🪶American Literature – Before 1860 Unit 7 – Early American Fiction: Rise of the Novel

Historical Context

• Early American fiction emerged in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, coinciding with the post-Revolutionary period and the formation of a distinct American identity
• The rise of the novel in America was influenced by British literary traditions, particularly the works of Samuel Richardson, Henry Fielding, and Laurence Sterne
• American authors sought to create a unique literary voice that reflected the experiences, values, and aspirations of the new nation
• The Enlightenment ideas of reason, individualism, and progress shaped the intellectual and cultural climate of the time, influencing the themes and concerns of early American fiction
• The expansion of literacy and the growth of the publishing industry in the United States facilitated the production and dissemination of novels
• The novel became a popular form of entertainment and a means of exploring social, political, and moral issues relevant to the young nation
• Early American fiction often addressed themes of republicanism, virtue, and the tensions between individual freedom and social responsibility

Key Authors and Works

• Charles Brockden Brown (1771-1810) is considered the first professional American novelist, known for his Gothic and psychological novels such as Wieland (1798) and Edgar Huntly (1799)
• Washington Irving (1783-1859) gained fame for his short stories, including "Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" (1820), which blended American folklore with Romantic themes
• James Fenimore Cooper (1789-1851) popularized the historical novel and the frontier adventure, exemplified by his Leatherstocking Tales, including The Last of the Mohicans (1826)
  • Cooper's novels celebrated the American wilderness and the noble savage, while also exploring the tensions between civilization and nature
• Catharine Maria Sedgwick (1789-1867) was a prominent female novelist of the period, known for works such as A New-England Tale (1822) and Hope Leslie (1827), which addressed issues of gender, religion, and social reform
• William Gilmore Simms (1806-1870) was a prolific Southern novelist, poet, and historian, best known for his historical romances set in the American South, such as The Yemassee (1835) and The Partisan (1835)
• Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), although more commonly associated with the later Romantic period, published his first novel, Fanshawe, anonymously in 1828

Literary Themes and Motifs

• The exploration of the American identity and the definition of national character were central concerns of early American fiction
• The tension between individual freedom and social responsibility was a recurring theme, reflecting the challenges of building a cohesive nation while preserving personal liberty
• The American wilderness was often portrayed as a source of both opportunity and danger, symbolizing the potential for personal growth and the challenges of taming the frontier
• The noble savage motif, which idealized Native Americans as embodiments of natural virtue and innocence, was prevalent in works such as Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales
• The Gothic tradition, with its emphasis on mystery, horror, and psychological depth, was adapted by American authors like Charles Brockden Brown to explore the dark undercurrents of the human psyche
• The theme of social reform, particularly in relation to issues of gender, religion, and education, was addressed by female novelists such as Catharine Maria Sedgwick
• The historical novel, popularized by Cooper and Simms, used the past as a lens through which to examine contemporary social and political issues

Narrative Techniques

• Early American novelists experimented with various narrative techniques to engage readers and convey their themes effectively
• Epistolary novels, composed entirely of letters exchanged between characters, were popular in the early stages of the American novel (e.g., Brown's Clara Howard)
• Frame narratives, in which a central story is embedded within a larger narrative framework, were employed to create a sense of authenticity and to provide multiple perspectives on the events described
• Unreliable narrators, whose credibility is questionable due to their biases, limited knowledge, or mental instability, were used to create psychological depth and ambiguity (e.g., Brown's Wieland)
• Dialogue and vernacular speech were increasingly used to capture the distinctive voices of American characters and to lend realism to the narratives
• Detailed descriptions of nature and landscape were employed to evoke a sense of place and to symbolize the characters' emotional states
• Foreshadowing and suspense were used to create narrative tension and to engage readers' interest in the unfolding plot
• Moral and didactic commentary, often delivered through authorial intrusions or the speeches of wise characters, was a common feature of early American fiction, reflecting the belief in the novel's potential for moral instruction

