Essay question 4. Write an essay comparing classic, popular, and representative authors and literature in terms of their differing (or overlapping) styles, values, and appeals (Objective 1).

Examples: (not an exhaustive list—you’re welcome to develop your own)

“Classic” authors and texts: Melville; Dickinson; Hawthorne

“Popular” authors and texts: Fanny Fern; Osgood; Irving

“Representative” texts and authors: “History of the Miraculous Apparition of the Virgin of Guadalupe in 1531”; Mariano Guadalupe Vellejo; Frederick Law Olmsted; William Apess; Elias Boudinot; Chief Seattle; Frederick Douglass; Sojourner Truth; Harriet Jacobs.

(In the second part of the semester we concentrated less on this category, so your treatment of this category may or may not be equal in length to the other two categories.)

*Also consider authors who combine or cross categories: Poe, Douglass, Stowe, Irving, Fuller.

[complete answer from email final]

It isn’t very often that a student can find a question on an exam that is interesting, much less exciting, but I feel the different types of literature found in American Renaissance (i.e. classic, popular, and representative) are what make the movement so fascinating. I’ve personally favored the representative works that we’ve studied, but have found midnight-philosophy fodder in several of the classic authors, and inspiration from the popular ones.

            Classic literature usually appeals to a very select group of people, such as intellectuals, academics, and captive audiences (see students). Classic works have a strong staying power because they are often “ahead of their time,” like Whitman-- seemingly outside of time altogether like Emily Dickinson. According to KK from 2001 motifs can be traced throughout a story. KK makes reference to the pink ribbon in “Young Goodman Brown” worn by Faith. Dickinson and Whitman’s use of elevated religious language indicate a knowledgeable, but almost impartial, or distanced, place from it. They reference religion and God, but not in a way that alienates a reader who might not share their beliefs. Issues of morality, as complex and potentially explosive as they are, can be treated with elevated language, complex characters, symbols, motifs, and other literary devices by classic authors in such as way that the stories are appealing and, at first read, non-judgmental. Classic authors have a way of leading a person to seriously consider what it is they think and why they think it, without condemning or criticizing. Frederick Douglass uses this, almost flawlessly. He asks readers to question slavery in terms of Christianity and the Fourth of July very eloquently. 

            Reading and rereading the classics is a time-honored tradition. No matter how many times I read a Dickinson poem I seem to always find something new. The same with Melville’s “Billy Budd” and Hawthorne’s “The Minister’s Black Veil.” It’s true that sometimes making your way through a classic work is tough. “Billy Budd” is not light reading, and some of the initial pleasure might be stripped from it when the reader is left pondering the injustice served to Billy. But, the benefit of making it through the work once, then twice is enormous.

            Unfortunately, classics weren’t classics in their own time. The men and women who produced their works weren’t always rewarded in their lifetime for their efforts. There were a few exceptions in the authors that crossed the boundaries between popular and classic fiction. These men and women enjoyed higher sales of their publications. Authors like Edgar Allan Poe and Washington Irving had one foot on each side of the fence.

            Irving and Poe were popular writings during their time. They both used a lot of sentimentality in their works, but they have managed to stand the test of time and become favorites. Their styles were more closely tied to the gritty side of human nature. Irving and Poe both used the gothic in their writing. Poe talked about insanity, madmen, and other things that captured the imagination of the public. Likewise, Irving sentimentalized a vanishing way of life. He captured a brief moment of American life on paper and for that he will probably always be remembered. Both men used the gothic to wrangle with right and wrong to explore issues common to all people.

            Unlike Thoreau or Melville there probably isn’t much to be gained from repeatedly reading “The Legend of Sleep Hollow.” There are few challenges when reading popular works because they are, familiar, formulaic, and written to be read for pleasure. Didactic themes might be buried in popular literature, but they don’t have to be clawed out tooth and nail as they sometimes must be in classic literature.

            Examples of representative authors from the American Renaissance period are William Apess, Sojourner Truth, and Harriet Jacobs. Representative literature is difficult to categorize, but recognizable once you being to read it. Representative works are probably more closely related, cousins perhaps, with classic works. This is literature written to bring about catharsis, change, and understanding to society. Representative literature is rarely popular at the time the author produces it.

Representative literature departs from classic works in that the language is not elevated and often difficult to understand (slave narratives). R.L. is not cool and distant as a classic work is. It can be very volatile and immediate. Classic works ask questions and evoke thought that can take centuries to produce results, representative literature asks for immediate change.

All three of these groups of literature are valid and valuable in society—then and now. Some of these authors wrote because they had to write, it was the only way they could express themselves, like Dickinson. Others wrote, perhaps for money or contentment, while a special class of them, the representative authors, wrote because what they had to say was too important not to write. Reading any of these works individually can shed light on American society at that time, but reading these works as a group imparts a more complete picture of who and what was going on back then.

