The American Dream: Pursuit of a Promise John Leggett and ...

World War I (1914–1918), the so-called Great War, was an

event that changed the American voice in fiction. The country

appeared to have lost its innocence. Idealism had turned to cyni-

cism for many Americans, who began to question the authority

and tradition that was thought to be our bedrock. American

writers, like their European counterparts, were also deeply influ-

enced by the modernist movement. This movement in literature,

painting, music, and the other arts called for bold experimenta-

tion and a complete rejection of traditional themes and styles.

The American Dream: Pursuit of a Promise

The devastation of World War I and the economic crash of the

Great Depression a decade later caused Americans to reexamine

their ideals. Among the ideals that people began to question

were three assumptions that, taken together, we have come to

call the American dream.

■ America as a New Eden

The first element of the American dream is admiration for

America as a new Eden: a land of beauty, bounty, and unlimited

promise. Both the promise and the disappointment of this idea

are reflected in one of the greatest American novels,

The Great Gatsby (1925) by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

John Leggett and John Malcolm Brinnin

The following essay provides highlights of the historical period. For a more

detailed version of this essay, see Elements of Literature, pages 636-643.

The Moderns 199

Re-read lines 1-9. Underlinewhat the modernist move-ment called for.

Pause at line 15. Why do youthink World War I and theGreat Depression ledAmericans to examine theirideals?

10

20

Mark Riedy.

Literary SkillsEvaluate the

philosophical,political,

religious,ethical, and

social issues of ahistorical period.

Cop

yrig

ht ©

by

Hol

t,R

ineh

art

and

Win

ston

.A

ll ri

ghts

res

erve

d.

HRW_HRS-SE_11-reprint.DIG 12/8/05 6:55 AM 99

■ A Belief in Progress

The second element is optimism, justified by the ever-expanding

opportunity many people had come to expect. Americans had

come to believe in progress—that life will keep getting better

and that wealth, justice, and joy are just around the corner.

■ Triumph of the Individual

The final element in the American dream is the importance and

ultimate triumph of the individual—the independent, self-

reliant person. This ideal was championed by Ralph Waldo

Emerson (page 76), who probably deserves most of the credit

for defining the essence of the American dream, including its

roots in the promise of the “new Eden” and its faith that “things

are getting better all the time.”

A Crack in the World: Breakdown of Beliefs and Traditions

In the postwar period, long-held beliefs and traditions began to

be tested. Postwar writers became skeptical of the New England

Puritan tradition and the gentility that had been central to the

literary ideal. In fact, the center of American literary life now

finally started to shift away from New England, which had been

the native region of America’s most brilliant writers during the

Cop

yrig

ht ©

by

Hol

t,R

ineh

art

and

Win

ston

.A

ll ri

ghts

res

erve

d.

200 Collection 5: The ModernsPart 1

30

40

Re-read lines 10-34.Underline the three elementsof the American dream. Doyou think these elements arestill part of the Americandream today?

nineteenth century. Many modernist writers, in fact, were born

in the South, the Midwest, or the West.

In the postwar period, two new intellectual theories or

movements combined to influence previous beliefs and values:

Marxism and psychoanalysis.

Marxism and the Challenge to FreeEnterprise

In Russia during World War I, a Marxist revolution had toppled

and even murdered an anointed ruler, the czar. The socialistic

beliefs of Karl Marx (1818–1883) that had powered the Russian

Revolution in 1917 conflicted with the American system of capi-

talism and free enterprise, and Marxists threatened to export

their revolution everywhere. Some Americans, however, believed

that certain elements of Marxism would provide much-needed

rights to workers. After visiting Russia, the American writer

Lincoln Steffens reported, “I have seen the future and it works.”

Freud and the Unconscious Mind

In Vienna, there was another ground-shaking movement.

Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), the founder of psychoanalysis, had

Cop

yrig

ht ©

by

Hol

t,R

ineh

art

and

Win

ston

.A

ll ri

ghts

res

erve

d.

The Moderns 201

50

60

Village Speakeasy,Closed forViolation (c. 1934)by Ben Shahn.Tempera onmasonite (163⁄8″ × 477⁄8″).Museum of the City ofNew York. PermanentDeposit of the Public ArtProject through theWhitney Museum. © Estate of BenShahn/Licensed by VAGA, New York.

Re-read lines 45-47. Locateand circle the names of twonew theories or movementsthat sprang up followingWorld War I.

Re-read lines 50-58. Whatdid Americans regard as onepositive element of Marxism?

NotesNotes

opened the workings of the unconscious mind to

examination. He also called for a new understand-

ing of human sexuality and the role it plays in our

unconscious thoughts. Throughout America,

there was a growing interest in this new field of

psychology and a resulting concern about the

amount of freedom an individual had if our

actions were indeed influenced by an uncontrol-

lable subconscious.

One literary result of this interest in the psyche was the

narrative technique called stream of consciousness. This writ-

ing style abandoned chronology and attempted to imitate the

moment-by-moment flow of a character’s perceptions and

memories. American writers William Faulkner (page 217)

and Katherine Anne Porter (page 233) used the stream-of-

consciousness technique in their works.

