10.5.11: Same Difference

Journal #8

            From reading their biographies, you wouldn’t think that Jefferson Davis and Henry Highland Garnet had much in common. Davis was a white West Point graduate who owned a cotton plantation in Mississippi and spent a number of years in both houses of Congress, resigned when Mississippi seceded form the Union, and was elected President of the newly formed Confederate States. Garnet was born a slave in Maryland and his family escaped to New York City when he was nine years old, where he would eventually enter the ministry through the Presbyterian Church. He was a proponent of the abolitionist movement, and was asked by President Lincoln to deliver a sermon at the House of Representatives. They sound so similar, right?

So maybe these two men aren’t so similar, but two of their writings, Davis’ Inaugural Address and Garnet’s A Memorial Discourse share many of the same basic ideas regarding the American dream. One of Davis’ main points is that “it is the right of the people to alter or abolish a government whenever it becomes destructive of the ends for which it was established.” He believes that as Americans, the South has the right to withdraw and set up a new government because their rights have been violated. Their opportunity to participate in the American dream has been threatened, and he feels that if seceding from the Union becomes the means for regaining those rights, then that’s what the South will do. Because the majority of Davis’ audience are Southerners who are also in the same boat, its likely that they rallied behind him in his stance.

            Garnet also feels that the rights of his people have been violated; only Garnet is referring to African-American slaves. In his speech, he acknowledges that many Northerners are wondering when the demands of the abolitionists will end. Garnet clearly answers, “When there shall be….no more trouble concerning the black man and his rights…when, in every respect, he shall be equal before the law.” Like Davis, Garnet feels that the rights of his people have been violated, and therefore they are not able to pursue the American dream. However, unlike Davis, Garnet may have been speaking to a group of individuals who did not feel the same way that he did, but judging from the determination that I could sense in his words and the clarity with which he chose them, I wouldn’t be surprised if he won a few of the Congressman over.

The term ‘American dream’ hasn’t necessarily been coined yet, but Davis and Garnet agree that the people they are representing have been denied their rights as American citizens, and they have formulated what they believe to be a solution. So are Davis and Garnet the similar after all? I’d say that they are. As leaders of their respective groups, they both have an understanding of what it feels like to be ‘left out’ of the American dream. 

Imagery for a Cause

The imagery in these poems by Whittier and Harper really stood out to me, even though I hadn’t even looked at the elements of poetry yet when I read them. I noticed right off the bat how the word choices of both of these authors created vivid images, and by the end of each poem, I had visualized a story in my head. Therefore, when I saw imagery listed in the elements, I knew which one to pick.

The most vivid of the four poems was “The Slave Mother” by Frances E.W. Harper. This piece provides an emotional account of a slave mother and her child as they are torn away from one another to be sold to different masters. Harper writes,

No marvel, then, these bitter shrieks

Disturb the listening air:

She is a mother, and her heart

Is breaking in despair.

Especially after this moving poem, I could see how this last stanza would evoke a lot of emotion from a reader, especially during this time period. This poem is a great example of how literature was used as part of the antislavery movement.

Whittier’s work, “The Farewell of a Virginia Slave Mother to Her Daughters Sold Into Southern Bondage” also tells the story of the plight of a mother and daughters as they are sold into slavery. Phrases such as “Where the slave-whip ceaseless swings,” and “From the fields at night they go, Faint with told, and racked with pain, To their cheerless homes again” really paint vivid pictures in the minds of his readers. After reading these poems, I really have an understanding of how authors during this time period used imagery to connect with their audience and also their cause. 

9.14.11: Who's the Real Imposter?

      The common theme of Apess’ “An Indian’s Looking Glass for the White Man” and Sigourney’s “Indian Names” is more than just the plight of the Native American people. To me, both pieces really harped on the idea that the Native Americans are not the one’s imposing on the white men. The white men are actually imposing and taking away the possessions and lifestyles of the Native Americans.

            This new group of Americans that immigrated to the New World, referred to as “whites” by both authors, started by taking land away from Native Americans, who had called United States their home for decades. Lydia Sigourney writes, “That ‘mid the forests where they roamed there rings no hunter’s shout…” and “….their cone-like cabins that clustered o’er the vale, have fled away like withered leaves before the autumn gale.” These words symbolize the loss of hunting grounds for Native Americans, as well as the departure from their native lands, that was caused by the whites moving west.

            I really enjoyed William Apess’ “An Indian’s Looking Glass for the White Man.” The idea that the white man is actually the imposter is continued in his work that really asks white settlers of the United States to step back and rethink their treatment of the Native Americans. As a Methodist minister, Apess used many Bible verses to point out that the Bible does not discriminate based on the color skin, so neither should we. He also points out that Jesus, who was a Jew, associated with the Gentiles, who were considered the “lesser class” during that time period. With these ideas in mind, he asks his white readers if they are still ok with continuing to impose on the Native American way of life by depriving them of education and basic social rights, as well as tearing them away from their beloved homelands. Both of these articles are great examples of writing for social reform during this time period.   

