Norton Anthology of American Literature

by Norton Editors

This fifth edition of a survey of American literature offers the work of 212 writers, with 38 newly included. This modern section has been overhauled to reflect the diversity of American writing since 1945. A section on 19th-century women's writing is included.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Literature, Anthologies, Poetry, Textbooks, Short Stories

2710 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1989

Reviews

[Jenny]

I actually use the 7th edition now, but they didn't have that one listed. This is the source. More than I ever thought it would be. But you've got to give credit to Norton, they do the anthology thing quite well.

[Burcu · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the second American anthology I had and used since graduate school. Although I prefer the Heath anthology for early American literature, it's still proven to be a handy second source. It might say its a shorter version, but it sure is not very short -about 2000pp. I think Norton's idea of dividing the anthologies into volumes was a good idea, easier to hold and handle.

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eh. I have the third edition, hardback, but this was all I could find on here.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Emerson, Thorough: man is one with nature/universe; if we're true to ourselves everything will be wonderful
Hawthorne, Melville: Reflect Calvinist thread in American lit-man is horrifying, darkness in souls
These 2 lines of thinking create American thought

Transcendentalism: Starts in Unitarian church (Emerson); all this stuff about the Eucharist, baptism, trinity,....the church has it wrong; he believed Christianity was a set of rules that puts inspirational side of Jesus in a box; Emerson left the church-Jesus understood the greatness in himself and in you (he was one with the force and you can be too).
-Over-soul (called this by Emerson): an ancient idea, in Hinduism (Atman, Brahman)-there's one universal life force; all of us are connected in universal human spirit (Atman-part of nature), so all of life is interconnected. So if you want to know yourself, go out in nature.
-expansive and contractive tendencies: we want to reach out to the over-soul, but also want to stick with things we know and understand; Emerson says we need to find a balance between these two tendencies; spend time in contemplation and in contact with oversoul; we find good by being one with the oversoul; man is basically good
-emphasis on intuition: we achieve connection with oversoul through imagination, intuitive thought
-nature as symbol or living mystery: we need to live the natural life to get in touch with oversoul
-the inner light (Quakers say we all have this light-all have a little bit of God inside of us and need to cultivate that)
-fundamental problem: what if we like torturing puppies? There's no grounds for saying this is wrong.

19th century: :heyday of American utopian colonies; idealist time; represent transcendentalist thought-we're going to have perfect society, dedicated to transcendentalist goals. Ex: Brook Farm (1841-57): personal affinity determines job assignments (do whatever inspires you; if you love plowing, go plow; but nobody wants to do the hard work); opposed to profit-exploitative-but what about if the crops fail-there's nothing set aside to help; it failed

Emerson: Heart and mouthpiece of Transcendentalists
American Scholar, Emerson, 1837:
Self-Reliance, Emerson, 1841: Reflects Emerson's deep mistrust of institutions, society. He promotes radical independence-this is what self-reliance means, not just puritan work ethic, it's not just growing your own carrots; it's being true to yourself spiritually and physically and understanding the spark of divinity inside you; be original; society to him means a set of rules-they are against our original thought; follow your whim.

Thoreau: interested in freedom (however you get it), not solitude; to live deliberately; do we really need land? to live to glorify God? These are just accepted ideas, very un-Emersonian. He works out ideas of Emerson laid out in Self Reliance. What is true, essential for us? Don't be someone's slave. But a simple life is a wise life. Luxuries life are a hinderance. Get rid of expectations of keeping with with neighbors. Life with rhythm of nature.

Puritans: For Bradford and Winthrop, nature is something to be feared. To build a city on the hill, we need to live in community following the law of mercy. Th & Em: to get to good life, we need to be out in wildness of nature--that's where freedom, truth and peace is found. Nature is probably the domain of the prince of darkness.

Hawthorne/Poe: Speculative Fiction (sci fi (Birthmark), fantasy)
Young Goodman Brown: Woods are wild/scary, the devil is there: here, take my snake; He's going into woods to prove he can stand up to devil; he's bringing his own understanding derived from Calvinist heritage; he's not necessarily saying anything for or against Calvinism; narration is ambiguous (don't really know for sure what's real, what's happening); he's highlighting the depravity of everyone's souls; as holy as we seem, we're all sinners; or: to someone consumed by sin, everything looks evil, like Goodman Brown; two interpretations are possible. A story about doubt and sin. Unlike Emerson who believes in communing with glory of nature. Hawthorne says we're NOT basically good. Same ideas in Ethan Brown and Birthmark. Ethan Brown finds unforgivable sin is his heart, which proves his lack of election. The sin is himself. He's not one of the elected. Birthmark: Georgiana's perfect except for birthmark. Represents a flew which they try to remove, but it's her one connection to the world/people; that makes her like others, so when they try to remove it, she dies. He's trying to create life. So Elmer thinks if he's in touch with nature, he can find life. Black Veil: covers secret sin, and we all have this; it separates us from each other; what makes us human is our brokenness. But we pretend that we're not broken.

Poe: Started detective novel genre; pioneer of realism
Realism: characters not seeing reality for what it is, living for an ideal (Editha, The Beast in the Jungle-he's waiting for something big to happen rather than loving what's right before him). In realism, there's less symbolism (i.e. Moby Dick) , but motifs (runs through the text/images After civil war, people have lost much of their idealism/cynical.

Regionalism: Industrial Revolution/mass migration (people moving around for better economics opportunities cuz life changing/modernizing, esp. the south), life is changing, more uniformity. Regionalists attempt to capture and document certain places/times.

