EARLY AMERICAN

AND COLONIAL
PERIOD IN
LITERATURE
Group 1
Agasa , Araneta , Bagtas , Basa , Catu , Diaz , Miranda ,
Pineda , Posadas , Uliran
 TOPIC OUTLINE
Folk Oral Literature of the Colonial and Non-Fiction
Native Americans Prose Essays

The Alphabet (from the Sinners in the Hands of an

New England Primer Angry God by J. Edwards

(1690) p. 49
INTRODUCTION
FOLK ORAL LITERATURE OF
THE NATIVE AMERICAN
Oral Traditions: the process of passing down sayings, songs, tales, and myths from one
generation to the next by word of mouth; preserve historical continuity.
Native Americans lived lives close to the land. Traditional literature related to tribal
knowledge, customs and rituals.
Folktales have been a part of the social and cultural life of American Indian and Eskimo
peoples regardless of whether they were sedentary agriculturists or nomadic hunters. As
they gathered around a fire at night, Native Americans could be transported to another
world through the talent of a good storyteller. The effect was derived not only from the
novelty of the tale itself but also from the imaginative skill of the narrator, who often added
gestures and songs and occasionally adapted a particular tale to suit a certain culture.
FOLK ORAL LITERATURE OF
THE NATIVE AMERICAN
FOLK ORAL LITERATURE OF
THE NATIVE AMERICAN
Native American oral literature preserves cultural legacy and traditions through
storytelling, oratory, and performance. Passed on through myths, songs, legends,
and tales, oral literature places great importance on language. In the retelling,
information must be remembered accurately. N. Scott Momaday explains: “Words
are spoken with great care, and they are heard. They matter, and they must not be
taken for granted; they must be taken seriously, and they must be remembered….
At the heart of the American Indian oral tradition is a deep and unconditional belief
in the efficacy of language. Words are intrinsically powerful.”
TYPES OF ORAL LITERATURE
Folktales: are stories in the oral tradition, or tales that people tell each other out
loud, rather than stories in written form. They're closely related to many storytelling
traditions, including fables, myths, and fairy tales. Every human society has its own
folktales; these well-known stories, handed down between generations, are an
important way of passing along knowledge, information, and history.
Myth: traditional story, rooted in a particular culture, that deals with gods,
goddesses, and other supernatural beings, as well as human heroes; often embody
religious beliefs and values and explain natural phenomena.
Creation Myth: explains how the world came about.
The Trickster Tale: familiar character in Native American storytelling challenging
the established order of things, bending others to his will.
Song: contains the wisdom of a people compressed into a lyrical performance.
FOLK ORAL LITERATURE OF
THE NATIVE AMERICANS
Native Americans cultures use stories to:
1. Teach moral lessons.
2. Convey practical information about the natural world.

Their universe is not dominated by human beings.

