SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict

1. Women’s rights and the status of women are central issues in the selections by Margaret Fuller (p. 607), Sojourner Truth (p. 625), and Harriet Jacobs (p. 675). Compare and contrast how the three writers use rhetorical strategies to establish their positions about women in America.

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   SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - Women’s rights and the status of women are central issues in the selections by Margaret Fuller (p. 607), Sojourner Truth (p. 625), and Harriet Jacobs (p. 675). Compare and contrast how the three writers use rhetorical strategies to establish their positions about women in America.
2. Consider the contrasting visual images found at the beginning and end of the chronological portion of this chapter: the romantic visions depicted by Thomas Cole (p. 556) and Asher B. Durand (p. 557) and the reports of grim reality by Alexander Gardner (p. 685) and Timothy O’Sullivan (p. 686). How effectively do these contrasting visuals serve to frame, or bookend, the period covered by the chapter?

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   SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - Consider the contrasting visual images found at the beginning and end of the chronological portion of this chapter: the romantic visions depicted by Thomas Cole (p. 556) and Asher B. Durand (p. 557) and the reports of grim reality by Alexander Gardner (p. 685) and Timothy O’Sullivan (p. 686). How effectively do these contrasting visuals serve to frame, or bookend, the period covered by the chapter?
3. In his Journal entry of March 1845, Ralph Waldo Emerson writes: “Poetry must be new as foam, and as old as the rock.” In his essay “Circles,” he writes, “The poets are thus liberating gods.” This chapter contains the work of six poets: William Cullen Bryant, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Walt Whitman, Allen Ginsberg, Herman Melville, and William Stafford. Select one of Emerson’s statements and write an essay that defends or challenges its application to three of the poets in the chapter.

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   SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - In his Journal entry of March 1845, Ralph Waldo Emerson writes: “Poetry must be new as foam, and as old as the rock.” In his essay “Circles,” he writes, “The poets are thus liberating gods.” This chapter contains the work of six poets: William Cullen Bryant, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Walt Whitman, Allen Ginsberg, Herman Melville, and William Stafford. Select one of Emerson’s statements and write an essay that defends or challenges its application to three of the poets in the chapter.
4. Compare and contrast the narratives of Frederick Douglass (p. 614) and Harriet Jacobs (p. 675). Which one is more compelling? Why?

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   SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - Compare and contrast the narratives of Frederick Douglass (p. 614) and Harriet Jacobs (p. 675). Which one is more compelling? Why?
5. Slavery is addressed directly by the autobiographical works of Douglass and Jacobs, by Harriet Beecher Stowe’s fictional account (p. 627), by Alfred M. Green’s speech (p. 673), by the song “No More Auction Block for Me” (p. 674), and by the auction block monument (p. 641). Compare and contrast three of these texts as they address the institution of slavery.

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   SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - Slavery is addressed directly by the autobiographical works of Douglass and Jacobs, by Harriet Beecher Stowe’s fictional account (p. 627), by Alfred M. Green’s speech (p. 673), by the song “No More Auction Block for Me” (p. 674), and by the auction block monument (p. 641). Compare and contrast three of these texts as they address the institution of slavery.
6. Select one of the following statements from Alexis de Tocqueville’s 1835 book, Democracy in America. Write an essay that defends, challenges, or qualifies the statement’s validity, using at least three texts from the chapter to support your position.

   I know no country in which there is so little independence of mind and freedom of discussion as in America.

   The great advantages of the Americans consists in their being able to commit faults which they may afterwards repair.

   The great advantage of the Americans is that they have arrived at a state of democracy without having to endure a democratic revolution; and that they are born equal, instead of becoming so.

   It is by the enjoyment of a dangerous freedom that the Americans learn the art of rendering the danger of freedom less formidable.

