History of American Literature

History of American Literature

Project Gutenberg's History of American Literature, by Reuben Post
Halleck Copyright laws are changing all over the world. Be sure to
check the copyright laws for your country before downloading or
redistributing this or any other Project Gutenberg eBook.
This header should be the first thing seen when viewing this Project
Gutenberg file. Please do not remove it. Do not change or edit the
header without written permission.
Please read the "legal small print," and other information about the
eBook and Project Gutenberg at the bottom of this file. Included is
important information about your specific rights and restrictions in how
the file may be used. You can also find out about how to make a
donation to Project Gutenberg, and how to get involved.
**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts**
**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since
1971**
*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of
Volunteers!*****
Title: History of American Literature
Author: Reuben Post Halleck
Release Date: September, 2004 [EBook #6423] [Yes, we are more than
one year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on December 10,
2002]
Edition: 10
Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AMERICAN
LITERATURE ***

Produced by Tom Allen, Charles Franks and the Online Distributed
Proofreading Team.

HISTORY OF AMERICAN LITERATURE
BY REUBEN POST HALLECK, M.A. (YALE) AUTHOR OF
"HISTORY OF ENGLISH LITERATURE"
[Illustration: THE RETURN OF RIP VAN WINKLE]

PREFACE
The wide use of the author's History of English Literature, the favor
with which it has been received in all parts of the United States, and the
number of earnest requests for a History of American Literature on the
same plan, have led to the writing of this book. It has not appeared
sooner because the author has followed his rule of making a careful
first-hand study, not only of all the matter discussed, but also of a far
greater amount, which, although it must be omitted from a condensed
textbook, is, nevertheless, necessary as a background for judgment and
selection.
The following chapters describe the greatest achievements in American
literature from the earliest times until the present. Many pupils fail to
obtain a clear idea of great American authors and literary movements
because textbook writers and teachers ignore the element of truth in the
old adage, "The half is greater than the whole," and dwell too much on
minor authors and details, which could reasonably be expected to
interest only a specialist. In the following pages especial attention has
been paid, not only to the individual work of great authors, but also to
literary movements, ideals, and animating principles, and to the relation
of all these to English literature.
The author has further aimed to make this work both interesting and
suggestive. He has endeavored to present the subject in a way that
necessitates the comparison of authors and movements, and leads to

stimulating thinking. He has tried to communicate enough of the spirit
of our literature to make students eager for a first-hand acquaintance
with it, to cause them to investigate for themselves this remarkable
American record of spirituality, initiative, and democratic
accomplishment. As a guide to such study, there have been placed at
the end of each chapter Suggested Readings and still further hints,
called Questions and Suggestions. In A Glance Backward, the author
emphasizes in brief compass the most important truths that American
literature teaches, truths that have resulted in raising the ideals of
Americans and in arousing them to greater activity.
Any one who makes an original study of American literature will not
be a mere apologist for it. He will marvel at the greatness of the moral
lesson, at the fidelity of the presentation of the thought which has
molded this nation, and at the peculiar aptness which its great authors
have displayed in ministering to the special needs and aspirations of
Americans. He will realize that the youth who stops with the
indispensable study of English literature is not prepared for American
citizenship, because our literature is needed to present the ideals of
American life. There may be greater literatures, but none of them can
possibly take the place of ours for citizens of this democracy.
The moral element, the most impressive quality in American literature,
is continuous from the earliest colonial days until the present. Teachers
should be careful not to obscure this quality. As the English scientist,
John Tyndall, has shown in the case of Emerson, this moral stimulus is
capable of adding immeasurably to the achievement of the young.
The temptation to slight the colonial period should be resisted. It has
too often been the fashion to ask, Why should the student not begin the
study of American literature with Washington Irving, the