One year course in English and American literature; an introduction to the chief authors in English and American literature, with reading lists and references for further study

Front matter

YEAR. COURSE IN ISH AND AMERICAN LITERATURE

**• o oH k 0o.

A

Preface

This book is written for the purpose of providing for students in high schools and academies an introduction to the literature of their mother tongue. There are already a number of books on this subject : the present work will be found to differ from them in several respects.

The method followed by most writers in preparing an elementary text-book on English literature is, apparently, to take a larger work and make a small one by simply reducing the scale. Fifty pages on Shakespeare are reduced to ten, and so on. When the minor writers are reached, they are condensed into a line or two, with the result that much of the book is a mere list of names and titles. These dry bones the teacher is left to animate as best he can.

In this work there has been no attempt to include all the writers who have contributed to English literature. There are many authors who survive only for purposes of post-graduate study. George Gascoigne, John Skelton, Roger Ascham, Ambrose Phillips, are names of significance to the scholar tracing the evolution of literary forms, but not to the beginner, who needs a guide to what is best in the public library. Throughout this work, then, emphasis is placed upon books that still live. The nineteenth century in particular is treated fully; its writers may be no greater than those of the eighteenth, but they have more to say to us.

iv PREFACE

The mere study of a text-book, however, will give no one a knowledge of English literature. That must be gained by reading the authors themselves. To this end, each chapter is followed by a list of recommended reading in the chief authors, with references to volumes of selections where these may be found. And since many pupils will now begin to form their own libraries, under each chief author is mentioned a standard library edition of his works, and inexpensive editions of single volumes.

The author desires to acknowledge his indebtedness to Mr. Guy M. Carleton for valuable suggestions and criticism.

B. A. HEYDRICK.

New York, January, 1909.

Contents

I. ENGLISH LITERATURE

CHAPTER PAGE

I. The Beginning of English Literature . . . i Beowulf — Caedmon — Bede — Alfred.

Part II. The Period Of Achievement, 1809-1870

III. The Knickerbocker School 156

Irving — Cooper — Bryant.

IV. The New England Group — Poets and Essayists . 167

Emerson — Longfellow — Whittier — Lowell — Holmes

— Thoreau.

V. The New England Group — Orators, Novelists,

and Historians 192

Webster — Hawthorne — Stowe — Bancroft — Prescott

— Parkman — Motley.

VI. Early Southern Writers . . . . . 209

Simms — Poe — Hayne — Timrod.

VII. Writers of the Middle States . . . .218 Taylor — Whitman — Stoddard — Curtis.

Part III. Recent Period, 1870-1908

VIII. New England since 1870 228

Stedman — Aldrich — Hale — Warner — Fiske.

IX. The New South 237

Lanier — Cable — Harris — Page — Allen-

CONTENTS vil

CHAPTER PAGE

X. Recent Writers of the Middle States . . . 244 Burroughs — Howells — James — Crawford — Stockton.

XI. The Rise of Western Literature .... 252 Harte — Clemens — Eggleston — Field — Riley.

List of Books referred to 278

Index 279

Introduction

If one were asked to name the chief writers in American literature, one would probably think first of Longfellow, Whittier, Emerson, and Lowell. A little more reflection would suggest Poe, Bryant, Hawthorne, Cooper, Irving, Franklin, and Holmes. These are the writers who stand foremost in our literature, and, with the exception of Franklin, they all belong to a single period. The sixty years from 1809 to 1869 saw the chief work of these authors. This may be called the Period of Achievement in American literature. The earlier period, which includes the writings of Franklin and of the Revolutionary orators, we may call the Period of Beginnings. And the period since 1870, including authors now living, we may call the Recent Period. So our literary history divides itself naturally into three periods, which will be treated in the three parts of this book.

Acknowledgment is hereby made of the permission granted by Messrs. Houghton Mifflin Company to use extracts from copyrighted poems by J. G. Whittier, O. W. Holmes, and E. R. Sill ; to Messrs. Charles Scribner's Sons for selections from R. H. Stoddard; to Little, Brown, and Co. for selections from Emily Dickinson ; to Horace Traubel for selections from Walt Whitman ; and to James Whitcomb Riley for selections from his own writings.

