Intensive Studies in American Literature

II. Duties of the scholar (paragraphs 29-35);

III. Application of these ideas to our own country and times (paragraphs 36-43).

D. Conclusion.

If it is accessible, the class will also be interested in George William Curtis's oration on The Leadership of Educated Men.

APPENDIX

I. A LIST OF ESSAY SUBJECTS

The subjects in the following list have been found very useful as work supplementary to the study of the history of American literature. For older students they have been used as subjects for essays and reports. For less mature students they should be rather topics for class conversation and study, expanding the most interesting topics in the text-books.

1. Interesting Tales from Early Documents of Virginia.

Material in Stedman and Hutchinson, Library of American Literature, I.

2. Stories of Colonial Days in New England.

Material in Stedman and Hutchinson I. Has this material literary value?

3. Jonathan Edwards.

Judge him by the selections from his works published in Stedman and Hutchinson II.

4. Examples of Self-reliance and Self-direction from the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.

5. The Good Advice of "Poor Richard."

6. The Writings of Thomas Paine.

Material in Stedman and Hutchinson III.

7. The Orators of the Revolution.

The text-book should give a starting-point. See also biographies, histories, and Stedman and Hutchinson III.

8. Our National Songs.

The text-book on history of American literature should give a starting-point.

9. New York as a Literary Center.

Histories of American literature and biographies of men will furnish material.

10. Influence on Irving's Work of his Youthful Travels on the Hudson.

See Life and Letters of Irving, edited by Pierre Irving, Vol. I, chapters 2 and 3. Compare with stories and sketches relating to the Hudson in Irving's works.

11. Old Christmas Customs in Merry England.

The Sketch Book. Find origin and history of customs if you have the material in your library

12. Irving's Attitude toward the Indian.

The Sketch Book. Knickerbocker's History of New York.

13. English Life as Portrayed in Bracebridge Hall.

14. Irving's Power of Description as Shown in The Sketch Book.

15. The Humor and Pathos of The Sketch Book.

16. Why some Descendants of Old Dutch Families were Offended by Knickerbocker's History of New York.

17. An Illustrated Paper on The Alhambra.

18. The Romance of the North-west as Told in Irving's Astoria.

19. The Influence of Spain on Irving.

See biographies, criticisms, and works.

20. Irving as a Writer of Biography and History.

Enumerate his books of this sort and tell how they are regarded. Make a more careful study of one, as Washington, Columbus, The Conquest of Granada, or Goldsmith.

21-24. The Style and Purpose of Irving's Tales.

Think over the following extract from one of Irving's letters. “For my part, I consider a story merely as a frame, on which to stretch the materials. It is the play of thought, and sentiment, and language; the weaving in of characters, lightly yet expressively delineated; the familiar and faithful exhibition of scenes in common life; and the half-concealed vein of humor that is often playing through the whole, these are among what I aim at, and upon which I felicitate myself in proportion as I think I succeed." With this ideal in mind, study four of Irving's tales: 21. Rip Van Winkle.

22. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.

23. The Spectre Bridegroom.

24. Dolph Heiliger.

Has Irving accomplished his purpose in these tales? How? Notice how he emphasizes local color and social setting.

(It might be well to defer this topic till after the class has studied the short-stories of Poe and Hawthorne. They will then be able to say why Irving's tales are not exactly short-stories.)

25. Bryant and Abolition.

See index to Godwin's Life; Bryant's prose; his poems written during the Civil War; Lowell's On Board the '76.

26. Bryant as a Writer on American Nature.

How his nature poems illustrate his advice to his brother (Letter of Feb. 19, 1832): "I saw some lines by you to a skylark. Did you ever see such a bird? Let me counsel you to draw your images, in describing Nature, from what you observe around you, unless you are confessedly composing a description of some foreign country, when, of course, you will learn what you can from books. The skylark is an English bird, and an American who has never visited Europe has no right to be in raptures about it."

27. Bryant's Style in his Blank Verse Poems.

Summary of points of style in poems studied in detail: a. Character of thought; b. Rhetorical devices used to express the thought effectively.

Contrast with these in tone and style other nature poems, as Green River and June, not written in blank verse.

28. Poe's Criticisms of Longfellow and Bryant.

29. Poe's Critical Work on Hawthorne.

30. Poe's William Wilson and Stevenson's Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde.

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