William Apess (Day 2)

Respond to one of the following by Tuesday, April 25 at 7:00 p.m.

1.Sentimentalism was a aspect of popular culture that was becoming popular during the antebellum era in America. The rhetoric was used to spark sympathy, action, and reform. It spoke of feelings over thinking and passion over reason. How does Apess use such rhetoric in his narrative? With this in mind, identify and explain how another text from our course either departs from or stays in line with this notion? Finally, try to find an example from contemporary culture that attempts to embody the idea of sentimentalism.

2. As we discussed in class, Apess speaks at length about his religion and how it empowered him, yet he did so from a non-European perspective. How do you think William Apess used a bifocal vision (embodying two distinct and often conflicting goals, interests, or courses of action) to appeal to a broader audience? How does Apess use the combination of Methodism and Pequot culture to do this? How does this impact the reader?

William Apess

Choose one of the following and respond to it by Thursday, April 20 at 7:00 p.m.

1. How does Apess’s autobiography compare to those of Rowlandson and Franklin? In particular, how does Apess represent his “character” (himself) and the character’s development through time? Is this character—his trials, his morals, his changes, his rationale—similar to or different from the self-presented characters of Rowlandson and Franklin?

2. How does Apess’s representation of American Indians compare to other representations that we have read throughout the semester. Move beyond the basic good (Apess) vs. evil (say, Rowlandson) dichotomy and explore carefully how American Indians are represented. How are American Indians compared to whites? How does religion figure into all of the representations? Do we trust Apess more than others because of his heritage?

Washington Irving (Day 2)

Respond to one of the following questions by Tuesday, April 18 at 7:00 p.m. Make sure you use specific textual moments to explain your response.

1. Washington Irving took the popular travel sketch, which was “A prose
composition dedicated to expressing the rapture of an observer in the
presence of Old World treasures,” (226) and transformed that into his
own type of sketch, known as a “fictional sketch.” Irving’s new form
sketch was quickly adopted by writers such as Twain, Hawthorne, and
Melville. Why do you think this is so? What made these sketches so
popular during the 1800's? Do you think the sketches are effective?

2. In your opinion, why do you think "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" are popular children's stories? What elements do they contain that makes them
interesting and geared for children? Are they approriate stories?

Washington Irving

Choose, identify, and respond to one of the following questions by Sunday, April 9 at 7:00 p.m.

1. In “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” neither Rip nor Ichabod completely fit into their environment. Why not? What about their characteristics or their communities prevent this fit? What does this disconnect say about these characters or the towns? What broad claim is Irving making?

2. In “The Art of Bookmaking” and “The Mutability of Literature,” Irving presents a fantastic scenario about authorship. Given our discussions and the other works we have read this semester, how would you position Irving’s ideas within the context of early American literature? What claim is Irving making about the writing process?

Charles Brockden Brown (Day 2)

Respond to one of the following questions by Thursday, April 6 at 7:00 p.m.

1. Is Edgar Huntly a captivity narrative? If so, what are the parallels to Mary Rowlandson's? If not, what elements of the captivity narrative remain in the story, and how does Charles Brockden Brown turn the convention on its ear?

2. Locke said "While perception is essentially passive, the mind also
has the active capacity of reflection; by reflection on ideas of
external and internal sensation, the mind builds up a picture of the
external world that is adequate for our daily purposes and also builds
up a notion of the self." How might this view connect with the sleep
walking in the story and the events a whole that take place and shape
the lives of the characters (mainly Clithero and Edgar Huntly)?

Charles Brockden Brown

Choose one of the following to respond to. Ensure that you identify which question you are addressing. (While you can respond to both in two separate posts, you will only receive credit for the first post.) The post is due Sunday, April 2 by 7:00 p.m.

1. As you will see, writing and texts in general circulate throughout Brown’s novel. How does writing and textuality (the novel as a letter, the concluding letters, lost and recovered manuscripts) function within the novel? What does this use of “letters” suggest about writing in the early republic?

2. What is the literary function of somnambulism (sleepwalking)? What role does it play? What is its significance?

Judith S. Murray (Day 2)

Republican Motherhood can be defined as a woman's private virtues
(motherhood, home, child rearing etc.) coinciding with traditional civic virtues (politics, government, etc.) In this case, can you find any examples of the
representation of Republican Motherhood in Murray's work? Does the act of
writing itself represent Republican Motherhood for Murray? How is
this evident or not? Post due Thursday, March 30 by 7:00 p.m.