ENGLISH LITERATURE

CHAPTER I THE BEGINNING OF ENGLISH LITERATURE Beowulf Bede

Ccedmou King Alfred

The beginning of English literature goes back to the beginning of the English race. The people we call English had their first home not in England at all, but on the shores of the North Sea, on the peninsula of Jutland and in that part of Germany now known as Schleswig-Holstein. These people came to England in great numbers in the fifth and sixth centuries, and conquering the original inhabitants, established the Anglo-Saxon nation, as it was called. They brought with them their literature, in the Anglo- Saxon language. A great part of this literature has been lost. Of that which survives, the most noted work is an epic poem called Beowulf (Bay'o-wulf).

This poem begins by telling how Hrothgar, a Danish king, built a splendid mead-hall where he and his warriors might feast after fighting. A supernatural monster called Grendel, hearing the sound of minstrelsy, comes to the hall by night and slays thirty of the warriors while they sleep. Again and again he comes to the hall ; his strength is so great that no bars can keep him out ; he bears a charmed life, so no sword can wound him. So the hall stands deserted, and King Hrothgar in despair sends for

2 THE BEGINNING OF ENGLISH LITERATURE

Beowulf, a prince of a neighboring land, to come to his aid. Beowulf comes with twelve companions, and is entertained in the hall with feasting and song. That night Grendel comes again, seizes one of the sleeping warriors, drinks his blood, and devours him even to his hands and feet. Then he attacks Beowulf, and a fearful struggle ensues. Beowulf, who had the strength of thirty men, seized Grendel by the arm ; the monster struggled to escape ; his frightful cries filled the hall ; at last he fairly wrenched his arm out of its socket and rushed away to die in his lair. Then there is great joy, a feast is held, and rich presents are given to the hero Beowulf. But that very night the mother of Grendel, a frightful monster, comes to take vengeance, and seizing one of the companions of Beowulf, bears him away to her den. In the morning Beowulf and his fellows follow the trail of the monster and come at last to a dark stagnant water beneath the cliffs. Beowulf boldly plunges in and finds the monster in a cave beneath the water. He grapples with her, and the water is churned up by their struggle. In spite of his great strength, Beowulf is slowly overcome by the monster and forced to the floor of the cave. Reaching out desperately, his hand grasps a sword lying on the ground ; it chances to be an enchanted sword, and with it he kills the monster. He returns to the mead-hall with the heads of the two creatures ; their blood is so poisonous that it melts the blade of the sword with which the heads are severed.

Beowulf goes back to his own land laden with gifts, and rules there for many years. When he is an old man, his country is menaced by a great danger. A dragon, breathing fire, flies by night over the land, seizing people and setting fire to dwellings. Beowulf, old as he is, goes forth to slay the dragon, accompanied by his bravest followers.

BEOWULF, CEDMON 3

As they approach the cave they see skeletons lying all about; the sight is so terrifying that all of his followers except one turn and flee. The hero attacks the dragon single-handed ; a mighty combat follows in which Beowulf slays his enemy, but is himself mortally wounded. His followers bring forth the hoard of gold and jewels the dragon had guarded, and Beowulf gives thanks that he has won them for his people. He dies, and in his honor a lofty mound is built, which may be seen by passing ships; this as a memorial to the king who was " mildest to his men, and most bent upon glory."

The poem is typical of the race which produced it. Stern fighters, loyal friends, brave in the face of danger, desiring honor more than they feared death, the Anglo- Saxons gave to the English race the iron in the blood which has made them a conquering people.

Beowulf can hardly be regarded as the first English poem, since it was written on the mainland, probably in the sixth century. The oldest English poem of which we have any record is called Widsith, or the Far- Wanderer. This tells of the wanderings of a poet in many lands, how he was received with honor at the courts of kings, and how in return he sang of their deeds and so gave fame to them. The poem is of interest as showing the position of the poet, or Scop, as he was called, among the Anglo- Saxon peoples.

