Questions and Topics We Can Help You To Answer:
Paper Instructions:

Early works are clear expressions of the faith of the Pilgrim/Puritan writers, whereas the poetry of the 19th century is far more rooted in images and the investigation into the presence of the divine that one finds within.  The poetry, formally, moves from European derivatives to a uniquely American poetry.
1.    What similarities and/or differences do you see in the language and tone of poems by Whitman, Longfellow, and Dickinson and the earlier American writers?

2.    What significant images to you find in the poems of Dickinson?  


3.    Explain what they might represent. 

4.    Is there any commentary presented?


Your initial post should be at least 150 words in length. Support your claims with examples from required material(s) and/or other scholarly resources, and properly cite any references. Use at least 4 references.  Use references provided as well as some additional that you find on your own!


McMichael, G. & Leonard, J. S. (2011). Concise anthology of American literature. (Eds.). New York, NY: Pearson Education, Inc.  
To successfully complete this assignment, read the following chapters from the text, Concise Anthology of American Literature:
o    The Literature of the Early to Mid-Nineteenth Century: 
§    Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s “A Psalm of Life,” “The arsenal at Springfield,” & “The Jewish Cemetery at Newport.”  pp. 899 – 904
§    Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself.” pp. 1032 – 1097.
§    Emily Dickinson.  pp. 1134 – 1155