manner, yet can articulate these pointers in a way that is simplistic
and insightful. At times, I was uncertain with my writing capabilities and the
course materials but Dr. White always offered innovative ways for me to convey
my writing in a meaningful way.
In regards to meaning, typically I am underwhelmed by course objectives.
These objectives usually seemed required and forced by the instructor and as a
result, I often skim over these desired learning outcomes the first day of class
and forget them be the end of the semester. However, Dr. White is unlike most
instructors and his course objectives are actually tangible and attainable. When
learning throughout the semester, I would often make reference to the course
objectives and witness for myself the very objectives coming to fruition.
In
particular, to learn about early North
American and U.S. texts and cultures and make them matter now, as well as,
to read Early American Literature as an
origin story about the beginnings and evolution of North American culture and
literature stuck out most to me. I believe I have learned more about not
only early North American texts and cultures but also the art and music of these
earlier periods of time than I have ever learned in any other course. This class
was literally like an Early American Literature buffet, offering cultural
aspects right along side literary works and relevancy.
In
one of my midterm essays, I solely dedicated the entirety of the essay to my
fascination with connecting the dots of Early American Literature and how these
texts still offer Americans with knowledge in today’s modern times. From the
beginning of this course to the end, the American narrative continuously unfolds
and is portrayed through the written voices of a diverse group of American
authors. In today’s society, we are constantly insisting for more diverse
education and multiculturalism, as if it were a new idea. However, when I
reflect back on this course and the material covered, I can see that America and
her authors have been as diverse and multicultural since the very beginning,
simply waiting on us to acknowledge the vast variety of literature and history
she has to offer.
Overall, this course was more than I could have ever hoped for. I feel that I
not only learned about early literary works but also a lesson of the American
origin that I had never known before. From reading such a broad selection of
works, I believe I was able to understand the diversity throughout American
history in a manner, which I had never before experience. The pluralism offered
by these authors and conveyed by Dr. White provided me with such a rich learning
experience that I would have never imagined I could learn so much within one
course.
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