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The Norton Anthology of American Literature, Volume A: Beginnings to 1820
A responsive, refreshed, and media-rich revision of the market-leading anthology of American literature.
The most-trusted anthology for complete works, balanced selections, and helpful editorial apparatus, The Norton Anthology of American Literature features a cover-to-cover revision. The Ninth Edition introduces new General Editor Robert Levine and three new-generation editors who have reenergized the volume across the centuries. Fresh scholarship, new authors―with an emphasis on contemporary writers―new topical clusters, and a new ebook make the Norton Anthology an even better teaching tool and an unmatched value for students.
The most-trusted anthology for complete works, balanced selections, and helpful editorial apparatus, The Norton Anthology of American Literature features a cover-to-cover revision. The Ninth Edition introduces new General Editor Robert Levine and three new-generation editors who have reenergized the volume across the centuries. Fresh scholarship, new authors―with an emphasis on contemporary writers―new topical clusters, and a new ebook make the Norton Anthology an even better teaching tool and an unmatched value for students.
1015 pages, Paperback
Published January 4, 2017
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138 people want to read
About the author
Robert S. Levine
63 books27 followersRobert S. Levine (Ph.D. Stanford University 1981) is Distinguished University Professor of English and Distinguished Scholar-Teacher at the University of Maryland, College Park.
Levine is the General Editor of The Norton Anthology of American Literature and is a member of the editorial boards of American Literary History, Leviathan: A Journal of Melville Studies, and J19: The Journal of Nineteenth-Century Americanists.
Levine is the General Editor of The Norton Anthology of American Literature and is a member of the editorial boards of American Literary History, Leviathan: A Journal of Melville Studies, and J19: The Journal of Nineteenth-Century Americanists.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 26, 2017
Reading this expansive anthology collection for my American Literature class. I'm just tracking what I read and how many stories I read from this edition.
1. "The Iroquois Creation Story"- written down and translated by David Cusick
Read: 8/22-23/2017
Thoughts: The narrative is exhausting and is told in one giant paragraph within three pages. This story was meant to be heard orally and reading it without the emotive descriptions that a narrator provides made this story feel long-winded. However, listening to the story in class, made the passage more enjoyable. I really enjoyed the class discussion that this story provided, but besides that I don't feel a great connection to the story itself.
Rating: 3 stars
2. "The Navajo Creation Story"- written by Irvin Morris
Read: 8/25-26/2017
Thoughts: This story was more cohesive than the Iroquois story and I think that's because the Navajo translation is more recent. There's a lot going on and it's a little too much. I also found it a little hard to keep track of each world and the encounters the Navajo faced in each one.
Rating: 2.5 stars
3.Of Plymouth Plantation excerpts- William Bradford
Read:8/29/2017
Thoughts: I read all 35 pages of excerpts during Hurricane Harvey because of miscommunication and we didn't even discuss any of Bradford's work in class. I'm slightly salty about wasting my free day on this uppity, half-truth of historical accounts that Bradford provides. A lot of information is left out to keep the peace in the colonies, but the information that is provided shows that the Puritans think all their actions are a hundred percent for the greater good. The writing itself isn't horrible, but Bradford's historical accounts are very dry and while there are interesting things here and there, Of Plymouth Plantation is a bit of slug to get through.
Rating: 2 stars
4. New English Canaan excerpt from the Third Book (The Incident at Merry Mount)- Thomas Morton
Read: 8/30/2017
Thoughts: Thomas Morton's Ma-re Mount colony was the bane of the William Bradford's (see above) Plymouth colony. This excerpt covers the incident of the Maypole which Bradford talks about in great disdain in his accounts. Morton on the other hand writes his account in a flamboyant style; he loves to pick on the Puritans of Plymouth and his style feels light and silly all while accounting how the Puritans trespassed on his property, accused him of crimes (that were ridiculous), and "arrested" him and forcibly bringing him to Plymouth as a prisoner. It's a lot of fun to read and it's one of the easiest historical accounts I've ever read. I flew through it and really enjoyed Morton's style.
