Simply stated, this book will introduce the surprising literary figure behind a familiar name. Though a mere vestige of William Cullen Bryant’s fame survives through inclusion of “Thanatopsis” and perhaps one or two other poems in school anthologies, the nineteenth century celebrated him as one of its great men. He not only deserved that acclaim, but he was actually a more important writer than his century recognized.
Half of this volume consists of a Bryant showcase. Three dozen poems chosen from the hundreds he produced reveal him as a revolutionary of prosody seeking refuge from Calvinism in a pantheistic God. Extracts from his criticism are a homily promoting the prospects for American literary nationalism. Also included here is a pair of his tales which, although almost totally unknown, are among the best work in the genre written before the Civil War.
The other half of this new volume presents a concise biography and, of special interest, three groundbreaking new critical studies. Gado argues that Bryant is the Founding Father of American poetry. As a poet of nature, Bryant played a literary role comparable to the influence on art exercised by his good friend Thomas Cole, founder of the Hudson River School. But perhaps even more important was the example Bryant set for Walt Whitman in a relationship explored here for the first time. A much briefer piece discovers the consistent philosophical belief addressed by a lifetime of poems. The third essay is unique in its consideration of Bryant’s short fiction, which has never before received attention.
William Cullen Bryant: An American Voice is a landmark publication.
The book also sheds new light on the influence that “Bryant and his class” (as Lincoln called the Radical Republican faction whose views Bryant articulated) wielded on the chief executive.
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations.
ôThere were many aspects in which Mr. Bryant presented himself as a subject for biography. He was a chief in the department of American journalism. He was a controlling power...
This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more.
He was honored in Albany at receptions by each house of the legislature. For his eightieth birthday, his life's work was celebrated in silver on a Tiffany vase given him by admirers throughout the country.
The Life, Character and Writings of William Cullen Bryant: A Commemorative Address Delivered Before the New York Historical Society, at...
" Poets Emerson, Holmes, Longfellow, Lowell, and Whittier saluted him in prose and verse. Emerson saw him as "a true painter of the face of this country"; Holmes, as the "first sweet singer in the cage of our close-woven life.
This is the only collection ever made of Bryant's letters, two-thirds of which have never before been printed.
The second volume of William Cullen Bryant's letters opens in 1836 as he has just returned to New York from an extended visit to Europe to resume charge of the New York Evening Post, brought near to failure during his absence by his partner ...
William Cullen Bryant wrote short stories? Indeed he did, and this volume collects and evaluates them for the first time.