Naturalism: no elements of the supernatural; it's pessimistic, materialistic (only thing that counts is the material world), determinism; man is just an animal that we can study in his surroundings like we study other animals; we are creatures shaped by nature

[Tayler K · Rating 2 out of 5]

1/17-1/19 Kate Chopin: The Storm
1/19-1/21 Charles W Chesnutt: The Wife of His Youth
1/22-1/24 Susan Glaspell: Trifles
1/24-1/26 Claude McKay: The Harlem Dancer, Harlem Shadows, If We Must Die, Africa, America
1/26-1/28 Hilda Doolittle: Mid-day, Oread, Leda, Fragment, Helen
1/28-1/31 F Scott Fitzgerald: Winter Dreams
1/31-2/2 Zora Neale Hurston: How It Feels to Be Colored Me
2/2-2/4 Ernest Hemingway: The Snows of Kilimanjaro
2/9-2/11 John Steinbeck: The Leader of the People
2/11-2/14 Richard Wright: The Man Who Was Almost a Man
2/14-2/16 Ralph Ellison: Battle Royal from Invisible Man
2/16-2/18 Allen Ginsberg: Howl and A Supermarket in California
2/19-2/21 John Cheever: The Swimmer
2/23-2/25 Theodore Roethke: Cuttings, Cuttings (later), My Papa's Waltz, Elegy for Jane, I Knew a Woman
2/25-2/28 Robert Hayden: Middle Passage, Homage to the Empress of the Blues, Those Winter Sundays
3/1-3/2 Flanner O'Connor: Good Country People
3/2-3/4 Anne Sexton: The Starry Night, Sylvia's Death, Little Girl, My String Bean, My Lovely Woman
3/4-3/14 Spring Break
3/8-3/14 John Updike: Separating
3/14-3/16 Audrey Lorde: Coal, The Woman Thing, Harriet
3/16-3/18 N. Scott Momaday: The Way to Rainy Mountain (gone for Oriana)
3/18-3/21 Lucille Clifton: miss rosie, homage to my hips, wild blessings, wishes for sons, oh antic god (not discussed: Carolivia Herron visit)
3/21-3/23 Raymond Carver: Cathedral
3/28-3/30 Gloria Anzaldua: How to Tame a Wild Tongue
3/30-4/1 Billy Collins: Forgetting, I Chop Some Parsley..., The Night House
4/4-4/6 Michael S. Harper: Dear John, Dear Coltrane, American History, Martin's Blues
4/6-4/8 Alice Walker: Everyday Use
4/8-4/11 Leslie Marmon Silko: Lullaby
4/11-4/13 Maxine Hong Kingston: No Name Woman
4/13-4/15 Rita Dove: Parsley, Adolescence--I, Adolescence--II, Rosa, Fox Trot Fridays
4/15-4/18 Li-Young Lee: Persimmons, Eating Alone, Eating Together, This Room and Everything in It
4/18-4/20 Cathy Song: The White Porch, Lost Sister, Heaven
4/20-4/25 Jhumpa Lahiri: Sexy

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology is excellent, despite the inherent handicap that all anthologies suffer from. The selection (which is just that--a selection) provides a nice overview of American literature from the Puritans who first settled the colonies to contemporary authors. This anthology is comparatively easy to read, and features excellent introductions to each author that provide helpful and interesting historical background/context. Well-chosen excerpts give the reader a sampling that leaves them with an appetite for more.

[Lillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was given this edition by a family member who found it discarded elsewhere. Though I didn't realize at the time it was published in the 80's (and therefore newer editions probably include more modern authors), this anthology introduced me to the great works of American writers, and inspired me throughout high school. I still think it's an excellent collection of written work from America's history, and recommend it to anyone who loves literature. It cuts off around the "Beat Generation" of poetry.

[Skai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this for my Survey of American Literature I class, useful information in this book, learn stuff while reading this book. This book was required for the English I had taken at the community college.

[LL · Rating 3 out of 5]

actually have 3rd edition (shorter)

[Max Solomon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great compilation! This anthology made my junior year of English very enjoyable!

[Brooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great!!!!

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good edition. I liked the stories that were included and it was quite interesting. The side notes helped and explained things well.

[Blake Harding]

Always reading.

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have the second edition, but it's awesome.

[Allison Dellion · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology contains many "required reading" texts for English majors in the U.S.

[Randy Hulshizer · Rating 4 out of 5]

American literature does leave something to be desired, but the editors could have done a better job selecting pieces to include in this "essential" edition.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't love this as much as English Lit, but still some amazing docs and reads.

[Sannie Hald · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read most of it.

[Genevieve · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best american lit anthologies

[Madly Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read The Romantics through to Robert Frost. Loved.

[Jenny Nay · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite out of the four anthologies I own. I am in love with the candid, yet powerful stories of American literature and this book is full of them. A treasure in our home.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this for American Literature. This was another very large book that was awkward and heavy, but it was useful in the variety of works.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Using this to write essays on F. Scott Fitzgerald and William Faulkner.

[Samuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to read sections from this for an American Lit class my sophomore year. A great survey of the American literary tradition.

[Ashley Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've hung on to this book since college. A classic anthology collection that won't go out of style anytime soon.

[Rae · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this for a class in college, but it has so many of the great pieces by great writers.

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-organized survey of American Literature

[Haley · Rating 3 out of 5]

All I have to say about this is... I AM DONE! I DID IT!

[Trey Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Any text book, even one of literature, is only as good as the teacher who guides you through it. With this one, I had a great teacher.

[Joseph Ozias · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great anthology.