9.12.11: Elements of Fiction

            The element of fiction that I found interesting in "The Tenth of January,” by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, is point of view. As mentioned in chapter four of Writing in Literature, works with a third-person narrator are said to have an omniscient narrator. This is because the narrator himself is not a character in the story and has a sort of outside view of the plot. Especially in “The Tenth of January,” I got the feeling that the narrator already knows what will happen in the end, and already knows how everything will come together.

            I feel that this story would have had a completely different style if it had been told from only one of the character’s point of view. Using a third-person point of view allows the author to include the point of view of all of the characters, instead of just one. In my opinion, this makes the story much more interesting, and allows the readers more opportunities to connect with one or more characters in the story on a personal level. Also, the third-person point of view keeps the reader in anticipation of what will happen next. As the author switches from character to character in “The Tenth of January,” she allows her readers to slowly piece together the story as a whole because they have the points of view of each character, not just one. This style kept me on my toes as I read the story, and I found myself waiting for more pieces so that I could complete the puzzle!

9.5.11: Irving's "The Wife"

     Washington Irving’s work The Wife paints a picture of the duties of a wife during this time period, and gives a kind of hidden instruction of how the ideal wife should relate to her husband.

      Irving refers to the woman as “the softer sex,” and “soft and tender.” However, he also emphasizes that the ideal wife, while feminine, is able to “be the comforter and supporter of her husband” when he needs encouragement or uplifting. He gives his readers the visual of a vine twisted around an oak tree, the vine being the woman and the tree representing her husband. In this analogy, the vine depends on the tree, just was the wife is dependent on her husband, but she also gently supports him at the same time.

      Irving personifies this analogy by telling the story of a friend and his wife who went through some financial troubles and had to being to live a much more frugal lifestyle. The husband was heartbroken that he would not be able to provide his wife with the fine things that she was used to having, but his wife was actually extremely supportive and found happiness in their bleak situation, which in turn made her husband happy. I feel as though this story not only gives a glimpse of a woman’s life during this time period, but also could have been written possibly as an example for young women at the time to read and practice in their own lives. Could Irving have known that women would want to read such a touching story and included a hidden life lesson?

8.31.11: Introduction pg. 311-333

After reading our assignment for this post, I began to wonder what it would be like if America's first printing press hadn't come about until much later. In today's world of instantaneous results and lightning-fast internet, residents of California can read first hand information about decisions being made by Congress in Washington D.C. just as quickly as residents of New York can. Therefore, it is hard for me to imagine how it would feel to not receive news of major events until weeks later as the colonists did before the circulation of newspapers and periodicals.

         The national unity that emerged during this period is largely due to the beginning of the printed word in the colonies. Through the use of newspapers and periodicals, political activists could share their opinions and promote their ideas. Without newspapers, the concept of America becoming independent of England would have never circulated or sparked a revolution; if the colonists hadn’t united under this concept, would America exist today? I’ve heard the saying that ‘There is power in the written word’ many times, but it really comes to life when you look at the colonists as an example. Who would have thought that a grouping of colonies, many secluded or spread apart from one another, would be brought together by something as simple as a printing press? Not the English. There truly is power in the written word. 

8.24.11: What Is An American?

   Our discussion in class today about defining an American was interesting because I had never really stopped and considered just what I thought an American was. I realized that the words that our class used to describe Americans might have actually been words that described what a “model” American might look like, or what we would like all people living in the United States to be like. For instance, one classmate offered that an American was ‘educated.’ Yes, the United States probably has more educated people than most, but many people residing in the United States do not even have a high school diploma; America actually has one of the highest dropout rates. However, most American citizens would probably agree that the “model” American would be an educated, independent thinker.

        

         Another thought that I had during our discussion yesterday was that many people’s definitions of an American are different based on their race, gender, or socioeconomic status. This thought was sparked by the African-American poet Langston Hughes’ poem, “Let America Be America Again,” which was written while segregation laws where still in place. In his poem, Hughes explains that even though America has been said to have been built on equality, he has never felt equal to his white American counterparts. Through this poem and the other poems that our class investigated, I came to the conclusion that it is very difficult to define ‘American.’ My view of what makes someone ‘American’ has definitely been challenged, and I feel that because our society is changing so much, the only thing that can really define an American is the fact that he or she is a citizen of the United States. Whether or not this person is a model citizen can be determined through the criteria we came up with in class, such as patriotic, determined, hard-working, and educated.