At Home and Abroad: The Jazz Age

In 1919, the U.S. Constitution was amended to prohibit the

manufacture and sale of alcohol, which was considered a social

evil. Far from inspiring traditional values, however, Prohibition

ushered in an age characterized by the bootlegger, the speak-

easy, the short-skirted flapper, the new rhythms of jazz, and the

gangster. The writer F. Scott Fitzgerald gave this era its name:

the Jazz Age.

During the Jazz Age, women too played a prominent role.

In 1920, women won the right to vote, and they began to create

a presence in artistic, intellectual, and social circles. As energetic

as this era was in America, many American artists and writers—

F. Scott Fitzgerald among them—abandoned their own shores

for life in France. The wave of Americans living abroad was

another signal that something had gone wrong with the

American dream—with the idea that America was Eden, with

our belief in progress, and especially with the conviction that

America was a land of heroes.

Cop

yrig

ht ©

by

Hol

t,R

ineh

art

and

Win

ston

.A

ll ri

ghts

res

erve

d.


70

80

90

What effect did the interestin psychology have on narra-tive techniques (lines 71-77)?

Pause at line 85. Do youthink Prohibition accom-plished what its supportershad hoped? Explain.

In lines 86-95, circle theimportant right women finally won. Underline wheresome writers chose to live.

Sigmund Freud. © Bettmann/CORBIS.

Mark Riedy.

Cop

yrig

ht ©

by

Hol

t,R

ineh

art

and

Win

ston

.A

ll ri

ghts

res

erve

d.

Grace Under Pressure: The New American Hero

The most influential of all the post–World War I writers was

Ernest Hemingway. Hemingway is probably most famous for his

literary style, which influenced generations of writers. Like the

Puritans who strove for a plain style centuries earlier,

Hemingway reduced the fanciness of literary language to the

bare bones of the truth it must express.

Hemingway also introduced a new kind of hero to

American fiction. The Hemingway hero is a man of action, a

warrior, and a tough competitor; he has a code of honor,

courage, and endurance. He shows, in Hemingway’s own words,

“grace under pressure.” But above all else, the Hemingway hero

is thoroughly disillusioned with the emptiness he finds at the

mysterious center of creation. Hemingway found his own

answer to this crisis of faith with a belief in decency, bravery,

and skillfulness, in spite of what he saw as the absolutely unbeat-

able odds waged against us all. A further part of this code is the

importance of recognizing and snatching up the rare, good

moments that life has to offer.

Modern Voices in Poetry: A Dazzling Period of Experimentation

By the 1920s, the last traces of British influence on American

poetry were washed away, and American poets entered into their

most dazzling period of experimentation. Artists and poets

sought new ways of seeing and thinking. Many poets began to

explore the artistic life of Europe, especially Paris, and they

sought to create poems that invited new ways of seeing and

thinking. Ezra Pound (page 205) and T. S. Eliot (page 209) used

the suggestive techniques of symbolism to fashion a new, mod-

ernist poetry. Pound also was at the head of a related poetic

movement called imagism. The imagist and symbolist styles

would prevail in poetry until the mid-twentieth century.

Cop

yrig

ht ©

by

Hol

t,R

ineh

art

and

Win

ston

.A

ll ri

ghts

res

erve

d.

The Moderns 203

Pause at line 126. Circle thenames of the poets whoexperimented with the stylecalled symbolism.

Re-read lines 104-115. Namethree characteristics of theHemingway hero.

100

110

120

/

Cop

yrig

ht ©

by

Hol

t,R

ineh

art

and

Win

ston

.A

ll ri

ghts

res

erve

d.

Voices of American Character

Meanwhile other American poets rejected modernist trends.

These poets stayed at home and said what they had to say in

plain American speech. Their individual accents reveal the

regional diversity of American life and character. Of these poets

the greatest was Robert Frost (page 249). Frost’s poems were

written in ordinary New England speech. He had a gift for tak-

ing the most conventional poetic forms and giving them a twist

all his own. Frost’s ability to bring his own personality to verse

resulted in a poetic voice that was unique and impossible to

imitate.

The Harlem Renaissance: Voices of theAfrican American Experience

In the early 1920s, a group of black poets focused directly on the

unique contributions of African American culture to America.

Their poetry based its rhythms on spirituals and jazz, its lyrics

on songs known as the blues, and its diction on the street talk of

the ghettos. African American lyric poets, especially Langston

Hughes (page 259), brought literary distinction to the broad

movement of artists known as the Harlem Renaissance. When

African American poetry, along with music, became part of the

Jazz Age, it helped usher in a new appreciation of the role of

black talent in American culture.

The American Dream Revisited

The writers of the modernist era—some of the best that

America has produced—experimented boldly with forms and

subject matter. But they were still trying to find the answers to

basic human questions: Who are we? Where are we going? What

values should guide us on the search for our human identity? Cop

yrig

ht ©

by

Hol

t,R

ineh

art

and

Win

ston

.A

ll ri

ghts

res

erve

d.