More important than Widsith is the work of Caedmon, a Northumbrian monk of the eighth century. The Anglo- Saxons had been converted to Christianity by missionaries from Rome and from Ireland. Monasteries were established in many places, and these were the centers of learning as well as of religious influence. At the monastery of Whitby, in Northumbria, lived the poet Caedmon. His

4 THE BEGINNING OF ENGLISH LITERATURE

story is told by the historian Bede. It was the custom of the time at banquets, after the feasting was concluded, to pass the harp from one to another, and the guests would play and sing, often improvising the words. Caedmon was an unlearned man, and when he saw the harp approaching him, he slipped out from the hall and went to the cattle sheds. There he fell asleep, and in a vision the Lord appeared to him and said, " Caedmon, sing something for me." He replied, " Lord, I cannot sing, and for that reason I left the banquet for shame when I saw the harp approaching." Then the Lord said, " Nevertheless, sing for me." — " What shall I sing ? " — " Sing of the Creation." Then he began and sang of the Creation, and of the beginning of mankind. When he awoke he remembered the poem, and repeated it. The monks heard it with astonishment, and took him before the abbess. She bade the scholars tell him more of the Bible history, and he turned this into poetry as before. In this way he composed his great work, the Paraphrase of the Scriptures. It includes the books of Genesis, Exodus, and parts of Daniel. Caedmon did more than merely put into verse the Biblical narratives : there are many places where from his own imagination he adds descriptions and incidents that are highly poetic. In some passages there is a close resemblance between Caedmon's Paraphrase and Milton's Paradise Lost, and it is probable that Milton was influenced by this early poet.

The great names in Anglo-Saxon poetry, then, are Beowulf and Caedmon ; in prose they are Bede and King Alfred. Bede was a learned monk of the monastery at Jarrow, in Northumberland; his most noted work is the Ecclesiastical History of England, in which the story of Caedmon appears. This work was originally written in Latin, which was then the language usually used for

BEDE, KING ALERED 5

learned works. He wrote in Anglo-Saxon a translation of St. John's Gospel. This was the last work of his life, and as it progressed he grew weaker, so that it was necessary to have one of his pupils write as he dictated. On the last day of his life the pupil who was writing for him said, " Master, there is still one chapter wanting : does it trouble you to be asked questions ? " — " It is no trouble, my son ; take your pen and write quickly." At evening the boy said, " Dear master, there is yet one sentence unwritten." — " Write it quickly," he said. Soon the boy said, "It is finished." He replied, "You have spoken the truth, it is finished," and with a psalm upon his lips he passed away.

Bede was our first English historian ; King Alfred (849-901), better known as Alfred the Great, was the first great English educator. When he came to the throne he saw with regret that, owing to the destruction of many monasteries by the Danes, learning was fast dying out. The common people knew no Latin, many of the priests were ignorant, and all the learning of the time was in the Latin tongue. To remedy this, Alfred had many books translated into Anglo-Saxon, and himself aided in the translations. In this way books on geography, history, philosophy, and theology were made accessible to the common people. Bede's Ecclesiastical History was one of the books translated. Under Alfred, too, a great advance was made in recording the history of the time. For many years a record had been kept, now known as the Saxon Chronicle. This, however, was brief and fragmentary ; a year's history was compressed into a single line. Under Alfred's direction it became a full and spirited narrative, and it remains one of the great monuments of Anglo-Saxon prose.

6 THE BEGINNING OF ENGLISH LITERATURE

It may be well to give here some idea of the Anglo- Saxon language, or Old English as it is sometimes called. The following lines are from Beowulf :

This is not much like modern English. Not only are many of the words strange to us, but the grammatical structure is different. In the second line the word Scyldes is in the genitive case, while landum is a dative. Anglo- Saxon was like Latin or German in using various endings of a word to express relations which English expresses by prepositions, as shown in the translation.