Cultural Impact

• Early American fiction played a significant role in shaping the nation's cultural identity and in fostering a sense of shared values and experiences
• Novels like Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales and Irving's short stories helped to establish uniquely American literary archetypes, such as the frontier hero and the Yankee character
• The portrayal of Native Americans in works like The Last of the Mohicans, while often romanticized and stereotypical, nonetheless sparked interest in indigenous cultures and raised questions about the treatment of native peoples
• The success of early American novels demonstrated the viability of a distinctly American literary tradition and paved the way for the emergence of a more robust and diverse national literature in the decades to come
• The themes and concerns addressed in early American fiction, such as the tension between individual freedom and social responsibility, continued to resonate with readers and to shape American cultural discourse
• The popularity of the novel as a form of entertainment and a vehicle for social commentary helped to establish the importance of literature in American public life
• Early American fiction also contributed to the development of a transatlantic literary culture, as American authors influenced and were influenced by their European counterparts

Critical Reception

• The critical reception of early American fiction was mixed, with some commentators praising the emergence of a distinctly American literary voice and others dismissing the works as derivative or inferior to European models
• British critics often viewed American novels as crude and unsophisticated, lacking the refinement and depth of their own literary tradition
• American critics, such as William Channing and John Neal, championed the development of a national literature and argued for the importance of originality and cultural specificity in American writing
• The works of James Fenimore Cooper and Washington Irving were widely praised both in the United States and abroad, establishing their reputations as major literary figures
• Female novelists like Catharine Maria Sedgwick faced additional challenges in gaining critical recognition, as their works were often dismissed as sentimental or didactic
• The Gothic novels of Charles Brockden Brown were praised for their psychological depth and innovative narrative techniques, but also criticized for their sensationalism and lack of moral clarity
• Critical debates about the role and purpose of the novel in American society helped to shape the development of American literary criticism and to establish the importance of literature as a subject of serious intellectual inquiry

Legacy and Influence

• The early American novel laid the foundation for the development of a rich and diverse national literature in the 19th and 20th centuries
• The themes, motifs, and narrative techniques pioneered by early American novelists continued to be explored and adapted by subsequent generations of writers
• James Fenimore Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales established the Western novel as a popular genre and influenced later writers such as Owen Wister and Zane Grey
• Washington Irving's blending of folklore, romance, and humor inspired the development of the American short story, influencing writers like Nathaniel Hawthorne and Edgar Allan Poe
• The Gothic tradition in American fiction, initiated by Charles Brockden Brown, found later expression in the works of Hawthorne, Poe, and Henry James
• The social reform impulse in the novels of Catharine Maria Sedgwick and others paved the way for the more explicit political engagement of later American writers, such as Harriet Beecher Stowe and Upton Sinclair
• The historical novel, as practiced by Cooper and Simms, remained a popular and influential genre throughout the 19th century, shaping the works of Herman Melville, Mark Twain, and many others
• Early American fiction's emphasis on the American experience and the formation of a national identity helped to establish literature as a key component of American cultural life and a means of exploring the nation's evolving character

Further Reading

• Cathy N. Davidson, Revolution and the Word: The Rise of the Novel in America (1986) - A comprehensive study of the early American novel and its cultural context
• Emory Elliott, ed., The Columbia History of the American Novel (1991) - A collection of essays exploring the development of the American novel from its beginnings to the present
• Shirley Samuels, ed., A Companion to American Fiction, 1780-1865 (2004) - A wide-ranging guide to the major authors, works, and themes of early American fiction
• Winfried Fluck, The Man Who Invented the American Novel: Charles Brockden Brown and the Transformation of Early American Literature (2021) - A recent reassessment of Brown's pioneering role in the development of the American novel
• Ezra Tawil, Literature, American Style: The Originality of Imitation in the Early Republic (2018) - An examination of the tensions between imitation and originality in early American literature
• Nancy Armstrong and Leonard Tennenhouse, eds., The Imaginary Puritan: Literature, Intellectual Labor, and the Origins of Personal Life (1994) - A study of the relationship between early American fiction and the emergence of modern conceptions of selfhood and personal identity
• Maurice S. Lee, Uncertain Chances: Science, Skepticism, and Belief in Nineteenth-Century American Literature (2012) - An exploration of the impact of scientific and philosophical skepticism on the development of the American novel
• Stephanie Foote, Regional Fictions: Culture and Identity in Nineteenth-Century American Literature (2001) - An analysis of the role of regional identity in shaping early American fiction and its reception