130

140

150

Re-read lines 142-151. Howdid African American poetryduring the HarlemRenaissance influenceAmerican culture?

Re-read lines 152-157. Whatstill seems “modern” aboutModernism?

Pause at line 139. How wasRobert Frost’s poetry differ-ent from Eliot’s and Pound’spoetry?

Student Pages with Answers 101

Wor

ld W

ar I

(19

14–

1918

),th

e so

-cal

led

Gre

at W

ar,w

as a

n

even

t th

at c

han

ged

the

Am

eric

an v

oice

in f

icti

on.T

he c

oun

try

appe

ared

to

have

lost

its

inn

ocen

ce.I

deal

ism

had

tu

rned

to

cyn

i-

cism

for

man

y A

mer

ican

s,w

ho b

egan

to

ques

tion

the

au

thor

ity

and

trad

itio

n t

hat

was

tho

ugh

t to

be

our

bedr

ock.

Am

eric

an

wri

ters

,lik

e th

eir

Euro

pean

cou

nte

rpar

ts,w

ere

also

dee

ply

infl

u-

ence

d by

the

mod

ern

ist m

ovem

ent.

Thi

s m

ovem

ent

in li

tera

ture

,

pain

tin

g,m

usi

c,an

d th

e ot

her

arts

cal

led

for

bold

exp

erim

enta

-

tion

an

d a

com

plet

e re

ject

ion

of

trad

itio

nal

the

mes

an

d st

yles

.

The

Am

eric

an D

ream

: Pu

rsu

it o

f a

Pro

mis

e

Th

e de

vast

atio

n o

fW

orld

War

I a

nd

the

econ

omic

cra

sh o

fth

e

Gre

at D

epre

ssio

n a

dec

ade

late

r ca

use

d A

mer

ican

s to

ree

xam

ine

thei

r id

eals

.Am

ong

the

idea

ls t

hat

peo

ple

bega

n t

o qu

esti

on

wer

e th

ree

assu

mpt

ion

s th

at,t

aken

tog

eth

er,w

e h

ave

com

e to

call

the

Am

eric

an d

ream

.

�A

mer

ica

as a

New

Ed

en

Th

e fi

rst

elem

ent

ofth

e A

mer

ican

dre

am is

adm

irat

ion

for

Am

eric

a as

a n

ew E

den

:a la

nd

ofbe

auty

,bou

nty

,an

d u

nlim

ited

prom

ise.

Bot

h t

he

prom

ise

and

the

disa

ppoi

ntm

ent

ofth

is id

ea

are

refl

ecte

d in

on

e of

the

grea

test

Am

eric

an n

ovel

s,

The

Gre

at G

atsb

y(1

925)

by

F.Sc

ott

Fitz

gera

ld.

Joh

n L

egg

ett

and

Jo

hn

Mal

colm

Bri

nn

in

The

follo

win

g e

ssay

pro

vid

es h

igh

ligh

ts o

f th

e h

isto

rica

l per

iod

. Fo

r a

mo

re

det

aile

d v

ersi

on

of

this

ess

ay, s

ee E

lem

ents

of

Lite

ratu

re,p

ages

636-

643. Th

e M

od

ern

s

199

Re-

read

lin

es 1-

9. U

nd

erlin

ew

hat

th

e m

od

ern

ist

mo

ve-

men

t ca

lled

fo

r.

Pau

se a

t lin

e 15

. Wh

y d

o y

ou

thin

k W

orl

d W

ar I

and

th

eG

reat

Dep

ress

ion

led

Am

eric

ans

to e

xam

ine

thei

rid

eals

?

10 20

Mar

k R

ied

y.

Lit

era

ry S

kills

Eval

uate

the

philo

soph

ical

,po

litic

al,

relig

ious

,et

hica

l, an

dso

cial

issu

es o

f a

hist

oric

al p

erio

d.

Copyright © by Holt,Rinehart and Winston.All rights reserved.

Poss

ible

res

po

nse

:

Thes

e d

evas

tati

ng

even

ts, w

hic

h c

ause

d

har

m t

o m

any,

man

y

peo

ple

, may

hav

e

dis

illu

sio

ned

th

ose

wh

o li

ved

th

rou

gh

them

.


Wel

com

e to

Ou

r C

ity

(192

1) b

y C

har

les

Hen

ry D

emu

th.

Oil

on

can

vas

(251

⁄8″×

201⁄8″

).Te

rra

Fou

nd

atio

n f

or

the

Art

s, D

anie

l J. T

erra

Co

llect

ion

.

Collection 5Student pages 198–199

102 The Holt Reader: Teacher’s Manual

nin

etee

nth

cen

tury

.Man

y m

oder

nis

t w

rite

rs,i

n f

act,

wer

e bo

rn

in t

he

Sou

th,t

he

Mid

wes

t,or

th

e W

est.

