A Survey of American Literature

Steven Crane was a naturalist writer in the late 19th century best known for his works about war. One of the main naturalist characteristics that Crane embodied was a realistic plot. “The Open Boat” is a fictional story, but the events in the story are entirely plausible. Crane also focuses on the class of the men in the story, another key aspect of naturalism. The men on the boat are all hard working, blue-collar individuals trying to make ends meet. Crane uses his characters to describe typical Americans at the time who were hard-nosed workers trying to support their families.

Kate Chopin’s “The Awakening”, is considered a modernist work by some and a naturalist text to others. Chopin used this work to display her dissatisfaction with the societal role of women in her lifetime. Because of the nature of “The Awakening”, it is relevant to the Cult of True Womanhood and the Separation of the Spheres because Chopin disagrees with what these movements preached. Chopin uses Edna to point out the flaws with the expected roles of women and how ostracized someone who does not fill these roles feels. Edna’s suicide could have been prevented if society would have allowed her to be the independent woman she longed to be.

Booker T. Washington was a leader during the Civil Rights Movement and believed in gaining economic power as a means to accruing civil rights. Washington strongly advocated for black education because he knew economic prosperity would follow. Once blacks became a large group economically, they would be impossible to ignore and whites would have to respect them. Washington also founded the first black college in the country, the Tuskegee Institute, in 1881 to educate African Americans to become teachers. “Up From Slavery” was Washington’s autobiography in which his passion and drive to educate African Americans and eventually reach social equality is clearly evident.

W.E.B. Dubois was a highly educated African American who advocated for civil rights. Dubois was a Harvard graduate who believed that the “Talented Tenth” would pull up black society up with them as they become educated and become respected by society. The “Talented Tenth” that Dubois refers to is the 10% of blacks that must receive a college education and get good jobs so that African Americans are more accepted and respected by their society. Dubois was also instrumental in founding the NAACP to help advance African Americans as a race.

“South of the Slot” embodies the masculinity and hard working aspects of naturalism. Freddie Drummond transforms from a well-educated, high class individual into the rugged, blue-collar Bill Totts and is the hero of the story. London, like many naturalist writers, uses a male protagonist because of the superiority men enjoyed at the time. As London describes Totts work on the South side of San Francisco, we see how the working conditions were at the time and how hard people had to work to earn their money. Through this story, London displays the ambitious nature of our country at the time.

T.S. Eliot was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1888 and is the face of the Modernist movement. Although Eliot was American born, he lived in England for majority of his life, much like other Modernist authors. Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” depicts the modern man in Eliot’s society. The poem displays the negative, hopeless feeling many people living at the time the poem was written felt because of major events like WWI. Through Eliot’s works, we gain an understanding of the mindset of individuals living in the early 1900’s.

Langston Hughes was one of the most important poets during the Harlem Renaissance. The Harlem Renaissance resulted from The Great Migration in the late 20th century where blacks moved from the rural south to urban areas in the north; Harlem was one area that blacks flocked to. African Americans were able to buy middle class homes in Harlem because of a surplus of housing built for soldiers returning from WWI. As a result, Harlem became a center for African American culture and art, music, and literature flourished there. Langston Hughes was one of the most influential poets during this movement because his writings encapsulated the optimism that existed in African American culture during the Harlem Renaissance.

Nella Larsen’s Passing explores a topic that is not commonly addressed when discussing the Civil Rights Movement, mixed race individuals pretending to be white. Whites received many advantages that blacks were unable to enjoy simply because of racial differences. Larsen shows readers the lengths that African Americans were willing to go to for the rights that whites had. Larsen also displays the tension that existed between the races and how poorly African Americans were treated. Due to abuse by society, passing as white was often practiced by anyone who could appear white so they could receive better treatment.

Allen Ginsberg was the face of the Beat Poets when the group came to prominence in the 50’s. He used his works to address the major cultural events that were taking place while he wrote including the Cold War, development of Interstate highways, and an emerging sense of nationalism sweeping the country. Ginsberg was a rock star during his time, gaining a huge following of other members of the counterculture of the 50’s. Ginsberg achieved great fame and was friends with a number of other famous figures of the time including Amiri Baraka, one of the most important figures of the Black Arts Movement. During the 50’s homosexuality was treated as a disease, making Ginsberg an outcast to mainstream America. Ginsberg’s success helped to draw attention to the issue of homosexuality in our country and attempt to gain equal treatment for that group.