Rating: 3.5 stars
5."A Model of Christian Charity" - John Winthrop
Read:8/30-9/2/2017
Thoughts: This is painful. It's so hard to get through. I don't care what it's about and it doesn't offer anything, but being slapped with Bible verses. Winthrop's writing is dense and I'm sure this must have been a remarkable sermon, but not all sermons are meant to read and this is one of those better left behind.
Rating: 1 star
6."The Wonders of the Invisible World" - Cotton Mather
Read: 9/6/2017
Thoughts: Mather's attempts (and fails) at giving an unbiased account of the trial of Martha Carrier during the Salem Witch Trials. I've always been fascinated by this era of history and a lot of the content provided shows where the Puritans stood and how easy it was to pin it on a poor woman not liked by the town and known for a grand scandal. While Mather's fails at being unbiased in his summary of the events, it's a lot of fun to read and it shows the tone of the culture during the Witch Trials.
Rating: 4 stars
7. "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" - Jonathan Edwards
Read: 9/6/2017
Thoughts: I read this a couple of years ago in high school and I couldn't stand it then and I still can't stand it now. I've reread a few works that I originally didn't like (Fahrenheit 451), but this is not one of them. In fact, I dislike this even more because I'm more devout in my Christian faith and this evangelical raging of a wrathful God that doesn't care for you as a person, but only wants you to worship Him, is not the God I know and read about in scripture. Aside from that, Edwards tyrannical raging didn't work for him back then and it goes against him even more.
Rating: 1 star
8."Letters to Her Parents" - Rebecca Samuels
Read: 9/9/2017
Thoughts: This is an interesting look into the life of a Jewish immigrant in early America. It's nothing spectacular, but that's because this is a letter that wasn't meant to be shared with the public.
Rating: 3 stars
9. "Reply to the Missionary Jacob Cram" - Sagoyewatha
Read: 9/9/2017
Thoughts: This is a wonderful and powerful speech. Sagoyewatha is a strong preacher and he makes so many well-rounded and great points. I'm surprised aren't taught more about Sagoyewatha in school or read more of his works. I'm so happy that we had to read this because it was wonderful.
Rating: 5 stars
10."The Way to Wealth" - Benjamin Franklin
Read: 9/9/2017
Thoughts: I'm not sure how I feel about this. It's a preface to Poor Richard's Almanac written for the 25th Anniversary. It's essentially is Franklin quoting his pseudonym through a preacher. It has a strong message and Franklin has a funny style, but I didn't love it and couldn't connect to this one.
Rating: 3 stars
11. "Rules by Which a Great Empire May Be Reduced to a Small One" - Benjamin Franklin
Read: 9/9/2017
Thoughts: This was funny. It's a great satire piece about the King in Europeans horrible choices that lead to the uprising in the colonies and the beginning of the American Revolution.
Rating: 4 stars
12. "Common Sense" (Chapter III)- Thomas Paine
Read: 9/16/2017
Thoughts: There's a lot of genius lines in this piece. It's incredibly well-done and it's interesting to read something that was so influential to the American people before the American Revolution. Paine is smart in his diction choice and his use of metaphors. This is a very convincing piece and it does well in making the reader see through common sense.
Rating: 3.75 stars
13. Query XIV.Laws (Slavery) - Thomas Jefferson
Read: 9/16/2017
Thoughts: This is a hypocritical mess. I don't think there's a single redeemable thing to be found in this garbage. I will be fine never picking up anything by Jefferson.
Rating: 1
14. "To the Right Honourable William, Earl of Dartmouth, His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for North America, &c" - Phillis Wheatley
Read: 9/19/2017
Thoughts: This poem is interesting, but I wasn't really able to decipher all of what Wheatley was conveying and I think that's because of my disconnect with this time period.
Rating: 2 stars
15. "Thoughts on the Works of Providence" - Phillis Wheatley
Read: 9/19/2017
Thoughts: This Wheatley poem spoke to me a lot more than her previous one I mentioned above. I also thought the last five stanzas were really beautifully done and while this poem is a little overly long, I really liked it.
Rating: 3 stars
16. "Speech at Detroit"- Pontiac
Read:10/15/2017
Thoughts: Interesting account of a Native American used as a speech to bring the tribes together against the settlers.
Rating: 2 stars
17.Speech to the Osages- Tecumseh
Read: 10/15/2017
Thoughts: This was a really strong speech. It flows well and Tecumseh has a great way with words.