            I think that a literature student would probably be drawn in by all three categories, and I would hope that any living and breathing American would be interested in the representative literature from the A.R, but that might be asking too much. For the most part, I think the kind of readers who read these men and women today are the kind that read them a hundred years ago.

            The balance of categories seems appropriate. Exposure to the slave narratives and other representative literature in small doses is probably best—as well as the popular works. The classics are best read with a group of peers so that discussion can occur. These are the works that contain the ideas that need to be read and reread as a person grows and matures. How a person thinks and reacts to “Rip Van Winkle” doesn’t, I feel, need the same amount of attention as how they react to “The Minister’s Black Veil” or “Billy Budd.” It is good to learn from the mistakes our predecessors made, and representative literature can make that as immediate as any media I can think of, but in terms of literature helping us grow and define our moral selves we need to review the classics in the presence of our peers. [LE]

[complete answer from email final]

As evidenced by the neighborhood Barnes & Noble store, there is a huge variety of literature out there for the population at large to read.  Literature is broad in its content and scope, and happily there is something out there for everyone to read.  Three specific types of literature that are available to the reading audience include: classical, popular and representative literature, each of which have their own unique characteristics as well as audiences.  Some literature cannot be solely labeled as one specific type, which makes labeling and defining literature hard, as will be seen in the following discussion.

            Classical literature is that which is typically studied in the university and is considered academic in nature.  They are typically harder to read to due their elevated language and self-conscious style.  They contain religious and mythical illusions, but are ambiguous concerning morality and truth.  In their language and ambiguity they provide  the reader with an intellectual challenge.  Initially these books may receive critical praise, but are not often high in publication, though they may become so over a long span of time.  The perfect example of a classic author is Herman Melville, author of “Moby Dick,” and “Billy Budd.”  Recognized by many and read by but a few, Melville’s writing and his life are truly “classic.”  Melville, after traveling the seas and witnessing the brutality of man, wrote in a way that attacked and challenged his society.  Upon his failure to make a living by his writing, and the recipient of much criticism, he complained to Nathaniel Hawthorne, (another great author of classical literature) that he could not make a living by telling the truth about humanity.  Using elevated language, many allusions (religious and philosophical), and ambiguous language he persisted in writing his challenge to humanity anyway.  In “Billy Budd,” his last work, Melville brought all of these elements of classic literature to a form of perfection, and the ambiguous message/meaning that this writing leaves the reader with creates yet another vital characteristic of the classic, the desire to read the book again.

                Another important author who is classified as a “classic” author, though not absolutely, is the man, Edgar Allan Poe.  Also using elevated language and much control, Poe’s writings inspire his readers to keep reading and rereading his material.  Studied in academic environments as well, Poe challenges his readers intellects, but in a different way.  Through use of the supernatural, morbid, gothic and psychological, Poe creates within the reader emotions, surprise and dread, showing that he was a master of his pen.  In these aspects Poe’s work can be labeled as classical literature, but other characteristics, such as sudden celebrity and high publication, among other things put him into the category of popular literature. More than these characteristics, the thing that makes him a popular writer the most is the effect that his writings had on people, for in many regards he is considered a pioneer for popular culture.  Poe is said to have pioneered “many of the most enduring forms of American popular culture, including the detective story, science fiction, and the gothic or sensational tale...” (2387).  For these reasons, Poe is popularly read, despite his elevated language, which shows that the popular audience is willing to be challenged a little if presented with a topic that interests them.

            Popular interest is the main characteristic of popular literature (go figure).  The writers in this category have the ability to speak to people where they are at on their same plane of life and interest.  Usually lacking in critical praise, these works also have a limited shelf life.  They begin as hot sellers, but they tend to fade into oblivion.  The language is less elevated and more colloquial, thus it is easy to understand.  Largely this literature is saturated with sentiment, which makes it especially attractive to its biggest selling audience: women.  Authors in this category are largely women, and since they sell to mainly women, the relationship is strong.  A good example of a popular writer is Frances Sargent Locke Osgood.  Two of her poems; “Ellen Learning to Walk,” and “The Little Hand,” are great examples of this category.  Full of sentiment about children and parenthood, “Ellen Learning to Walk” is a delightfully sentimental poem that is bound to make all mother’s smile and reflect (or anticipate).  Easily read and understood, this poem of pure sentiment is the epitome of popular literature.

            Another female author who can be regarded as a popular author is Harriet Beecher Stowe.  Her work, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” an immediate national best seller, written in normal language and full of sentiment, is a good example of literature that doesn’t fit into just one category.  Though in these areas she is popular, she also has classical characteristics about her, especially in the fact that her work is presently being studied in educational environments and is critically praised.  However, her work expands into yet another type of literature, and that is representative literature.  More than its sentimentality, it is an argument given on behalf of a race of people: African Americans.  Written to women, Stowe uses sentimentality and vivid religion (hot) to represent a largely under-represented ethnic group.  Using sentimental images she speaks to her white audience, mainly female, and pleads with them, painting them into the same situation of Eliza and her son Harry, to not only have compassion on them but to stand up and help them in reality.  In this way, though also classical and popular, Stowe’s work is largely representative literature at its best.

