Native America literature,

colonial and revolutionary

American literature
Group 1:
- Junia - Bintang
- Novi - dzulhusniyah
- Ratna - Pandris
- Zilbran -Alia Alfia
- fallany
- Nurriski
- putri
 Native America literature

– Native American literature, also called Indian literature or American Indian literature, the traditional oral
and written literatures of the indigenous peoples of the Americas. These include ancient hieroglyphic
and pictographic writings of Middle America as well as an extensive set of folktales, myths, and oral
histories that were transmitted for centuries by storytellers and that live on in the language works of
many contemporary American Indian writers.
Characteristics of Native American
Literature
– Hero Initiation (Rituals and initiation in Native American tribes): One recurring motif in Native American
literature is that of the young man who undergoes ritual initiation and eventually accomplishes an heroic
act
– Trickster (Animals represent tricksters in Native American culture): Another common motif is that of the
trickster. For the Lakota tribe, for instance, the trickster is represented by the spider. For the Kiowa, it's
embodied by the coyote. The trickster may be a foolish figure who reveals human avarice
– Symbolic Landmarks and Mythology (Totem poles) : Another characteristic of Native American literature
involves attributing human characteristics to landmark formations or inanimate objects
– Oral Tradition (Native American woman who is part of literature) : Much Native American literature is
rooted in the vitality of the oral tradition. Thus, many novels or poems may incorporate storytelling
techniques such as song or repetition
Additional Characteristics of Native American
Literature

– Explains beliefs about the nature of the physical world. Example: how did the world come to be?
– Takes place in primal world or pre-civilization
– Beings are animal spirits in more or less human form: monsters, confusions of nature, etc.
– Mythic age flows into age of transformation (legends), which flows into historical time (real heroes)
A Few Native American Authors

– Louise Erdrich: well-known Native American author from Minnesota; has Native American bookstore .

Sherman Alexie: much of his writing stems from his experience as a Native American
.

– N.Scott Momaday: contemporary Native American author; The House Made of Dawn is an American classic.

Paula Gunn Allen is a contemporary Native American author who also writes through a Feminist lens.
Characteristics of Colonial American
Literature
- Narrative Focus
Colonial American literature is characterized by the narrative, which was used extensively during this
period. Most of the literary works of this genre are composed of letters, journals, biographies and
memoirs. An example is Mary Rowlandson’s narrative account “The Sovereignty and Goodness of God:
Being a Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson.“
- Religion and Poetry
The Puritans wrote about the religious foundations of many of their settlements, especially the exodus
from Britain, and employed the constant theme that God should be worshiped. Ambition and hard
work were continuously stressed. Anne Bradstreet’s poetry, the “Bay Psalm Book,” and Pastor Edward
Taylor’s “Preparatory Mediations” are some good examples of religious texts of the era. It was this type
of writing that led to the Puritanism and Great Awakening movements.
– The Enlightenment
In the 18th century, the Enlightenment showed a great shift in colonial American literature from a
religious foundation to scientific reasoning applied to human nature, society, culture and political
awareness. Many texts were written in pamphlet or narrative form and challenged the role of God and
religious life, seeking to replace them with reason. Rational thought and science were the new
themes. “The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin” and the pamphlet “Common Sense” by Thomas
Paine explored many of these new ideas. Similar texts also led the way to more awareness of social,
economic and scientific issues. The American Revolution played a large part in this shifting of ideas.
 Colonial period writer

– Mary Rowlandson, A Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, was
published first in London, then in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1682. She became the founder of a
significant literary and historical genre, the captivity narrative, which was also the first book in English
published by a woman in North America.
– William Bradford, His history, Of Plymouth Plantation (1651), is a clear and compelling account of the
colony's beginning. Bradford also recorded the first document of colonial self-governance in the
English New World, the "Mayflower Compact," drawn up while the Pilgrims were still on board ship
– Anne Bradstreet, Her volume of poetry The Tenth Muse Lately Sprung Up in America received
considerable favorable attention when it was first published in London in 1650.
– John Winthrop, Winthrop wrote a sermon titled 'A Modell of Christian Charity' in order to arrange his
ideas about how the Puritan settlers should treat one another in order to help each other - and the
colony - survive.
Characteristics of American Revolution
Literature
Some of the key characteristics of American Revolution literature include:
– Scenarios that are highly imaginative and subjective
– Heightened emotions
– Escapism
– Ordinary men becoming heroes
– Nature acting as a place where people could seek solace and spirituality
During this era, literature in America became known as American romanticism. During this time, writers went
against the previous age of piety and reason to develop work that contrasted spontaneity with sensibility. It is
important not to confuse American romanticism with the period that followed, which was simply the
romantic period.
Writer era revolution American

– Thomas Paine, On this day in 1776, writer Thomas Paine publishes his pamphlet “Common Sense,”
setting forth his arguments in favor of American independence. Although little used today, pamphlets
were an important medium for the spread of ideas in the 16th through 19th centuries.
– Phillis Wheatley, Though Wheatley generally avoided the topic of slavery in her poetry, her best-known
work, “On Being Brought from Africa to America” (written 1768)
– Philip Freneau, is famous poems are "The Wild Honey-Suckle" (1786), "The Indian Burying Ground"
(1787), "The Dying Indian: Tomo Chequi" (1784), "The Millennium" (1797), "On a Honey Bee" (1809),
"To a Caty-Did" (1815), "On the Universality and Other Attributes of the God of Nature," "On the
Uniformity and Perfection of Nature," and "On the Religion of Nature" (the last three written in 1815)