In t

he

post

war

per

iod,

two

new

inte

llect

ual

th

eori

es o

r

mov

emen

ts c

ombi

ned

to

infl

uen

ce p

revi

ous

belie

fs a

nd

valu

es:

Mar

xism

an

d p

sych

oan

alys

is.

Mar

xism

an

d t

he

Ch

alle

ng

e to

Fre

eEn

terp

rise

In R

uss

ia d

uri

ng

Wor

ld W

ar I

,a M

arxi

st r

evol

uti

on h

ad t

oppl

ed

and

even

mu

rder

ed a

n a

noi

nte

d ru

ler,

the

czar

.Th

e so

cial

isti

c

belie

fs o

fK

arl M

arx

(181

8–18

83)

that

had

pow

ered

th

e R

uss

ian

Rev

olu

tion

in 1

917

con

flic

ted

wit

h t

he

Am

eric

an s

yste

m o

fca

pi-

talis

m a

nd

free

en

terp

rise

,an

d M

arxi

sts

thre

aten

ed t

o ex

port

thei

r re

volu

tion

eve

ryw

her

e.So

me

Am

eric

ans,

how

ever

,bel

ieve

d

that

cer

tain

ele

men

ts o

fM

arxi

sm w

ould

pro

vide

mu

ch-n

eede

d

righ

ts t

o w

orke

rs.A

fter

vis

itin

g R

uss

ia,t

he

Am

eric

an w

rite

r

Lin

coln

Ste

ffen

s re

port

ed,“

I h

ave

seen

th

e fu

ture

an

d it

wor

ks.”

Freu

d a

nd

th

e U

nco

nsc

iou

s M

ind

In V

ien

na,

ther

e w

as a

not

her

gro

un

d-sh

akin

g m

ovem

ent.

Sigm

un

d Fr

eud

(185

6–19

39),

the

fou

nde

r of

psyc

hoan

alys

is,h

ad


The

Mo

der

ns

2

01

50 60

Vill

age

Spea

keas

y,C

lose

d f

or

Vio

lati

on

(c. 1

934)

by

Ben

Sh

ahn

.Te

mp

era

on

mas

on

ite

(163

⁄8″×

477⁄8″

).M

use

um

of

the

Cit

y o

fN

ew Y

ork

. Per

man

ent

Dep

osi

t o

f th

e Pu

blic

Art

Pro

ject

th

rou

gh

th

eW

hit

ney

Mu

seu

m.

© E

stat

e o

f B

enSh

ahn

/Lic

ense

d

by

VA

GA

, New

Yo

rk.

Re-

read

lin

es 4

5-47

. Lo

cate

and

cir

cle

the

nam

es o

f tw

on

ew t

heo

ries

or

mo

vem

ents

that

sp

ran

g u

p f

ollo

win

gW

orl

d W

ar I.

Re-

read

lin

es 5

0-58

. Wh

atd

id A

mer

ican

s re

gar

d a

s o

ne

po

siti

ve e

lem

ent

of

Mar

xism

?

Notes

Notes

They

fel

t it

wo

uld

pro

vid

e m

uch

-nee

ded

rig

hts

to

wo

rker

s.

■A

Bel

ief

in P

rog

ress

Th

e se

con

d el

emen

t is

opt

imis

m,j

ust

ifie

d by

th

e ev

er-e

xpan

din

g

oppo

rtu

nit

y m

any

peo

ple

had

com

e to

exp

ect.

Am

eric

ans

had

com

e to

bel

ieve

in p

rogr

ess—

that

life

will

kee

p ge

ttin

g be

tter

and

that

wea

lth

,ju

stic

e,an

d jo

y ar

e ju

st a

rou

nd

the

corn

er.

■Tr

ium

ph

of

the

Ind

ivid

ual

Th

e fi

nal

ele

men

t in

th

e A

mer

ican

dre

am is

th

e im

port

ance

an

d

ult

imat

e tr

ium

ph o

fth

e in

divi

dual—

the

inde

pen

den

t,se

lf-

relia

nt

pers

on.T

his

idea

l was

ch

ampi

oned

by

Ral

ph W

aldo

Em

erso

n (

page

76)

,wh

o pr

obab

ly d

eser

ves

mos

t of

the

cred

it

for

defi

nin

g th

e es

sen

ce o

fth

e A

mer

ican

dre

am,i

ncl

udi

ng

its

root

s in

th

e pr

omis

e of

the

“new

Ede

n”an

d it

s fa

ith

th

at “

thin

gs

are

gett

ing

bett

er a

ll th

e ti

me.

