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Literature
4232:
American
Renaissance
Assignment: Choose and analyze a passage
from our course readings—and make it matter! Sample
Answers: [complete
answer from in-class midterm] Of the many interesting passages read and discussed this semester, a particularly striking passage comes from the reading, "Sojourner Truth, the Libyan Sibyl". On page 2533, Truth relates her transcendent experience in meeting God. On page 2533, Truth says, "Well, jest as I was goin' out to git into the wagon, I met God! an' says I, 'O God, I didn't know as you was so great!' An' I turned right round an' come into the house, an' set down in my room, for 't was God all around me. I could feel it burnin', burnin' burnin' all around me, an' goin' through me". Truth's experience touches a chord that runs through the history of the United States. There has always been an undercurrent of religious sentiment running through public and private life in America. Such sentiment has often changed the context of the most difficult issues the country has had to face. War and peace, slavery and freedom- all of the issues were often cast in the light of religious revelation. In Truth's own particular example, she could relate this story to a white audience to build common ground through religion [in order] to cross racial barriers. The evangelicalism of 19th century Protestant America influenced every group attempting to gain entry into public life. Since the Reformation, Protestants have regarded their relationships with God as direct [and] without need of a human intercessor. Martin Luther effectively destroyed any barriers the church erected to block the direct revelation from God to [the] individual. Truth probably never knew of Martin Luther. But he provided an important vehicle for individual freedom and self-expression. The near-universal recognition of this type of religious experience at this point in American history brought a sense of the sublime to both free men and slaves. Freedom was both "up" and "out". Freedom was "up" in that heaven awaited both slaves and free men dedicating themselves to some adherence to divine law. Freedom was "out" in that Christians of varied backgrounds could see each other as equals in spirit if not in body. This belief gave fuel to abolitionist sentiments among white Protestants of the era. The romantic notion of divine recognition of the universal equality of man came later in Truth's speech on page 2533 when she commented, "Dar's de white folks that have abused you an' beat you an' abused your people-think o' them! But then there came another rush of love through my soul, an I cried out loud, 'Lord, I can even love de white folks!' Truth speaks in this passage of the transcendent quality of love through the prism of religious sentiment. Truth, in both passages, frees herself spiritually from the bondages of oppression and mistrust. According to her beliefs, she is a child of God and by birthright is as free and equal as any other human being. [DG]
[complete
answer from email midterm] This passage from Emerson is full of examples of the things that we have been studying in this class throughout the semester. This passage contains the gothic, the sublime, correspondence, and it resembles the romances' resolution. The gothic in this passage is perhaps not very apparent, but look at Emerson's words in the following passage: "The sun illuminates only the eye of the man, but shines into the eye and heart of the child. The lover of nature is he…" Here we have light and darkness, though darkness is not specifically mentioned. The sun is the light, but the darkness is in those who do not have the eye of the child. Then there is the child in nature, children personifies the innocent, whom is pierced to the heart by the light, in nature. Here I see a gothic scene: An innocent child, standing in the light of the sun, while those around him are surrounded in darkness because the light of the sun doesn't reach their hearts. Immediately following this example of the gothic is an example of the sublime. "In the presence of nature, a wild delight runs through the man, in spite of real sorrows." The sublime is also in the following: "I am glad to the brink of fear." These are sublime because of the contrasting of the two emotions: delight and sorrow, glad and fear. Emerson here is trying to use words to describe his experience of the sublime while in nature. Also in this passage are two great lines that show how correspondence works. This passage: "…but every hour and season yields its tribute of delight; for every hour and change corresponds to and authorizes a different state of mind, from breathless noon to grimmest midnight.", is so great an example for correspondence that it actually uses the word "corresponds"! This reminds me of Ichabod in the forest (2097, 2107-08), "every sound of nature at that witching hour, fluttered his excited imagination; all the stories of ghosts and goblins . . . came crowding upon his recollection. The night grew darker and darker." The stories that he had heard corresponded to the dark experience in the woods, and it provoked him to fear. In Emerson's example, in his saying that nature has a corresponding response to everything that we think and feel, makes us that much more unified, and corresponding to nature. I also think that Emerson's writing here resembles a romance, because it definitely has romantic feeling; what he is describing is like a romantic ending – the romantic resolution. Here we have a journey to a place, nature, that one can only find and appreciate by "retaining the spirit of infancy" or by regaining it. It is the final destination of a great journey it seems. Emerson's place in nature transcends, it gets away from it all and rises above it all, just as Cora and Uncas do after their death when they're in the eternal hunting grounds of the sky (343-44). Though Emerson's "Nature" isn't a story, this passage to me shows a great resemblance to the destination/resolution of a romance with its transcendence. [KV] [complete
answer from in-class midterm] I chose
the first paragraph and a half of the Declaration of Sentiments by Elizabeth
Cady Stanton to analyze. To being with this work is couched in language that is
reminiscent of the Declaration of Independence—a document familiar to all
Americans young and old, black/white/red, literate or not. The first paragraph
resonates with feeling and sentiment that is attached to patriotic notions. This
similarity would have helped lend credibility to Stanton’s prose.
