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@americanren
Anne Hutchinson is mentioned in The Scarlet Letter. She was banished from Massachusetts for preaching independently and having Antinomian beliefs (that salvation is achieved through divine grace)[1].
She represents the oppression of women and religious freedom in colonial life. A woman who spoke publicly was controversial; a woman who also put forth religious beliefs that contradicted the Puritanical dogma was unacceptable.
"New England Transcendentalism was the first intellectual movement in the history of the still new nation to achieve a lasting impact on American thought and writing. Although its heyday was brief- a decade or so between the 1830's and the mid 1840's-it cast a long shadow stretching down to the present. American literature, religion, philosophy, and social thought were all strongly influenced by the Transcendentalists" (Buell, XI).
In 1815 the congregational church broke in half. 1/2 stayed Puritan and 1/2 were called Unitarians.
"I took the little fellow in my arms when he was two weeks old, then I gave him laudanum, and I held him close to my bosom, while he slept to death" (Stowe, 311).
"I haven’t any heart to sleep, Em. I can’t. It’s the last night we may be together" (Stowe, 280).
"It did, and I tuk to drinking, to keep its crying out of my ears. I did and I will drink! I will, if I do go To torment for it" (Stowe, 185).
"No, no, Harry darling. Mother can’t eat until you are safe!" (Stowe, 44).
Her husbands suffering and dangers, and the danger if her child, with a co fused and stunning sense of the risk she was running, in leaving the only home she had ever known, and cutting loose from the protection of a friend whom she loved (Stowe,42).
His father was seldom spoken of; and by degrees his Indian appellation was silently omitted.
Hobomok
Had I been treated with moderation, perhaps I might never have been so hasty as to declare my religious opinions…But I have been spurned, goaded, trampled on, as a heretic—and worse than all, I have been doomed to hear everything blasphemed which I held most sacred.
Charles Brown, Hobomok
Benito Cereno
Benito Cereno is a novella by Herman Melville that tells the story of a slave uprising that takes place onboard the San Dominick. The tale begins with the Captain, Delano, coming across a ship in distress and offering his aid. After meeting the San Dominic’s captain, Benito Cereno, it becomes clear to the reader that there is something amiss on the ship.
Delano sees several incidents where the slaves are controlling and abusive of the white crew but Cereno does nothing to intervene. Most noticeable is the constant presence of the captain’s slave Babo, who never leaves his masters side even when Delano tries to talk to Cereno in private. While this makes Delano suspicious that something is wrong, he chooses not to act on his beliefs and continues to promise help to the captain.
It is not until Delano leaves to return to his own ship that he, and the reader, learns the truth of the story. Cereno leaps from his ship to Delano’s boat and we find out that he is no longer in control of the San Dominic.
After the revelation of the slave uprising, all of the strange events aboard the San Dominick are explained. This, combined with the reclaiming of the ship, would seem to be the end of the story; but then the reader is left to look at the treatment of the blacks in the story. While seen as inferior by Delano, indeed he never even suspects that Babo is the one in charge; they are presented as being very clever and resourceful. Babo specifically is shown to be the most intelligent character in the novel. He was not only able to organize an uprising, but then gain control of Cereno and completely fool Delano.
While the deposition at the end paints a picture of the slaves as being brutal, killing men as they slept in their beds, the reader can’t help but wonder if their actions weren’t justified. The question even emerges, whether or not Babo, might have been the secret hero of the story all along.
Ruth Hall
Ruth Hall By: Fanny Fern
Ruth Hall was Fanny Ferns quasi autobiographical story of a woman who is able to overcome her hardships to achieve the American Dream.
Ruth is faced with a problem of many women of her time when her husband dies and she is left to fend for herself. Although Ruth is an intelligent and hardworking woman, she is shown again and again that there are few options open for women to earn money. Ruth has several wealthy family members that could easily make her life better but they consistently deny her.
This brings up the consistent theme of the need for women to have independence. While Ruth is dependent on others, her life is in constant jeopardy. There is the constant threat that she and her daughters will starve. It is not until she completely abandons the hope of help, by going out and trying to get her work published without the help of her brother, is she able to succeed.
Abolitionist Literature
In one of the abolitionist sections, The Liberty Cap, Eliza Lee Follen addresses the issue many slaves have thought over the years: How can these whites pretend to be good Christians when they have slaves? They believe that slavery is their right and that these people have been marked on their skin to identify them as slaves. She wonders what makes them different enough, besides their skin color, to deserve such treatment, especially from those who attend church every Sunday and listen to lectures about how to treat others. It apparently only counts if the person is white. Race disqualifies them from equal treatment and opportunity. They are not considered a man or a brother, and although they ask for the mercy of God, they are not rewarded and are forced to remain in slavery. Some of the popular phrases such as "love thy neighbor" are criticized, since this is not what the Christians are representing. Still, they want good Christian slaves, and are willing to pay more for them. This was a terrifying time, especially for children, who were separated from their families because some 'Christians' thought humans could be purchased. She examines how people did not think they were sinning or committing any crime by keeping slaves, but still pretended to be a follower of God.