”

A C

rack

in t

he

Wo

rld

: B

reak

do

wn

of

Bel

iefs

an

d T

rad

itio

ns

In t

he

post

war

per

iod,

lon

g-h

eld

belie

fs a

nd

trad

itio

ns

bega

n t

o

be t

este

d.Po

stw

ar w

rite

rs b

ecam

e sk

epti

cal o

fth

e N

ew E

ngl

and

Pu

rita

n t

radi

tion

an

d th

e ge

nti

lity

that

had

bee

n c

entr

al t

o th

e

liter

ary

idea

l.In

fac

t,th

e ce

nte

r of

Am

eric

an li

tera

ry li

fe n

ow

fin

ally

sta

rted

to

shif

t aw

ay f

rom

New

En

glan

d,w

hic

h h

ad b

een

the

nat

ive

regi

on o

fA

mer

ica’

s m

ost

brill

ian

t w

rite

rs d

uri

ng

the


200

Co

llect

ion

5:

The

Mo

der

ns

Part

1

30 40

Re-

read

lin

es 1

0-34

.U

nd

erlin

e th

e th

ree

elem

ents

of

the

Am

eric

an d

ream

. Do

you

th

ink

thes

e el

emen

ts a

rest

ill p

art

of

the

Am

eric

and

ream

to

day

?

An

swer

s w

ill v

ary.

Som

e st

ud

ents

may

say

that

th

e la

nd

is t

oo

po

llute

d a

nd

bu

ilt

up

on

to

be

an E

den

.

War

s, t

erro

rism

, an

d

eco

no

mic

do

wn

turn

s

may

hav

e d

amp

ened

peo

ple

’s o

pti

mis

m.

Stu

den

ts m

ay,

ho

wev

er, c

on

sid

er t

hat

the

imp

ort

ance

of

the

ind

ivid

ual

is s

till

par

t

of

the

Am

eric

an

dre

am.


Student Pages with Answers 103

Gra

ce U

nd

er P

ress

ure

: Th

e N

ew A

mer

ican

Her

o

Th

e m

ost

infl

uen

tial

of

all t

he

post–

Wor

ld W

ar I

wri

ters

was

Ern

est

Hem

ingw

ay.H

emin

gway

is p

roba

bly

mos

t fa

mou

s fo

r h

is

liter

ary

styl

e,w

hic

h in

flu

ence

d ge

ner

atio

ns

ofw

rite

rs.L

ike

the

Pu

rita

ns

wh

o st

rove

for

a p

lain

sty

le c

entu

ries

ear

lier,

Hem

ingw

ay r

edu

ced

the

fan

cin

ess

oflit

erar

y la

ngu

age

to t

he

bare

bon

es o

fth

e tr

uth

it m

ust

exp

ress

.

Hem

ingw

ay a

lso

intr

odu

ced

a n

ew k

ind

ofh

ero

to

Am

eric

an f

icti

on.T

he

Hem

ingw

ay h

ero

is a

man

of

acti

on,a

war

rior

,an

d a

tou

gh c

ompe

tito

r;h

e h

as a

cod

e of

hon

or,

cou

rage

,an

d en

dura

nce

.He

show

s,in

Hem

ingw

ay’s

ow

n w

ords

,

“gra

ce u

nde

r pr

essu

re.”

Bu

t ab

ove

all e

lse,

the

Hem

ingw

ay h

ero

is t

hor

ough

ly d

isill

usi

oned

wit

h t

he

empt

ines

s h

e fi

nds

at

the

mys

teri

ous

cen

ter

ofcr

eati

on.H

emin

gway

fou

nd

his

ow

n

answ

er t

o th

is c

risi

s of

fait

h w

ith

a b

elie

fin

dec

ency

,bra

very

,

and

skill

fuln

ess,

in s

pite

of

wh

at h

e sa

w a

s th

e ab

solu

tely

un

beat

-

able

odd

s w

aged

aga

inst

us

all.

A f

urt

her

par

t of

this

cod

e is

th

e

impo

rtan

ce o

fre

cogn

izin

g an

d sn

atch

ing

up

the

rare

,goo

d

mom

ents

th

at li

fe h

as t

o of

fer.

Mo

der

n V

oic

es in

Po

etry

: A

Daz

zlin

g P

erio

d o

f Ex

per

imen

tati

on

By

the

1920

s,th

e la

st t

race

s of

Bri

tish

infl

uen

ce o

n A

mer

ican

poet

ry w

ere

was

hed

aw

ay,a

nd

Am

eric

an p

oets

en

tere

d in

to t

hei

r

mos

t da

zzlin

g pe

riod

of

expe

rim

enta

tion

.Art

ists

an

d po

ets

sou

ght

new

way

s of

seei

ng

and

thin

kin

g.M

any

poet

s be

gan

to

expl

ore

the

arti

stic

life

of

Eu

rope

,esp

ecia

lly P

aris

,an

d th

ey

sou

ght

to c

reat

e po

ems

that

invi

ted

new

way

s of

seei

ng

and

thin

kin

g.E

zra

Pou

nd

(pag

e 20

5) a

nd

T.S.

Elio

t (p

age

209)

use

d

the

sugg

esti

ve t

ech

niq

ues

of

sym

bol

ism

to f

ash

ion

a n

ew,m

od-

ern

ist

poet

ry.P

oun

d al

so w

as a

t th

e h

ead

ofa

rela

ted

poet

ic

mov

emen

t ca

lled

imag

ism

.Th

e im

agis

t an

d sy

mbo

list

styl

es

wou

ld p

reva

il in

poe

try

un

til t

he

mid

-tw

enti

eth

cen

tury

.