Rating: 3 stars
18. To Governor Benjamin Franklin- Cherokee Women
Read: 10/15/2017
Thoughts: I wish there were more collected documents of speeches or letters from Native American women. This anthology is filled with men's accounts, but it seriously lacks in women's and lack even more in native women's accounts.
Rating: 3 stars
These are all the stories and essays that I have read in this collection for class.
Total Rating for Stories Read: 2.75 stars
1. "The Iroquois Creation Story"- written down and translated by David Cusick
Read: 8/22-23/2017
Thoughts: The narrative is exhausting and is told in one giant paragraph within three pages. This story was meant to be heard orally and reading it without the emotive descriptions that a narrator provides made this story feel long-winded. However, listening to the story in class, made the passage more enjoyable. I really enjoyed the class discussion that this story provided, but besides that I don't feel a great connection to the story itself.
Rating: 3 stars
2. "The Navajo Creation Story"- written by Irvin Morris
Read: 8/25-26/2017
Thoughts: This story was more cohesive than the Iroquois story and I think that's because the Navajo translation is more recent. There's a lot going on and it's a little too much. I also found it a little hard to keep track of each world and the encounters the Navajo faced in each one.
Rating: 2.5 stars
3.Of Plymouth Plantation excerpts- William Bradford
Read:8/29/2017
Thoughts: I read all 35 pages of excerpts during Hurricane Harvey because of miscommunication and we didn't even discuss any of Bradford's work in class. I'm slightly salty about wasting my free day on this uppity, half-truth of historical accounts that Bradford provides. A lot of information is left out to keep the peace in the colonies, but the information that is provided shows that the Puritans think all their actions are a hundred percent for the greater good. The writing itself isn't horrible, but Bradford's historical accounts are very dry and while there are interesting things here and there, Of Plymouth Plantation is a bit of slug to get through.
Rating: 2 stars
4. New English Canaan excerpt from the Third Book (The Incident at Merry Mount)- Thomas Morton
Read: 8/30/2017
Thoughts: Thomas Morton's Ma-re Mount colony was the bane of the William Bradford's (see above) Plymouth colony. This excerpt covers the incident of the Maypole which Bradford talks about in great disdain in his accounts. Morton on the other hand writes his account in a flamboyant style; he loves to pick on the Puritans of Plymouth and his style feels light and silly all while accounting how the Puritans trespassed on his property, accused him of crimes (that were ridiculous), and "arrested" him and forcibly bringing him to Plymouth as a prisoner. It's a lot of fun to read and it's one of the easiest historical accounts I've ever read. I flew through it and really enjoyed Morton's style.
Rating: 3.5 stars
5."A Model of Christian Charity" - John Winthrop
Read:8/30-9/2/2017
Thoughts: This is painful. It's so hard to get through. I don't care what it's about and it doesn't offer anything, but being slapped with Bible verses. Winthrop's writing is dense and I'm sure this must have been a remarkable sermon, but not all sermons are meant to read and this is one of those better left behind.
Rating: 1 star
6."The Wonders of the Invisible World" - Cotton Mather
Read: 9/6/2017
Thoughts: Mather's attempts (and fails) at giving an unbiased account of the trial of Martha Carrier during the Salem Witch Trials. I've always been fascinated by this era of history and a lot of the content provided shows where the Puritans stood and how easy it was to pin it on a poor woman not liked by the town and known for a grand scandal. While Mather's fails at being unbiased in his summary of the events, it's a lot of fun to read and it shows the tone of the culture during the Witch Trials.
Rating: 4 stars
7. "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" - Jonathan Edwards
Read: 9/6/2017
Thoughts: I read this a couple of years ago in high school and I couldn't stand it then and I still can't stand it now. I've reread a few works that I originally didn't like (Fahrenheit 451), but this is not one of them. In fact, I dislike this even more because I'm more devout in my Christian faith and this evangelical raging of a wrathful God that doesn't care for you as a person, but only wants you to worship Him, is not the God I know and read about in scripture. Aside from that, Edwards tyrannical raging didn't work for him back then and it goes against him even more.