Abolitionist literature is a bit like Transcendentalist literature. Both challenge the stereotypical American way of thinking and try to shine light on the prejudices Americans bestowed on other races. Additionally noted in the abolitionist literature, these people were pretending to be good Christians because they genuinely believed they were good Christians. Since they felt entitled to slaves, and that black people were creating for their service, there was no guilt in treating another human the way they did. Both types of literature were a breath of fresh air during the time period, and tried to rectify the harm against minorities by encouraging a new way of thinking and questioning the morals of those who chose to ignore true goodness and acceptance. If there had been more writers like the Abolitionists, perhaps more people would have reexamined their beliefs and treated others with more respect.
Iola Leroy
Iola Leroy by Frances Harper is a book that deals heavily with racial perception and how other people can influence how you see yourself. The story is about a young girl who is born free and raised as a white girl in Mississippi, but is discovered to actually be of mixed race and is kidnapped and sold into slavery. Throughout the book, Iola Leroy must struggle with her own self-identity, as well as struggle against those who try to take advantage of her (sometimes sexually) due to her “racial status” as a mulatto. Much of the interpersonal conflict in Iola Leroy is typical of the “tragic mulatto” genre of American literature, where the protagonist is discovered to be of mixed race and is no longer accepted into “polite” white society.
As this book shows, race cannot actually be as simple as “black and white.” Race is about perception- how others see you, and also how you choose to see yourself, affects who you are. During the mid-1800’s in American history, a person could appear white but have some black heritage. If they could pass for being a white person, they could hide the secret of their heritage and still live in white society. They lived with their secret. However, he or she might choose to identify as black or suffer the stigma of being found out to be partially black. Interracial relationships (referred to as “miscegenation”) were scandalous but common, and the children of these relationships, “mulattos,” truly understood how complicated the concept of race in America was. Mulattos found themselves on the border, stuck between two worlds yet unable to truly belong to either.
In the book, Iola and Dr. Latimer choose to pass as black. Though they are faced with persecution and hardship, they believe in working for the rights of blacks rather than passing as white, where they could enjoy privilege and avoid discrimination. They choose to face the world as they are and not have to lie about their heritage. Iola Leroy is a book that inspires people not to hide who they are, even in the face of hardship. This relates to the Transcendentalists and the abolitionists who put their privilege at risk by speaking out against oppression. They don’t hide who they are… because they shouldn’t have to. America seems to have undergone major changes only due to the courage of such people.
Iola Leroy, much like Uncle Tom’s Cabin, also has a Christian element. While many hypocritically used Christianity to justify slavery and other forms of oppression, blacks and abolitionists found hope through Christianity that salvation would be found. It also helped to unify the oppressed. Uncle Tom’s Cabin served as a stepping-stone to lead the country out of slavery. Iola Leroy showed that work still needed to be done and that civil rights could only come out of a society where race was no longer an issue.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chF5Jl_EZQk
http://www.traileraddict.com/clip/x-men-2/because-we-shouldnt-have-to
Joaquin Murieta
Unlike some of the other stories read this semester, The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta be John Rollins Ridge was written as a piece of popular fiction, a “dime novel” designed to attract readers with sensationalized action and violence. The story itself deals with the actual historical figure of Joaquin Murieta, described by Ridge as an ordinary man pushed to take revenge after becoming a victim of violence. In the book’s opening, Murieta has his wife raped, his brother killed, and he himself is tied down and beaten. These tragedies push Joaquin to take revenge, as he forms a gang and hunts down those who murdered his family members. Murieta’s actions eventually rise in scale and notoriety, and he becomes a folk figure in the American southwest.
His actions certainly set Murieta up as a criminal. He kills, he steals, and throughout the story he and his band live and die as banditti wandering across the countryside. However, there are elements of Joaquin Murieta’s character can be seen as traits of a romantic folk hero. Murieta is shown to treat women gently. When he needs to cross a river, he pays the ferryman for his help. He hides his identity to walk about in the daylight unsuspected. And Murieta’s actions stem from the desire to avenge his murdered loved ones. He is not a villain per se, but falls more in the category of a vigilante. He would be an inspiration for future generations of vigilante characters that had to take the law into their own hands.
In fact, perhaps the most important aspect of Ridge’s The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta is how it (and other dime novels of the time) led the way for the popularity of pulp fiction. Cheap and easy to produce, pulp magazines were full of sensationalized action and stylized characters. Figures like The Shadow, Batman, and especially Zorro owe their creation to the character of Joaquin Murieta. The hero is a victim of tragedy that it left unresolved. They take it upon themselves to seek revenge and justice, operating in disguise or in the shadows. Often, the hero dons a mask to conceal his identity. And, over time, the legend of the character grows through sensational exploits. All are traits that have evolved from stories like The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murietta.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=OCyYLymJxgc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=9J6J5BcHFCs