The

Mo

der

ns

2

03

Pau

se a

t lin

e 12

6. C

ircl

e th

en

ames

of

the

po

ets

wh

oex

per

imen

ted

wit

h t

he

styl

eca

lled

sym

bo

lism

.

Re-

read

lin

es 1

04-

115.

Nam

eth

ree

char

acte

rist

ics

of

the

Hem

ing

way

her

o.

Poss

ible

res

po

nse

: Th

e

Hem

ing

way

her

o is

a

man

of

acti

on

wh

o h

as

a co

de

of

ho

no

r an

d

dem

on

stra

tes

gra

ce

un

der

pre

ssu

re.

100

110

120


open

ed t

he

wor

kin

gs o

fth

e u

nco

nsc

iou

s m

ind

to

exam

inat

ion

.He

also

cal

led

for

a n

ew u

nde

rsta

nd-

ing

ofhu

man

sex

ual

ity

and

the

role

it p

lays

in o

ur

un

con

scio

us

thou

ghts

.Th

rou

ghou

t A

mer

ica,

ther

e w

as a

gro

win

g in

tere

st in

th

is n

ew f

ield

of

psyc

hol

ogy

and

a re

sult

ing

con

cern

abo

ut

the

amou

nt

offr

eedo

m a

n in

divi

dual

had

ifou

r

acti

ons

wer

e in

deed

infl

uen

ced

by a

n u

nco

ntr

ol-

labl

e su

bcon

scio

us.

On

e lit

erar

y re

sult

of

this

inte

rest

in t

he

psyc

he

was

th

e

nar

rati

ve t

ech

niq

ue

calle

d st

ream

ofco

nsc

iou

snes

s.T

his

wri

t-

ing

styl

e ab

ando

ned

ch

ron

olog

y an

d at

tem

pted

to

imit

ate

the

mom

ent-

by-m

omen

t fl

ow o

fa

char

acte

r’s

perc

epti

ons

and

mem

orie

s.A

mer

ican

wri

ters

Will

iam

Fau

lkn

er (

page

217

)

and

Kat

her

ine

An

ne

Port

er (

page

233

) u

sed

the

stre

am-o

f-

con

scio

usn

ess

tech

niq

ue

in t

hei

r w

orks

.

At

Ho

me

and

Ab

road

: Th

e Ja

zz A

ge

In 1

919,

the

U.S

.Con

stit

uti

on w

as a

men

ded

to p

roh

ibit

th

e

man

ufa

ctu

re a

nd

sale

of

alco

hol

,wh

ich

was

con

side

red

a so

cial

evil.

Far

from

insp

irin

g tr

adit

ion

al v

alu

es,h

owev

er,P

roh

ibit

ion

ush

ered

in a

n a

ge c

har

acte

rize

d by

th

e bo

otle

gger

,th

e sp

eak-

easy

,th

e sh

ort-

skir

ted

flap

per,

the

new

rhy

thm

s of

jazz

,an

d th

e

gan

gste

r.T

he

wri

ter

F.Sc

ott

Fitz

gera

ld g

ave

this

era

its

nam

e:

the

Jazz

Age

.

Du

rin

g th

e Ja

zz A

ge,w

omen

too

pla

yed

a pr

omin

ent

role

.

In 1

920,

wom

en w

on t

he

righ

t to

vot

e,an

d th

ey b

egan

to

crea

te

a pr

esen

ce in

art

isti

c,in

telle

ctu

al,a

nd

soci

al c

ircl

es.A

s en

erge

tic

as t

his

era

was

in A

mer

ica,

man

y A

mer

ican

art

ists

an

d w

rite

rs—

F.Sc

ott

Fitz

gera

ld a

mon

g th

em—

aban

don

ed t

hei

r ow

n s

hor

es

for

life

in F

ran

ce.T

he

wav

e of

Am

eric

ans

livin

g ab

road

was

anot

her

sig

nal

th

at s

omet

hin

g h

ad g

one

wro

ng

wit

h t

he

Am

eric

an d

ream—

wit

h t

he

idea

th

at A

mer

ica

was

Ede

n,w

ith

our

belie

fin

pro

gres

s,an

d es

peci

ally

wit

h t

he

conv

icti

on t

hat

Am

eric

a w

as a

lan

d of

her

oes.


202

Co

llect

ion

5:

The

Mo

der

ns

Part

1

70 80 90

Wh

at e

ffec

t d

id t

he

inte

rest

in p

sych

olo

gy

hav

e o

n n

arra

-ti

ve t

ech

niq

ues

(lin

es 7

1-77

)?

The

inte

rest

in

psy

cho

log

y le

d t

o t

he

stre

am-o

f-

con

scio

usn

ess

tech

niq

ue.