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   SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - Select one of the following statements from Alexis de Tocqueville’s 1835 book, Democracy in America. Write an essay that defends, challenges, or qualifies the statement’s validity, using at least three texts from the chapter to support your position.I know no country in which there is so little independence of mind and freedom of discussion as in America.The great advantages of the Americans consists in their being able to commit faults which they may afterwards repair.The great advantage of the Americans is that they have arrived at a state of democracy without having to endure a democratic revolution; and that they are born equal, instead of becoming so.It is by the enjoyment of a dangerous freedom that the Americans learn the art of rendering the danger of freedom less formidable.
7. It is often suggested that the works of many of the writers in this period represent a tension between optimism and pessimism, between hope and mystery, between the exploration of evil and the possibility of good, between darkness and light. On one side would be Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman; on the other we would have Hawthorne, Poe, and Melville. Consider the following statements—the first, about Hawthorne, and the second, about Melville—from historian Vernon Louis Parrington’s 1927 work, Main Currents in American Thought:

   And so while the Concord thinkers were proclaiming man to be the indubitable child of God, Hawthorne was critically examining the question of evil as it appeared in the light of his own experience. It was the central, fascinating problem of his intellectual life, and in pursuit of a solution he probed curiously into the hidden, furtive recesses of the soul.

   All the powers of darkness fought over him. They drove him down into the gloom of his tormented soul, and if they did not conquer, they left him maimed and stricken. The golden dreams of transcendental faith, that buoyed up Emerson and gave hope to Thoreau, turned to ashes in his mouth; the white gleams of mysticism that now and then lighted up his path died out and left him in darkness.

   Select one of Parrington’s statements and support, qualify, or challenge its validity, using the work of three or four writers from this chapter as evidence.

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   SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - It is often suggested that the works of many of the writers in this period represent a tension between optimism and pessimism, between hope and mystery, between the exploration of evil and the possibility of good, between darkness and light. On one side would be Emerson, Thoreau, and Whitman; on the other we would have Hawthorne, Poe, and Melville. Consider the following statements—the first, about Hawthorne, and the second, about Melville—from historian Vernon Louis Parrington’s 1927 work, Main Currents in American Thought:And so while the Concord thinkers were proclaiming man to be the indubitable child of God, Hawthorne was critically examining the question of evil as it appeared in the light of his own experience. It was the central, fascinating problem of his intellectual life, and in pursuit of a solution he probed curiously into the hidden, furtive recesses of the soul.All the powers of darkness fought over him. They drove him down into the gloom of his tormented soul, and if they did not conquer, they left him maimed and stricken. The golden dreams of transcendental faith, that buoyed up Emerson and gave hope to Thoreau, turned to ashes in his mouth; the white gleams of mysticism that now and then lighted up his path died out and left him in darkness.Select one of Parrington’s statements and support, qualify, or challenge its validity, using the work of three or four writers from this chapter as evidence.
8. “Be ashamed to die unless you have won some victory for humanity!” stated Horace Mann in his commencement address at Antioch College in 1859. Write an essay about those writers and texts in this chapter that express a victory for humanity. Refer to at least three texts.

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   SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - “Be ashamed to die unless you have won some victory for humanity!” stated Horace Mann in his commencement address at Antioch College in 1859. Write an essay about those writers and texts in this chapter that express a victory for humanity. Refer to at least three texts.
9. Many of the texts in this chapter might be said to be about the meeting of and conflict among three races: white, black, and Native American. In Alexis de Tocqueville’s 1835 book, Democracy in America, he writes: “The human beings who are scattered over [the United States]…do not form, as in Europe, so many branches of the same stock. Three races, naturally distinct, and, I might almost say, hostile to each other, are discoverable among them at the first glance. Almost insurmountable barriers had been raised between them by education and law, as well as by their origin and outward characteristics, but fortune has brought them together on the same soil, where, although they are mixed, they do not amalgamate, and each race fulfills its destiny apart.” Consider the implications of that statement for the texts in this chapter. Using references to at least three texts, assess the validity of the statement regarding race in America.

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   SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - Many of the texts in this chapter might be said to be about the meeting of and conflict among three races: white, black, and Native American. In Alexis de Tocqueville’s 1835 book, Democracy in America, he writes: “The human beings who are scattered over [the United States]…do not form, as in Europe, so many branches of the same stock. Three races, naturally distinct, and, I might almost say, hostile to each other, are discoverable among them at the first glance. Almost insurmountable barriers had been raised between them by education and law, as well as by their origin and outward characteristics, but fortune has brought them together on the same soil, where, although they are mixed, they do not amalgamate, and each race fulfills its destiny apart.” Consider the implications of that statement for the texts in this chapter. Using references to at least three texts, assess the validity of the statement regarding race in America.
10. On December 2, 1841, in his Lecture on the Times, Ralph Waldo Emerson stated, “But turn it how we will, as we ponder this meaning of the times, every new thought drives us to the deep fact, that the Time is the child of the Eternity. The main interest which any aspects of the Times can have for us, is the great spirit which gazes through them, the light which they can shed on the wonderful questions, What we are? and Whither we tend? We do not wish to be deceived. Here we drift, like white sail across the wild ocean, now bright on the wave, now darkling in the trough of the sea;—but from what port did we sail? Who knows? Or to what port are we bound? Who knows?” Consider Emerson’s statement carefully. Write an essay that explores Emerson’s thoughts and ideas as they relate to at least three selections from the chapter.