She starts off with “[W]hen in the course of human events[…]” and
this appeals to all classes and colors of people. We are all human and no one is
excluded, despite the fact that this was as document expressing the need for
women’s right. Any group who felt left out of the “created equal” scheme
could relate. [complete
answer from email midterm] The passage by Frederick Douglass in “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave” when he is standing on the banks of the Chesapeake Bay is extremely moving. In this passage, he is looking out at the boats coming and going at will and wishing he could do the same. However, he is bound both literally and figuratively by the chains of slavery. This passage has a universal appeal due to the visual journey that Douglass is taking. For this moment, he has left the here and now and his focus is on a better life. Although not the chains of slavery, we all, at some time in our lives, wish we could break our chains and dream of something better. For some, the chains could be those of abuse, homelessness, or even financial burden. We all take that visual journey and dream of something more.
In
the romantic style of the gothic, Douglass uses the contrast of light and dark.
The terms he uses are necessary to gain sympathy from the white community
for whom he is writing. Several
times throughout the passage he appeals to the beauty of whiteness.
The Chesapeake Bay’s “bosom was ever white with sails”, the boats
were “robed in purest white”, and “you are freedom’s swiftwinged
angels”. The things that are
white are so desirable to Douglass, but also sadden him by reminding him of the
situation that he is in, that he is not white. He uses these elements of whiteness or lightness to describe
everything that is, to him, unreachable. In
contrast, Douglass uses descriptions of darkness to describe the horrible
situation that he is in. He states
that he moves “sadly before the bloody whip”, he is “confined in bands of
iron”, and he is “left in the hottest hell”. This also appeals to the white community in that he vividly
describes in “dark” terms that there is nothing good about being a slave.
There is nothing bright or happy or attractive about the conditions of
slavery. It is a place where the
white people would never dare to journey. Although
literarily romantic in nature, this passage illustrates, through his visual
journey, that this is Douglass’s reality. [KM]
[complete answer from email midterm] Gothic and sublime elements are present
throughout Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.
The passage that I am focusing on is on pg. 2108 in the second to last
paragraph where Ichabod is riding by Major Andre’s Tree.
The gothic and sublime nature of this passage works to depict a scene
that horrifies as well as creates beautiful imagery.
The description of Major Andre’s Tree brings to light the gothic
element of nature telling story and having a morbid past.
The idea is that superstition brings the tree to life and gives spiritual
significance to nature. This
passage converts the natural beauty of the forest into a scary, dark and
mysterious layer. The sublime
aspects of this passage are presented when describing the tree.
“ Its limbs were gnarled, and fantastic…twisting down almost to the
earth, and arising again into the air.” By pairing the adjective gnarled
(which means deformed and grotesque) with the word fantastic the image of the
tree becomes a strange awe-inspiring piece of nature. The rising of the limbs
from the ground alludes to the idea of the tree co-existing between two worlds:
one, which is “earthy” and natural and the other eerie, and supernatural.
The mystery and intrigue surrounding this tree alludes to the idea that the tree
itself may be alive or dangerous in some way.
Objective one deals with popular versus classical text, this passage is
written with beautiful imagery as well as suspense making it both classical and
popular. Keely Coufal had an interesting comment in her 2001
presentation she said, “ People derive a pleasure from being scared.” She is
correct and because of this desire stories such as The Legend of
Sleepy Hollow continue to circulate and become an established part of
American culture. [JN] [complete
answer from email midterm] This passage is taken from the end of Harriet Jacobs’ Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. There are several factors in this passage that are significant to this course. First, Jacobs is writing a representative narrative, as described in Objective One. She wrote about the experiences of a slave girl and reached the innermost souls of both her fellow slaves and the unaware Northern White public. Women are “delicate flowers” and should be taken care of. Jacobs’ narrative describes a woman, with all of the qualities any woman possesses, being forced to do unthinkable deeds and live a life in bondage along with her children. This passage acts as a closing remark to leave the reader aware of the pain and sacrifice slave women had to endure.
In addition, this passage contains a few gothic
elements. For example, she speaks
of “gloomy recollections” then refers to grandmother as “light, fleecy
clouds” and ends with the analogy to slavery as a “dark and troubled sea.”
The use of light and dark definitely has gothic qualities.
The reader is left imagining a dark and gloomy ocean with no hope, but
looking up and seeing bright hope-filled clouds guiding toward happiness and
freedom. Despite the dark imagery,
the use of the clouds could almost be interpreted as sublime.