Pau

se a

t lin

e 85

. Do

yo

uth

ink

Pro

hib

itio

n a

cco

m-

plis

hed

wh

at it

s su

pp

ort

ers

had

ho

ped

? Ex

pla

in.

Mo

st s

tud

ents

will

rec

-

og

niz

e th

at P

roh

ibit

ion

did

no

t le

ad t

o a

mo

re

mo

ral o

r so

ber

so

ciet

y.

In li

nes

86-

95, c

ircl

e th

eim

po

rtan

t ri

gh

t w

om

en

fin

ally

wo

n. U

nd

erlin

e w

her

eso

me

wri

ters

ch

ose

to

live

.

Sig

mu

nd

Fre

ud

.© B

ettm

ann

/C

OR

BIS

. Mar

k R

ied

y.



104 The Holt Reader: Teacher’s Manual

The

Riv

er-M

erch

ant’s

Wif

e: A

Let

ter

2

05


The

Rive

r-M

erch

ant’s

Wif

e:

A Le

tter

by

Ezra

Pou

nd

Lit

era

ry S

kills

Und

erst

and

the

use

of im

ager

y.

Readin

gSkills

Para

phra

se t

ocl

arif

y di

ffic

ult

pass

ages

of

ate

xt.

Revie

w S

kills

Und

erst

and

sym

bolis

m.

REV

IEW

SK

ILLS

LITE

RARY

FO

CUS:

IM

AGER

YW

hic

h o

f th

e fo

llow

ing

sen

ten

ces

hel

ps

you

vis

ual

ize

the

scen

e: “

We

hu

d-

dle

d a

rou

nd

th

e ca

mp

fire

, wh

ich

his

sed

an

d c

rack

led

in t

he

cris

p n

igh

t ai

r”

or

“We

sat

in f

ron

t o

f th

e ca

mp

fire

at

nig

ht”

? Th

e fi

rst

sen

ten

ce u

ses

imag

ery

to c

reat

e a

vivi

d p

ictu

re o

f th

e ca

mp

fire

sce

ne.

Imag

ery

is la

ng

uag

e

that

cre

ates

viv

id s

enso

ry im

pre

ssio

ns

and

su

gg

ests

em

oti

on

al s

tate

s. M

ost

imag

es a

pp

eal t

o o

ur

sen

se o

f si

gh

t. H

ow

ever

, im

ages

may

als

o a

pp

eal t

o

ou

r se

nse

s o

f ta

ste,

sm

ell,

hea

rin

g, a

nd

to

uch

. Im

ager

y ca

n a

lso

su

gg

est

emo

tio

nal

sta

tes,

su

ch a

s h

app

ines

s, s

adn

ess,

or

ang

er.

Ezra

Po

un

d b

ased

“Th

e R

iver

-Mer

chan

t’s

Wif

e: A

Let

ter”

on

a p

oem

by

Li P

o

(701-

762)

, in

tri

bu

te t

o t

he

gre

at C

hin

ese

po

et. A

s yo

u r

ead

th

e p

oem

,

no

tice

ho

w s

imp

le w

ord

s ar

e u

sed

to

evo

ke v

ivid

imag

es.

READ

ING

SKIL

LS:

PARA

PHRA

SING

A p

arap

hra

seis

a r

esta

tem

ent

of

the

auth

or’

s id

eas

in y

ou

r o

wn

wo

rds.

Un

like

a su

mm

ary,

wh

ich

is s

ho

rt a

nd

incl

ud

es o

nly

th

e m

ost

imp

ort

ant

det

ails

, a p

arap

hra

se is

oft

en a

s lo

ng

as

or

lon

ger

th

an t

he

ori

gin

al t

ext

and

rest

ates

all

the

det

ails

. Par

aph

rasi

ng

is a

use

ful s

kill

that

can

hel

p y

ou

exp

lain

co

mp

licat

ed id

eas

or

clar

ify

you

r u

nd

erst

and

ing

of

dif

ficu

lt p

assa

ges

.

Her

e is

a p

arap

hra

se o

f a

po

em b

y Em

ily D

icki

nso

n. N

oti

ce t

hat

th

e p

ara-

ph

rase

is lo

ng

er t

han

th

e p

oem

.

As

you

read

“Th

eRi

ver-

Mer

chan

t’s W

ife:

A L

ette

r,” lo

ok f

or t

hefo

llow

ing

liter

ary

devi

ce.

SYM

BO

LIS

M

The

use

of a

per

son,

plac

e, t

hing

, or

even

tto

sta

nd b

oth

for

itse

lfan

d fo

r so

met

hing

beyo

nd it

self

.

REV

IEW

SK

ILLS

Po

em

Pa

rap

hra

se

Fam

e is

a b

ee.

It h

as a

so

ng

—

It h

as a

sti

ng

—

Ah

, to

o, i

t h

as a

win

g.