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    SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - On December 2, 1841, in his Lecture on the Times, Ralph Waldo Emerson stated, “But turn it how we will, as we ponder this meaning of the times, every new thought drives us to the deep fact, that the Time is the child of the Eternity. The main interest which any aspects of the Times can have for us, is the great spirit which gazes through them, the light which they can shed on the wonderful questions, What we are? and Whither we tend? We do not wish to be deceived. Here we drift, like white sail across the wild ocean, now bright on the wave, now darkling in the trough of the sea;—but from what port did we sail? Who knows? Or to what port are we bound? Who knows?” Consider Emerson’s statement carefully. Write an essay that explores Emerson’s thoughts and ideas as they relate to at least three selections from the chapter.
11. Many of the works in this chapter are about the Civil War. Consider those by John Brown and Abraham Lincoln and the works by Jefferson Davis, Alfred M. Green, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Herman Meville, Timothy O’Sullivan; the song “No More Auction Block for Me”; and the recruitment poster. Write an essay about what these texts have done to enhance your understanding of that war. Refer to at least three of the texts in your response.

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    SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - Many of the works in this chapter are about the Civil War. Consider those by John Brown and Abraham Lincoln and the works by Jefferson Davis, Alfred M. Green, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Herman Meville, Timothy O’Sullivan; the song “No More Auction Block for Me”; and the recruitment poster. Write an essay about what these texts have done to enhance your understanding of that war. Refer to at least three of the texts in your response.
12. The period covered by this chapter is often called the “American Renaissance,” in literary scholar F. O. Matthiessen’s words, or the age of American romanticism. The chief features of romanticism are its favoring of the imagination, emotion, and intuition over reason and order; the importance of the individual and self-reliance over authority, tradition, and conformity; trust in subjectivity over objectivity; belief in the innocence of youth over the corruptions and compromises of age; a preference for the natural world, the frontier, and primitivism over civilization and urbanity; and a high regard for the rebel over the conservative. A reaction against orthodoxy, the romantic view esteems the democratic spirit, the quest for beauty and truth, and a delight in mystery and adventure and looks to nature as a source of knowledge, power, and enlightenment. The chief figures of romanticism in this chapter are William Cullen Bryant, Thomas Cole, Asher B. Durand, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Edgar Allan Poe, Henry David Thoreau, Herman Melville, and Walt Whitman. Select three of these writers and write an essay that demonstrates them to be major voices in American romanticism. Which single writer best expresses the romantic spirit? Explain.

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    SUGGESTIONS FOR WRITING America in Conflict: - The period covered by this chapter is often called the “American Renaissance,” in literary scholar F. O. Matthiessen’s words, or the age of American romanticism. The chief features of romanticism are its favoring of the imagination, emotion, and intuition over reason and order; the importance of the individual and self-reliance over authority, tradition, and conformity; trust in subjectivity over objectivity; belief in the innocence of youth over the corruptions and compromises of age; a preference for the natural world, the frontier, and primitivism over civilization and urbanity; and a high regard for the rebel over the conservative. A reaction against orthodoxy, the romantic view esteems the democratic spirit, the quest for beauty and truth, and a delight in mystery and adventure and looks to nature as a source of knowledge, power, and enlightenment. The chief figures of romanticism in this chapter are William Cullen Bryant, Thomas Cole, Asher B. Durand, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Edgar Allan Poe, Henry David Thoreau, Herman Melville, and Walt Whitman. Select three of these writers and write an essay that demonstrates them to be major voices in American romanticism. Which single writer best expresses the romantic spirit? Explain.