When Jacobs is almost completely without hope, she can look to one person
and feel better. The powers of her
grandmother (the fleecy clouds) had to have been nothing short of incredible, a
force within her which carried her through the darker days. [SR] [nearly
complete answer from email midterm] When I first read Concord Hymn, by Ralph Waldo Emerson, I was touched by the poem’s beauty, sentiment, and classic style. However, as I continued to study other works, I realized that the themes of Concord Hymn are reflected in other texts. The poem begins by transporting the reader to the past. These are the first moments of a battle when the soldiers, who are only trained for farming, are flying their flag and preparing to fight for their country. The second stanza brings the reader back into the present, explaining that everyone died in this battle long ago and the landscape has changed. The third stanza speaks of a memorial that is being raised to the heroes of the war and exhorts the reader as well as future generations to always remember. The last stanza speaks to the spirit, I believe it is a reference to God, who gave these soldiers the desire for freedom and the ability to be brave. The spirit is asked to allow nature and time to treat the memorial gently so it will last forever. As with many classical texts, this poem is simple and direct but it has a deeper meaning. The changing landscape refers to more than the erosion of time; it refers to the changes in America that occurred due to the independence that these soldiers fought for. Furthermore, the gentle treatment of the memorial refers to future generations that should never forget the sacrifices made by these soldiers.
Another classical element is the orderliness
and balance of the poem. Completeness is achieved through iambic rhythm with 4
set of stresses per line, 4 lines per stanza, and 4 stanzas in the poem. The
rhythmic pattern is exemplified with an ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH rhyme pattern. There
is alliteration that begins with a stressed syllable in the phrase “long since
in silent sleep.” There is imagery as Emerson paints a picture of the bridge
connecting the two armies. There is irony in the subject of war and the
peacefulness of death. The tone of the poem is serious and reverent showing the
importance of the heroes’ sacrificial death, while the atmosphere is peaceful
and sober reflecting the graveyard where the heroes now lie. There is an
aesthetic beauty to the poem as it offers the reader a beautiful description of
nature but compares this to the sacrifice made by the soldiers. Nature must be
kind with the passing of time, allowing the memorial to survive. This
anthropomorphic attitude toward Nature was discussed by Douglass Carey in his
presentation on February 6, 2003. Ironically, Nature is always with us and begs
to be noticed with the passing seasons, but we must have a reminder to the
heroes who enabled us to be free. Emerson is asking Nature to stand aside
because the sacrifice made by the soldiers is greater and deserves to be
remembered. . . . [SB] [nearly
complete answer from email midterm] Identify: The passage I chose was the
introduction to Emerson’s Nature. I chose this particularly passage because I can identify
with its meaning. Emerson asking the simple question: why? Why are we supposed
to study the great works of the past and deconstruct them? Why can we not make
our own history, our own works of nature, or own poetry instead of having to
rely on the works of the authors past. I guess I identify so strongly with this
passage being that I aspire to be a writer. I aspire to climb the rings of the
literature until I find myself counted as one of the writers of the past. In a
conversation with a friend last night I wrote something along the lines of: I
would rather be the one writing works of art that others deconstruct instead of
deconstructing what I can not write. Like Emerson I want to be the one who
creates. In particular, creating works of art that are reflections of present
day ideas, aspirations, dreams and surroundings. Analyze: Emerson starts off the passage to Nature using our appeal to romantic views. He wants to bring us back to the wilderness, back to the ways of old writers but saying that we too can write like the old writers. We can and will be able to write like they do: “The sun shines to-day also.”(1516). He pleads with us to transcend our “groping with the bones of the past” and to act “proportioned to nature”. It becomes a romantic quest inspired by the challenges of his words to act instead of digging around works of dead poets and prepare the future by writing about it. His words are clear and concise and his intentions are as well. It compels the reader to dream romantically of the past while at the same time transcending it and, bringing it to the present. In the same context the passage itself can transcend the time period it was written and apply directly to our present day. We as students study works of the past in history, literature, and religion but, can we transcend from the past to the present by writing our own romantic works of art or, are we confined to the living in the past? . . . [RA]
[complete answer from in-class midterm] On
this green band, by this soft stream We
set today a votive stone; That
memory may their deed redeem, When,
like our sires, our sons are gone. Spirit,
that made those heroes dare To
die, and leave their children free, Bid
time and Nature gently spare The
shaft we raise to them and thee. (“Concord
Hymn,” Emerson, pp.1603) Ralph
Waldo Emerson composed “Concord Hymn” as a memorial to the Revolutionary War
battles of April 19, 1775. According
to our text, it was widely known, being circulated in popular newspapers and
even sung by schoolchildren.
What is significant about the selected
quatrains is the expressive desire to remember the loss and sacrifice associated
with our ‘nation’s’ first great accomplishment.
In the greater context of our readings in this class, the idea of memory
as important or desirable in our developing society and culture is largely lost.
Strikingly, in Emerson’s only slightly later published work,
Self-Reliance, he boldly challenges the value of memory and the past, as he
questions, “Why drag about this corpse of your memory…?”
He continues in exhortation to the reader, urging that the past should be
brought “into the thousand-eyed present” and that we should “live ever in
a new day.” He contends “a
reverence for our past act or word” would hold us back from the daily
transcendence that he experiences.
Between the lines of these two published works
and between the space and time that separates them, it is interesting how one
can observe a marked shift in attitude towards the idea and value of memory.
In the scope of historicism it is significant to note the shifting
attitudes in the ever-changing, ever-moving New World. [CL]
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