How was this strange speech transformed into the English that we know? This was accomplished through the Norman Conquest. William of Normandy and his followers, who conquered the Anglo-Saxons in 1066, followed the example of the earlier invaders and settled in the country they had won. Like the Saxons, too, they brought with them their language and literature, and tried to make it the language of the land. Norman French was spoken at court, it was taught in schools, it was the language of the law courts, and of the ruling class as a whole. But the conquered Saxons clung stubbornly to their own speech, and for two hundred years after the Conquest, Anglo-Saxon continued to be spoken and written side by side with French. But the Saxon was obliged to learn some French words, and the Norman to learn some English, so gradually a new language grew up, a blending of the two. It had many Saxon words, but it had lost nearly all the Saxon grammatical endings; it had many French words, but these

1 Beowulf was famous, his renown spread wide, The son of Scyld, in Scandinavia land.

READING FOR CHAPTER I 7

were often altered in form or in pronunciation ; this language, made in the mouth, so to speak, was modern English. It took from the Saxon most names of common things, such as man, house, wagon, stone; from the French it took words expressing ideas which Norman civilization had introduced, such as castle, chivalry, courtesy; and many law terms, such as damage, trespass, counsel, prisoner. Often both the Saxon and the Norman name survived, as "house" and "mansion," "king" and "monarch," "room" and "apartment," "ask" and "inquire," so that the English language is particularly rich in synonyms, and has a larger vocabulary than any other language, ancient or modern. A further result of this blending of two languages was to give to English both the rugged strength of Saxon and some of the grace and polish of French. By the close of the fourteenth century the new language had been formed, it had become established as the language of the schools, of the law courts, and of the universities. It was a fit instrument for a great writer, and in Geoffrey Chaucer that writer was found.

READING FOR CHAPTER I

Beowulf has been translated by various authors. Verse translations are by J. M. Garnett (Ginn), J. L. Hall (Heath). Prose translations by C. B. Tinker (Newson), J. Earle (Clarendon Press), C. G. Child (Houghton), J. R. C. Hall (Macmillan). Selections are given in S. Brooke's Early English Literature (Macmillan).

Caedmon's Paraphrase is most accessible in S. H. Gurteen's Epic of the Fall of Man (Putnam). Extended selections are given in S. Brooke's Early English Literature (Macmillan).

Selections from Anglo-Saxon poetry are also found in Longfellow's Poets and Poetry of Europe (Houghton) and Morley's English Writers, vol. ii (Cassell).

Fuller treatment of the writers in this period may be found in B. Ten Brink's Early English Literature (Holt), S. Brooke's Early English

8 THE BEGINNING OF ENGLISH LITERATURE

Literature (Macmillan), H. Morley's English Writers, vols, i and ii (Cassell) . Garnett and Gosse's History of English Literature, vol. i (Macmillan), gives facsimiles of Anglo-Saxon manuscripts with quaint illustrations.

For changes in the language, see T. R. Lounsbury's History of the English Language (Holt) or O. F. Emerson's English Language (Macmillan).

Chapter II Chaucer And His Contemporaries

Geoffrey Chaucer John Wiclif Sir John de Mandeville

The first great writer of the Anglo-Saxon period was a poet ; the first great writer in modern English was also a poet.

Geoffrey Chaucer was born in London about 1340. His father was a wine merchant who had supplied the court, and Chaucer as a boy became a court page.

He went to France with the royal army, was captured, ransomed, returned to England, and received a new court position ; was sent to Italy and other countries on state business, married a lady of the court, was made controller of customs at the port of London, became a member of Parliament, and after a full and successful life died in London in 1400. He is remembered, however, not as the successful man of affairs but as the first great English poet. In his early life at court he learned French and became familiar with the Norman-French literature of the time. This consisted chiefly of long narrative poems telling the adventures and

