Colonial American Literature

Jamestown (1607)

• First successful permanent English settlement in North America

• John Smith• By January 1608, only 38

of original 144 who set sail in 1607 still alive

• Included wealthy men unused to manual labor

• Success largely due to cordial relations with Algonquin Indians

Plymouth (1620)

• Group we call “The Pilgrims”—came on the Mayflower

• William Bradford• Intended (?) to go to

Virginia, but arrived at Cape Cod in November of 1620

• Separatist Puritans• By spring 1621, only

half of the Mayflower’s original passengers alive

Massachusetts Bay Colony(1630)

• Larger colonial effort, chartered by King Charles

• Included John Winthrop and Anne Bradstreet

• Beginning of “Great Migration”

• Initial hardship, but later thrived—helped by Indians and Plymouth neighbors

Puritanism--Background

• During English Reformation, King Henry VIII establishes Church of England (1533)

• Differed very little from Roman Catholicism

• Protestant reformers Martin Luther (1483-1546) and John Calvin (1509-1564) wanted less ritual, more individual interpretation of the Bible

• Separatists vs. Congregationalists

Puritanism Beliefs—TULIP of Calvinist Theology

• Total depravity (original sin)• Unconditional salvation (no conditions humans can fulfill to earn grace)

• Obama’s eulogy for Reverend Pinckney• Limited elect (only a very few people likely to be chosen for salvation)• Irresistable grace (overpowering influence of God on those he has chosen)• Perseverance (live as if one’s acts do influence or indicate spiritual state)

William Bradford• Began writing his history of

Plymouth 10 years after the colony was settled. Same year that Mass. Bay Colony was established.

Purpose• To record experiences of Pilgrims and

show magnitude of their achievement

• To discourage dispersal of Pilgrims by reasserting unifying ideals of the first settlers, the “Old Comers”

• To establish Pilgrims’ place in history before it was overshadowed by the New Comers?