Anne Sexton was a confessional poet who began writing poetry in 1957 per the advice of a doctor after her attempted suicide. Sexton’s poetry was dark and included details from her personal life to address mainly issues regarding the role of women in society. In Sexton’s writings, her mental instability is apparent and almost foreshadows her suicide in 1974. The popularity of Sexton’s work helped to make progress for women, although Sexton was never able to see the fruits of her labor.

Amiri Baraka was the father of the Black Arts Movement that began in 1955. The literature of the time was very political and fought for the rights of African Americans. In the works, African Americans displayed their dissatisfaction with their current society and called for change. As a result, many works did not receive any literary merit until long after their publication because the art of the time was often labeled propaganda because of the intertwinement of current events, opinions, and literature. Baraka’s leadership helped the Black Arts Movement to be successful and achieve the long lasting effect it has had on our society.

Sylvia Plath lived a similar life to her friend and confessional poet counterpart Anne Sexton. Plath’s poetry is also characterized by its dark, hopeless nature, which is often attributed to her mental illness that ultimately led to her suicide in 1963. Plath resented the gender roles that had emerged in the U.S. after men returned home from WWI. Women were once again expected to take care of the home and raise children, an expectation that Plath loathed; her hate for these roles is evident in many of her popular works. Plath’s poetry remains popular today for it’s attacks on oppressive gender roles.

John Updike was one of the most versatile fiction writers of all time. His works included novels, short stories, poetry, children’s books, and even a play. Because of his wide variety of works, it is difficult to assign a literary movement to associate with Updike. In “Trust Me”, Updike employs vivid imagery and details into the work giving his readers a clear picture of what is happening in the story. The story also explores the long lasting memories from childhood and applies them to adult life. After the swimming incident, Harold understands human nature more and is able to characterize people as either like his mother or his father.

Sandra Cisneros’ The House on Mango Street takes a different look at the American dream and the concept of home. Because Esperanza moved so frequently, she had no real concept of a home; her idea of home was only in her head and did not really exist. The first person point of view that Cisneros employs puts readers in Espranza’a shoes and we learn her lessons with her throughout the story. Cisneros shows us how the American Dream can be a prison, especially for women because they can be literally trapped in the home and forced to take care of it. We understand how the symbol for the American Dream, the home, can be twisted into something completely different.

Don Delillo’s White Noise is the quintessential postmodern text. Delillo satirizes American culture by pointing out flaws that we may not even realize existed. By reading the novel, readers understand how foolish some of the habits we practice are. As a result, readers are conscious of our flaws and we can attempt to change them and improve society as a whole. The main fallacy that Delillo addresses in White Noise is fear of death as Delillo uses Jack Gladney to point out how irrational this fear is although it is very common.

Toni Morrison’s Beloved is an important text in addressing the lives of African Americans and women. Beloved offers a different perspective of slavery then we are accustomed to by displaying the awful, long-term psychological effects that slavery had on African Americans. Sethe shows us the lengths that people were willing to go to prevent their loved ones from being forced to endure the evils they had to face. Beloved makes us understand that slavery is even worse than we were taught in school and shows us what the terrible institution did to its victims psychologically.

Tim O’Brien mainly writes about the Vietnam War, but his writing hold deeper meaning than simply being war stories. O’Brien uses vivid details in his writing and is able to evoke a tremendous emotional response from his readers by how he introduces his characters. O’Brien is difficult to classify as a writer because of the messages in his writings. Through telling war stories, O’Brien is able to teach readers about life and present a moral to his works for readers to pick up on.

Karen Russell’s short story “Vampires in the Lemon Grove” takes on a magical realism. The story includes many details and an objective view of nature while still incorporating mystical aspects into the story by adding vampires as characters. The text also embodies realism because the story concludes with Clyde’s death. His death restores order because it eliminates the complications that existed when he pursued his relationship with Magreb. Although realism surfaced long before Russell began writing, her works make it clear that Realism still exists today.