GEOFFREY CHAUCER

10 CHAUCER AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES

exploits of famous heroes. Some of these poems were based upon the story of the siege of Troy, others told of Alexander the Great, others of Charlemagne and his Twelve Peers, others of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Then there were many short poems dealing with love and chivalry, some of which Chaucer imitated in his earliest writings. When he went to Italy he learned to know another of the great literatures of the world. The poetry of Dante, of Petrarch, of Boccaccio, opened a new world to him ; he read with delight, and under the influence of Italian writers he wrote a long narrative poem called Troilns and Cressida. In later life, however, he turned from French and Italian models and wrote his most original and greatest work, the Canterbury Tales. The plan of the book is as follows : a company of pilgrims set out from London to journey to the tomb of Thomas a Becket at Canterbury. The poet represents himself as meeting this company at the Tabard Inn, in Southwark, a suburb of London. The host of the Tabard is so much pleased with the company chat he offers to ride with them, and proposes that, to make the journey pleasanter, each person in the company shall tell four stories, two going and two returning, and upon their return the one who has told the best tale shall have a supper at the others' cost. This is agreed to, and the pilgrims ride forth. They are a diverse company: there is a knight, a farmer, a lawyer, a merchant, a monk, a parson, a pardoner, a student of Oxford, a miller, a weaver, a nun, a wife — twenty-nine in all, drawn from various classes of society. Each one tells a tale according to his nature. The Knight's tale is one of love and chivalry, the Prioress tells of the sufferings of one persecuted for his faith, the Miller has a coarse tale, the Parson preaches a sermon.

GEOFFREY CHAUCER II

The tales are so well told that they rank among the best in English literature.

One of the shorter tales is that of the Pardoner, or seller of indulgences. He tells us that in Flanders there was once a company of young men who were given to drinking and gambling. One day as three of them sat drinking in a tavern, a corpse was carried past. They sent to inquire, and learned that it was a former companion of theirs, who had fallen in a pestilence, in which Death had claimed many victims. In their anger they take an oath to find out Death and slay him. They go forth from the tavern and presently meet an old man whom they greet roughly and demand that he show them where Death is. He replies that he had seen him in a field near by, sitting under a tree. They hasten there, and find a great heap of money, newly coined, at which they rejoice greatly. Finally one of them suggests that if they are found with their treasure they will be taken for thieves, so he proposes that two of them shall remain there to guard it, while the third goes to the town and brings a strong sack in which they may carry away the treasure by night, also some wine to cheer them at their work. Accordingly they draw lots to see which shall go, and the youngest is sent to town. As soon as he has gone, the one who proposed the plan tells his comrade that if it could only be managed that they two could divide the whole treasure between them, they could live in mirth all their lives. The other agrees to this, and the first then unfolds his plan. When the young man returns with the wine, one of his comrades is to wrestle with him in sport, and while his arms are upraised, the other is to stab him in the side. Then they will bury his body and make off with the treasure. This is agreed upon. Meanwhile the young man had been turning over in his mind the beauty of the

12 CHAUCER AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES

coins, and wishing that he might have them all for himself. So the Evil One suggests a means of accomplishing this. When he reaches the town he buys food and drink — three bottles of wine. Then he goes to an apothecary and asks for some poison, saying he wishes to kill some rats. He puts poison into two of the bottles, keeping the third sweet for his drinking. Then he hastens back to his comrades. They stab him as they had planned, then they sit down to drink, and opening the poisoned wine, drink of it, and die in great agony. So the tale ends. The Pardoner goes on to make the application of it, saying that it was the sin of avarice that brought these men to their death, and urges his hearers not to be avaricious, but to give freely to religious men like himself.

The Canterbury Tales, besides its merits as a work of literature, is highly valuable as a picture of English life of the period. Chaucer's busy career had made him familiar with his countrymen, both of high and low degree, and in the Prologue to the Canterbury Tales, where he describes the pilgrims, he draws a series of portraits that is unmatched in English literature. We are told the stature of the pilgrims, their dress, their complexion, the very ornaments they wore; we learn of their business and how they managed it; we see the poor parson who served a widely-scattered congregation faithfully, the jolly monk who was fonder of hunting than of praying, the lawyer always full of business, "and yet he seemed busier than he was," the Oxford student in his threadbare cloak, who spent all his money for books — all of these are typical characters, and drawn with such art that they live for us to-day.

Chaucer is the great name in English poetry of the fourteenth century; the title "father of English poetry" is his

WICLIF, DE MANDEVILLE 1 3

without dispute. There were other English poets in his time but none who approached him in genius, and as the plan of this book excludes those writers who are of little or no importance to-day, it is not necessary to dwell upon other poetical productions.

In prose, the chief names in this period are Wiclif and Sir John de Mandeville. John Wiclif was a monk and a reformer. He wrote a number of pamphlets attacking the corruption that had grown up in the church, and in order that the common people might have a guide of their own in religious affairs he planned to have the Bible translated into English. Up to this time the only versions had been in Greek and Latin, which few but the priests could read. This translation was completed about 1380, Wiclif himself writing the New Testament and other scholars the Old.