            Representative literature is also characterized by the fact that it is hard to categorize, as seen with Stowe.  It is typically non-academic and non-standard. It uses language that is largely cultural, including the dialects of the people being represented.  The audience for this type of literature is very specialized or local, not broad and sweeping.  It is full of vivid references to religious practices and beliefs, which are usually the basis for the author’s position.  A great example of representative literature is that of Sojourner Truth, which is not actually written by her, but reported to be spoken by her in front of crowds.  Full of dialect, religion and spirit, her words cry out for the freedom of not only African Americans but for all women as well.  Though not a good exercise in literary devices or techniques, her words are priceless in the understanding of a culture and in the history of that culture and their fight for freedom, which ultimately make her work, and other’s too, useful in the academic setting for cultural and historical purposes.      

             All three types of literature looked at here, classical, popular, and representative, are all valuable in their own ways.  In the academic setting, all can be used to further enhance understanding and skill.  Classical is useful for the intellectual challenge it presents, and for this reason I think that it is the most vital to education, but largely it is unappealing due to the challenges that it presents to the reader.  Popular is useful in that things can be learned, and not with great effort.  I like to refer to them as a “brain break” although I am still using my mind.  Representative literature is priceless, perhaps not as much in a literature class as in a history class, as they are invaluable primary sources that lead to understanding of events in history.  All are useful and beneficial in the fact that they get people reading, which is the key to the world. [KV]

[complete answer from email final]

As the canon of American Literature is constantly evolving, several problems are presented.  What literature is most important to teach and what does each form of literature bring to the classroom.  In the course of this survey of American Renaissance literature, more so than in any other class I have taken, It seems increasingly that to understand the development of American as it really was and has come to be that it is crucial to give voice to each kind of literature.  Each vein of literary contribution, Classic, Popular, and Representative lends insight into the variety of people that worked to shape and prosper America in its various stages of growth. 

Classic literature, which as suggested by the name, has traditionally been taught in classrooms throughout America offers an beautiful example of the disciplined, thought-provoking, refined practice of writing for both communication and art purposes.  For such work we look to authors like, Hawthorne, Whitman, and Melville.  Their exploration of grandiose themes, complex problems, and elevated ideas create beautiful models for students and an opportunity to develop language, style, and in learning to follow the rules of traditional prose, also learn to challenge those rules and conventions. It is ironic to think that a classic writer such as Whitman, in the time of his work, was largely scolded for his strange methods and experimentation.  Like him, Emily Dickinson’s work was not in keeping with the style of the times, but these who were learned in tradition were successful in breaking, or rather developing the earlier forms ro set new precedent for the Classic canon.

Also pertinent to the study of literature is the work of the popular writers.  Though perhaps not as useful in the instruction of form or aesthetics in the classroom, one can glean from the pages of popular works insights into the concerns of an age, thus gaining context for the works and the people of whose lives we read.  By reading the poetry of Frances Sargent Locke Osgood, a student learns of the domestic climate in American during the Renaissance period.  Women’s issues and concerns are revealed in this realm of literature.  Specifically pertinent for historical context is the climate that gave birth to the impending women’s movement and feminism. 

Not only does popular culture lend insight into the more mundane side of life, it can also be used for didactic means. Some popular writers, such as the enormously famous Harriet Beecher Stowe’s in  Uncle Toms Cabin, prove themselves masters of persuasion.  Beecher employs with incredible skill the tools of ethos of pathos to reach her audience and impact their political and moral positions.   There exist multiple reasons for including popular literature in the classroom.

Finally, representative literature has increasingly made its way into the classroom.  As the plurality of our country is more and more reflected in the institutions of higher learning, it is necessary that we pay homage to those who went largely unnoticed in their own day.  The writings of minority authors, women, and the oppressed can potentially serve multiple purposes in the classroom.  Again, much like the popular literature, these works provide context with otherwise untaught effectiveness.  To read Harriet Jacobs’ account of Slavery is of much greater impact than to read an introduction to a literary period that in few paragraphs briefly acknowledges the climate created by slavery, the oppression, the sexual exploitation, and so on.  That work was one of my favorites in this class, second only to the work of Sojourner Truth. There is no substitute for actually delving into the lives of the many people that were active and living during the period of study.

It is crucial for the formation of a well-rounded cultural and historical perspective that these three varieties of literature all be included in the education of the modern student.  I in no way advocate the abandonment of the classics.  There is an absolute necessity for the development of effective literary discipline.   We need the classics to teach us form and elevated thought; however no amount of discipline in aesthetics or style would do to replace understanding and concern for the heart of America.  The classicists comprise a minority of America texts; the cream is always the smaller portion of the yield.  To throw out what remains or to ignore it, though, would be to turn our back on the reality of the common man and the very hands that build America, plowed her fields, and suckled her great men. Each literature is an integral part of our American epistle. [CL]