1. Animals and humans are often interchangeable in myths and folk tales.
2. Origin myths may even feature animals as the instruments of creation.
THE ALPHABET
(FROM THE NEW
ENGLAND PRIMER
(1690)P. 49
 THE NEW ENGLAND PRIMER
The Alphabet (from New England Primer 1690 )
The New England Primer, the principal textbook for
millions of colonists and early Americans.
It was first printed in Boston in 1690 by Benjamin
Harris who had published a similar volume in
London.
The Protestant Tutor, which he had written in
England, was the primary inspiration for The New
England Primer.
Although often called “the little Bible of New
England,” The New-England Primer gained
popularity not only in New England but also
throughout colonial America and parts of Great
Britain; an estimated six to eight million copies had
been sold by 1830.
THE NEW ENGLAND PRIMER
Less than 100 pages in length, this early textbook
proved significant in both reflecting the norms of
Puritan culture and propagating those norms into
early American thought.
The New England Primer followed a tradition of
combining the study of the alphabet with Bible
reading. The 90-page book had catechism of
religious questions and answers, woodcuts,
alphabetical aids, acronyms, and religious proverbs.
It had some common topics for teaching beginner
readers, but the choices changed over time. The
alphabet, vowels, consonants, double letters, and
syllabaries with two to six letters in each syllable
were all included. It was constructed by shellacking
a thin sheet of paper or horn to a wooden board.
 THE NEW ENGLAND PRIMER
Here are some examples of alphabet rhymes that teach moral values as well as reading.
A In Adam's Fall
We sinned all.
B Thy Life to Mend
This Book Attend.
C The Cat doth play
And after slay.
D A Dog will bite
A Thief at night.
E An Eagle's flight
Is Out of sight.
F The Idle Fool
Is Whipt at School.
Also, first appearing in the New England Primer was the Children's Prayer beginning "Now
I lay me down to sleep..."
 THE NEW ENGLAND PRIMER
Here are some examples of alphabet rhymes that teach moral values as well as reading.
A In Adam's Fall
We sinned all.
B Thy Life to Mend
This Book Attend.
C The Cat doth play
And after slay.
D A Dog will bite
A Thief at night.
E An Eagle's flight
Is Out of sight.
F The Idle Fool
Is Whipt at School.
Also, first appearing in the New England Primer was the Children's Prayer beginning "Now
I lay me down to sleep..."
COLONIAL
NON-
FICTION
PROSE AND
ESSAY
 COLONIAL NON-FICTION PROSE
Non-Fictional Prose
refers to any work of literature that is based mainly on
facts but they may contain fictional elements.
Examples of Non-Fiction Prose:
Biographies
Essay
Autobiographies
Memoirs
Journal
 COLONIAL NON-FICTION PROSE
Biography
is simply the story of a real person’s life. It could be about a
person who is still alive, someone who lived centuries ago,
someone who is globally famous, an unsung hero forgotten by
history, or even a unique group of people.
Examples:
Henry James by Leon Edel (Five volumes: 1953 to 1972)
James Joyce by Richard Ellmann (1959)
Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare by
Stephen Greenblatt (2004).
The Imperfect Life of T S Eliot by Lyndall Gordon (1998)
Dickens by Peter Ackroyd (1990)
 COLONIAL NON-FICTION PROSE
Essay
The word essay comes from the Late Latin exigere, meaning
“ascertain or weigh,” which later became essayer in Old French.
An essay (ES-ey) is a nonfiction composition that explores a
concept, argument, idea, or opinion from the personal
perspective of the writer.
Examples:
James Baldwin, "Notes of a Native Son" (originally appeared in
Harper’s, 1955)
Norman Mailer, "The White Negro" (originally appeared in
Dissent, 1957)
John McPhee, "The Search for Marvin Gardens" (originally
appeared in The New Yorker, 1972)
 COLONIAL NON-FICTION PROSE
Autobiography
The word autobiography comes from the Ancient Greek auto
(“self”) + bios (“life”) + graphein (“to write”) = “a self-written life.” It is
also known as autograph.
is a self-written biography. The author writes about all or a portion of
their own life to share their experience, frame it in a larger cultural or
historical context, and/or inform and entertain the reader.
Examples:
The Autobiography by Benjamin Franklin
Two Ways of Seeing a River, by Mark Twain
The Turbid Ebb and Flow of Misery, by Margaret Sanger
Langston Hughes on Harlem
Ritual in Maya Angelou's Caged Bird
 COLONIAL NON-FICTION PROSE
Memoir
“memoir” comes from the French “mémoire” or “memory.”
A memoir is a narrative, written from the perspective of the
author, about an important part of their life.
This literary technique tells a story about the experiences of
someone’s life. A literary memoir is usually about a specific
theme, or about a part of someone’s life. It is a story with a
proper narrative shape, focus, and subject matter, involving
reflection on some particular event or place.
Examples:
A Moveable Feast (By Ernest Hemingway)
Homage to Catalonia (By ­George Orwell)
Maus (By­­Art Spiegelman)
 COLONIAL NON-FICTION PROSE

Journal
an account of day-to-day events or a record of experiences,
ideas, or reflections kept regularly for private use that is similar
to, but sometimes less personal than, a diary.

