Oh, Nature, where art thou?--Are not these blacks thy children as well as we?

The inhabitants of Canada, Massachusetts, the middle provinces, the southern ones will be as different as their climates; their only points of unity will be those of religion and language.

they are a mixture of English, Scotch, Irish, French, Dutch, Germans, and Swedes. From this promiscuous breed, that race now called Americans have arisen

There he sees a parson as simple as his flock, a farmer who does not riot on the labour of others

It is not composed, as in Europe, of great lords who possess everything, and of a herd of people who have nothing. Here are no aristocratical families, no courts, no kings, no bishops, no ecclesiastical dominion, no invisible power giving to a few a very visible one; no great manufacturers employing thousands, no great refinements of luxury.

I wanted nothing more than to live at home independent and tranquil

But as the happiness of my family is the only object of my wishes, I care very little where we be, or where we go, provided that we are safe, and all united together.

Alas, she herself, that once indulgent parent, forces me to take up arms against her.

I remove my plantation

even weave some comedy and sass in there

highlighting important themes and ideas about all of these texts.

future PSU English students will feel inspired to contribute

We do not claim to have a “perfect” or “complete” representation of American literature.

This anthology tries to unpack

However, this anthology takes things a step further because it makes connections between important works of American literature and contemporary culture

What is the difference between American literature and American history?

for Coyotes could not be permitted to dance with Stars.

He bears the marks of the singeing to this day.

the Squirrel spring forward to catch the stick that the Bat let fall from a great height.

e felt flattered when he knew that they had come to see him, but he was far too cunning to show it.

The bear was too clumsy and growled too much, the elk was too tall and his antlers would strike against the lodge pole of the wigwam; the dog was not wise, and the serpent was never known to do good to the Cahrocs or to any man

But they longed for the gift of fire.

“strategic essentialism” in which one can speak in rather simplified forms of group identity for the purposes of struggle while debating within the group the finer shades of difference.

A good deal of postcolonial debate has to do with rival claims to victimhood, with each side claiming the sympathies of right-thinking people because of their past sufferings.

the label is usually denied to U.S. literature

“postcolonialism” as a term lends itself to very broad use.

Postcolonial criticism could be compared to the tendency of Hollywood films set in such countries to focus on the problems of Americans and Europeans within those societies while marginalizing the views of their native peoples.

it can be argued that this way of defining a whole era is Eurocentric, that it singles out the colonial experience as the most important fact about the countries involved.

some critics argue that the term misleadingly implies that colonialism is over

literal colonization is not the exclusive object of postcolonial study.

Postcolonial theory is applied to political science, to history, and to other related fields

criticisms of the term “postcolonial” itself

the more we understand our connection to each and every life-form, the stranger they become to us.

“ghost of Nature”

We must see the whole picture; the good, bad and the ugly.

glossed over where yoga came from

The Indian culture is overshadowed by a capitalist enterprise, and thus yoga begins to reflect Western values.

Colonial residue is not temporary

These Ideological State Apparatuses allow for the ideologies to continue to operate, unmanned, in society as a functioning machine.

“a way out.”

These struggles must be differentiated and noted, but they must not divide.

the danger of sexism, homophobia, racism, and classism not just on the part of men, but of other women

to believe that all women fall under the same umbrella of oppression is not just false, it is perpetuating the oppression that is not experienced by the more dominant women

I would pull a Lilith

Because of this, Eve is a perfect saint to Adam.

A woman will be seen as either saintly or demonic.

the expectation was that the woman would be grateful, or coquettish in some way or another.

“Only the father’s intervention, separating mother from child, prevents incest,”

leads to her marrying Paco, a man who reminds her of her deceased, abusive, horrible father

hint of guilt

her loyalty lies with her father/Paco.

Could this be insinuating that Paula represents Raimunda as a child, and Raimunda is “going back” to her horrific childhood by witnessing Paula’s similar experience?

Freud’s many unsettling (icky, nasty; whatever you prefer) theories.