REVOLUTIONARY TIME PERIOD THE AGE OF ENLIGHTENMENTFROM COLONY TO COUNTRY

1775 - 1860

Writers in the time of revolution

Many famous phrases have come fro the rhetoric of the American revolution

“No taxation without representation!”

“Give me liberty, or give me death!”

“We hold these truths to be self-evident…”

“We the people…”

Social and Political Context

The conflict between America and England, on the surface, was about money – specifically, unlawful taxation.

Patriotism, a revolutionary spirit, independence, and a desire for democracy drove the colonists to a rebellion.

The Bible

During the Revolution, many preachers recounted Bible stories of unjust rulers who burdened the people with high taxes and unjust laws.

While much of the political writing during this time people contained lofty philosophical ideas, it also vibrated with the fiery passion of a Puritan minister. In Patrick Henry’s famous speech, “Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death”, you will hear many references to the Bible.

Literary Forms

There was a continual struggle to divorce the new country from the old one and to define a new and unique way of doing things.

America's literary prowess consisted mainly of pamphlets, newspapers, and speeches. 

In the rhetoric and writings of the Revolutionary movement, themes of independence, freedom, and discontent towards Britain were explored. Literature was political in nature. Writing came in the form of political pamphlets. By the time of the American Revolution, American writers had ventured beyond the Puritan literary style and its religious themes and had developed styles of writing that grew from distinctly American experiences. The colonial fascination with science, nature, freedom, and innovation came through in the writings of the Revolutionary period. The colonists developed their own way of speaking as well, no longer copying the more formal style of British writers.

Themes, Characteristics, and Context

Key Authors and Titles

John Locke

An English philosopher

Introduced the notion of ‘natural rightsThese natural rights included life,

liberty, and the right to own property. If the government abridged the right to property by levying taxes without the consent of the property owners, then the people could organize a new government.

Locke’s spirit and beliefs were reflected in Jefferson’s opening in The Declaration of Independence.

More Authors and Titles

Benjamin Franklin: his aphorisms in Poor Richard’s Almanac

Thomas Paine’s famous pamphlet Common Sense. Common Sense presented the American colonists with an

argument for freedom from British rule at a time when the question of independence was still undecided. Paine wrote and reasoned in a style that common people understood; forgoing the philosophy and Latin references used by Enlightenment era writers, Paine structured Common Sense like a sermon and relied on Biblical references to make his case to the people. He connected independence with common dissenting Protestant beliefs as a means to present a distinctly American political identity.

Washington Irving’s, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and “Rip Van Winkle”, an extended metaphor of the American Revolution.

Thomas Jefferson’s The Declaration of Independence