The other famous prose writer of the period, Sir John de Mandeville, was really a Frenchman, but his work was early translated into English, and its great popularity in England justifies its classification among English books. This was the Voyages and Travels of Sir John de Mandeville. The author represents himself as one who has traveled in Eastern countries and seen many marvelous things. He tells us that the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel are shut up between the mountains of Scythia, and in the last day they shall be released. He says that in Africa there is a race of people who have but one foot, yet they can run very swiftly. When they are tired, they lie down and shelter themselves from the sun with their feet, which are so large that they shade the whole body. Part of this book appears to be a record of real travel, part of it is taken from other books, and a large part from the author's imagination. But the people of that day were not critical;

14 CHAUCER AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES

they were eager to hear travelers' tales, the more marvelous the better, so that the Travels was long a popular work.

READING FOR CHAPTER II

Chaucer. — From the Canterbury Tales, read the Prologue and one or more of the following : Pardoner's Tale, Man of Lawe's Tale, Clerk's Tale, Nun's Priest's Tale.

The Canterbury Tales are published in a single volume in the Globe 1 and Cambridge series. An inexpensive edition is the Astor. The chief tales, with modernized spelling, are in Everyman's Library. Selections are given in Ward's English Poets, vol. i, Chambers's Cyclopedia of English Literature, vol. i, Warner Library, and Manly's English Poetry.

Mandeville. — The Voyages and Travels are in the Library of English Classics and National Library, the latter in modernized spelling.

For fuller treatment of this period, see the references for Chap. I ; also, J. J. Jusserand's Literary History of the English People (Putnam), W. J. Courthope's History of English Poetry (Macmillan), F. J. Snell, The Age of Chaucer (Macmillan), and A. W. Ward's Chaucer in the English Men of Letters series (Macmillan).

Chapter III The Fifteenth Century

Ballad Poetry Beginnings of the Drama Malory s " Morte U Arthur "

The century after the death of Chaucer has no such great names as the preceding period. It was a time when civil war after civil war swept over the nation, and this, together with religious persecution, left the people little time to think of literature. Yet some genuine literature was produced, and preparation was made for the great revival of literature which followed in the next century. Perhaps the most important literary productions of the period were the Popular Ballads. These were short narrative poems, simple in language and in meter, which grew up, so to speak, among the people. No author's name is attached to any of them. A ballad would be composed by some unknown singer, and repeated after him by another, who would perhaps add a stanza or two, and so the song passed through change after change until the original poem may have almost disappeared. Many of these poems deal with the adventures of Robin Hood, a popular English outlaw, who with his band of merry men lay in wait in Sherwood forest. The rich merchant or abbot who fell into Robin's hands had to pay well for his release ; the poor man was often set free with a present. The ballads tell of Robin Hood's skill in archery, recalling the famous chapter in Ivanhoe, where Robin Hood appears as Locksley.

1 6 THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY

Other ballads deal with the supernatural, telling strange ghost stories ; in others the story turns upon the solution of a riddle. Of this class a good example is the ballad of King John and the Bishop. The King accuses the Bishop of treason, and says that he must forfeit his head unless he can answer three questions. First, he must tell to a penny how much the King is worth ; second, he must tell how long it would take to ride around the world; and finally, he must tell the King's thoughts. The Bishop goes home sorrowful. He meets an old shepherd, who asks why he is sad, and finally offers to go and answer the questions on the appointed day. Dressed in the Bishop's robes, he goes to the palace. The King asks how much he is worth, gold crown and all ; the shepherd replies, " Our Lord was sold for thirty pence, and you are worth twenty-nine, for you are worth a penny less than He." To the second question, how long it would take to ride around the world, the shepherd replies, " You must rise with the sun, and ride with him, and in twenty-four hours you will go round the world." Then the King asks what he is thinking at that moment; the shepherd, throwing off his hood, says, " You think I am the Bishop of Canterbury, but I am only his shepherd, come to beg pardon for him and for me." Of course the King pardons them both.