Fam

e is

like

a b

ee b

ecau

se it

can

bri

ng

joy

(th

e b

ee’s

“so

ng

”); i

t ca

n

hu

rt (

a b

ee’s

sti

ng

); a

nd

it c

an

dis

app

ear,

just

as

a b

ee c

an f

ly

away

.

Vo

ices

of

Am

eric

an C

har

acte

r

Mea

nwh

ile o

ther

Am

eric

an p

oets

rej

ecte

d m

oder

nis

t tr

end

s.

Th

ese

poe

ts s

taye

d a

t h

ome

and

sai

d w

hat

th

ey h

ad t

o sa

y in

pla

in A

mer

ican

sp

eech

.Th

eir

ind

ivid

ual

acc

ents

rev

eal t

he

regi

onal

div

ersi

ty o

fA

mer

ican

life

an

d c

har

acte

r.O

fth

ese

poe

ts

the

grea

test

was

Rob

ert

Fros

t (p

age

249)

.Fro

st’s

poe

ms

wer

e

wri

tten

in o

rdin

ary

New

En

glan

d s

pee

ch.H

e h

ad a

gif

t fo

r ta

k-

ing

the

mos

t co

nven

tion

al p

oeti

c fo

rms

and

giv

ing

them

a t

wis

t

all h

is o

wn

.Fro

st’s

abi

lity

to b

rin

g h

is o

wn

per

son

alit

y to

ver

se

resu

lted

in a

poe

tic

voic

e th

at w

as u

niq

ue

and

imp

ossi

ble

to

imit

ate.

The

Har

lem

Ren

aiss

ance

: Vo

ices

of

the

Afr

ican

Am

eric

an E

xper

ien

ce

In t

he

earl

y 19

20s,

a gr

oup

ofbl

ack

poet

s fo

cuse

d di

rect

ly o

n t

he

un

iqu

e co

ntr

ibu

tion

s of

Afr

ican

Am

eric

an c

ult

ure

to

Am

eric

a.

Th

eir

poet

ry b

ased

its

rhyt

hm

s on

spi

ritu

als

and

jazz

,its

lyri

cs

on s

ongs

kn

own

as

the

blu

es,a

nd

its

dict

ion

on

th

e st

reet

tal

k of

the

ghet

tos.

Afr

ican

Am

eric

an ly

ric

poet

s,es

pec

ially

Lan

gsto

n

Hu

ghes

(pa

ge 2

59),

brou

ght

liter

ary

dist

inct

ion

to

the

broa

d

mov

emen

t of

arti

sts

know

n a

s th

e H

arle

m R

enai

ssan

ce.W

hen

Afr

ican

Am

eric

an p

oetr

y,al

ong

wit

h m

usi

c,be

cam

e pa

rt o

fth

e

Jazz

Age

,it

hel

ped

ush

er in

a n

ew a

ppre

ciat

ion

of

the

role

of

blac

k ta

len

t in

Am

eric

an c

ult

ure

.

The

Am

eric

an D

ream

Rev

isit

ed

Th

e w

rite

rs o

fth

e m

oder

nis

t er

a—so

me

ofth

e be

st t

hat

Am

eric

a h

as p

rodu

ced—

expe

rim

ente

d bo

ldly

wit

h f

orm

s an

d

subj

ect

mat

ter.

Bu

t th

ey w

ere

still

try

ing

to f

ind

the

answ

ers

to

basi

c hu

man

qu

esti

ons:

Wh

o ar

e w

e? W

her

e ar

e w

e go

ing?

Wh

at

valu

es s

hou

ld g

uid

e u

s on

th

e se

arch

for

ou

r hu

man

iden

tity

?


204

Co

llect

ion

5:

The

Mo

der

ns

Part

1

130

140

150

Re-

read

lin

es 1

42-

151.

Ho

wd

id A

fric

an A

mer

ican

po

etry

du

rin

g t

he

Har

lem

Ren

aiss

ance

infl

uen

ceA

mer

ican

cu

ltu

re?

The

Afr

ican

Am

eric

an

po

etry

cau

sed

man

y

peo

ple

to

ad

mir

e b

lack

tale

nt.

Re-

read

lin

es 1

52-

157.

Wh

atst

ill s

eem

s “m

od

ern

” ab

ou

tM

od

ern

ism

?

Poss

ible

an

swer

: Mo

st

peo

ple

to

day

sti

ll

stru

gg

le t

o a

nsw

er t

he

bas

ic q

ues

tio

ns

po

sed

by

the

mo

der

nis

ts.

Pau

se a

t lin

e 13

9. H

ow

was

Ro

ber

t Fr

ost

’s p

oet

ry d

iffe

r-en

t fr

om

Elio

t’s

and

Po

un

d’s

po

etry

?

Fro

st u

sed

ord

inar

y

spee

ch a

nd

tra

dit

ion

al

form

s. E

liot

and

Po

un

d

wro

te e

xper

imen

tal

sym

bo

list

po

ems.


The American Dream: Pursuit of a Promise John Leggett and ...

Documents

Transcript of The American Dream: Pursuit of a Promise John Leggett and ...