Examples:
Plymouth Plantation by William Bradford
EARLY AMERICAN COLONIAL
PERIOD ESSAY TOPICS
The early American Colonial era encompasses
the period between the establishment of the
first English colony in North America in 1607 and
the Declaration of Independence in 1776. The
European settlers were beginning a completely
new life, while the lives of the indigenous
Americans would be changed forever. This was
therefore a rich period of history with plenty of
scope for different types of essay topics.
EARLY AMERICAN COLONIAL
PERIOD ESSAY TOPICS
1. Topography
2. Economics
3. Society
4. Politics
5. Religion
EARLY AMERICAN COLONIAL
PERIOD ESSAY TOPICS
Based in Mount Holly, near Philadelphia, he
traveled through the American frontier to
preach Quaker beliefs, and advocate against
slavery and the slave trade, cruelty to animals,
economic injustices and oppression, and
conscription.
The best-known Quaker work is the long
Journal (1774) of John Woolman, documenting
his inner life in a pure, heartfelt style of great
sweetness that has drawn praise from many
American and English writers. John Woolman
EARLY AMERICAN COLONIAL
PERIOD ESSAY TOPICS
Essays:
Some Considerations on the Keeping of
Negroes (1754-1762)
"On the Slave Trade"
On training Superfluities

John Woolman
"SINNERS IN THE
HANDS OF AN
ANGRY GOD" - BY
J. EDWARDS
BRIEF
BACKGROUND
Jonathan Edwards
First Great Awakening
Period
July 8, 1741
ABOUT THE
AUTHOR
Jonathan Edwards 1703-1758
-Son and grandson of Puritan
ministers.
-Ordained as a minister at 23.
-He felt that God was all powerful
and human beings had no free will.
-He believed only a select few
chosen by God would be saved.
THE SERMON IS
DIVIDED INTO
THREE PARTS:
The First Section begins with a
scriptural epigraph, from a verse in
Deuteronomy, “Their foot shall
slide in due time.” Humans as a
“slippery path”
THE SERMON IS
DIVIDED INTO
THREE PARTS:
The First Section begins with a
scriptural epigraph, from a verse in
Deuteronomy, “Their foot shall
slide in due time.” Humans as a
“slippery path”
THE SERMON IS
DIVIDED INTO
THREE PARTS:
The second part of his sermon is
about issues of sinning, the nature
of God, and religion. Edwards
demonstrates the truth of this
proposition in 10 enumerated
proofs, or “Considerations”
THE SERMON IS
DIVIDED INTO
THREE PARTS:
The second part of his sermon is
about issues of sinning, the nature
of God, and religion. Edwards
demonstrates the truth of this
proposition in 10 enumerated
proofs, or “Considerations”
THE SERMON IS
DIVIDED INTO
THREE PARTS:
The third section forms a bulk of
this sermon. He addresses not only
the audience listening but also the
global crowd. Edwards describes
hell as an uncomfortable place
where there is fire and brimstone.
And how people will be saved if
they follow God's path
THE SERMON IS
DIVIDED INTO
THREE PARTS:
The third section forms a bulk of
this sermon. He addresses not only
the audience listening but also the
global crowd. Edwards describes
hell as an uncomfortable place
where there is fire and brimstone.
And how people will be saved if
they follow God's path
STORY ANALYSIS
LITERARY ELEMENTS
GENRE THEMES
Sermon The danger of damnation
The justice of God’s
wrath
The opportunity for
redemption.
LITERARY ELEMENTS
SYMBOL IMAGERY
Fire and Hell
The Spider “There is the dreadful pit of the glowing

“The God that holds you over the flames of the wrath of God; there is hell's

wide gaping mouth open; and you have

pit of hell, much as one holds a
nothing to stand upon, nor any thing to take
spider, or some loathsome insect hold of, there is nothing between you and

over the fire, abhors you, and is hell but the air; it is only the power and mere
pleasure of God that holds you up. ”
dreadfully provoked”
LITERARY ELEMENTS
FIGURES PURPOSE
OF SPEECH OF THIS
Irony (Situational) WORK
To warn his people and whoever
God’s Wrath, else wants to agree, that they all

God’s Grace must show their remorse for their

sins to God before it is too late.

 THANK YOU
FOR LISTENING
Don't hesitate to ask any questions!