Rating: 1 star
8."Letters to Her Parents" - Rebecca Samuels
Read: 9/9/2017
Thoughts: This is an interesting look into the life of a Jewish immigrant in early America. It's nothing spectacular, but that's because this is a letter that wasn't meant to be shared with the public.
Rating: 3 stars
9. "Reply to the Missionary Jacob Cram" - Sagoyewatha
Read: 9/9/2017
Thoughts: This is a wonderful and powerful speech. Sagoyewatha is a strong preacher and he makes so many well-rounded and great points. I'm surprised aren't taught more about Sagoyewatha in school or read more of his works. I'm so happy that we had to read this because it was wonderful.
Rating: 5 stars
10."The Way to Wealth" - Benjamin Franklin
Read: 9/9/2017
Thoughts: I'm not sure how I feel about this. It's a preface to Poor Richard's Almanac written for the 25th Anniversary. It's essentially is Franklin quoting his pseudonym through a preacher. It has a strong message and Franklin has a funny style, but I didn't love it and couldn't connect to this one.
Rating: 3 stars
11. "Rules by Which a Great Empire May Be Reduced to a Small One" - Benjamin Franklin
Read: 9/9/2017
Thoughts: This was funny. It's a great satire piece about the King in Europeans horrible choices that lead to the uprising in the colonies and the beginning of the American Revolution.
Rating: 4 stars
12. "Common Sense" (Chapter III)- Thomas Paine
Read: 9/16/2017
Thoughts: There's a lot of genius lines in this piece. It's incredibly well-done and it's interesting to read something that was so influential to the American people before the American Revolution. Paine is smart in his diction choice and his use of metaphors. This is a very convincing piece and it does well in making the reader see through common sense.
Rating: 3.75 stars
13. Query XIV.Laws (Slavery) - Thomas Jefferson
Read: 9/16/2017
Thoughts: This is a hypocritical mess. I don't think there's a single redeemable thing to be found in this garbage. I will be fine never picking up anything by Jefferson.
Rating: 1
14. "To the Right Honourable William, Earl of Dartmouth, His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for North America, &c" - Phillis Wheatley
Read: 9/19/2017
Thoughts: This poem is interesting, but I wasn't really able to decipher all of what Wheatley was conveying and I think that's because of my disconnect with this time period.
Rating: 2 stars
15. "Thoughts on the Works of Providence" - Phillis Wheatley
Read: 9/19/2017
Thoughts: This Wheatley poem spoke to me a lot more than her previous one I mentioned above. I also thought the last five stanzas were really beautifully done and while this poem is a little overly long, I really liked it.
Rating: 3 stars
16. "Speech at Detroit"- Pontiac
Read:10/15/2017
Thoughts: Interesting account of a Native American used as a speech to bring the tribes together against the settlers.
Rating: 2 stars
17.Speech to the Osages- Tecumseh
Read: 10/15/2017
Thoughts: This was a really strong speech. It flows well and Tecumseh has a great way with words.
Rating: 3 stars
18. To Governor Benjamin Franklin- Cherokee Women
Read: 10/15/2017
Thoughts: I wish there were more collected documents of speeches or letters from Native American women. This anthology is filled with men's accounts, but it seriously lacks in women's and lack even more in native women's accounts.
Rating: 3 stars
These are all the stories and essays that I have read in this collection for class.
Total Rating for Stories Read: 2.75 stars
October 26, 2022
Read:
*Iroquois and Navajo Creation Stories
*Letter of Discovery - Christopher Columbus
*Bartolomé de Las Casas
*General History of Virginia & Description of New England - John Smith
*Of Plymouth Plantation - William Bradford
*A Model of Christian Charity - John Winthrop
*A Key into the Language of America - Roger Williams
*Anne Bradstreet
*A Narrative of Captivity and Restoration - Mary Rowlandson
*The Diary - Samuel Sewall
*The Wonders of the Invisible World - Cotton Mather
*Personal Narratives & Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God - Johnathan Edwards
*Benjamin Franklin - The Autobiography
* Samuel Occom - A Short Narrative of My Life
*Olaudah Equiano - The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavas Vaasa the African
* Judith Sargent Murray - On Equality of the Sexes
*Phillis Wheatley - Poetry
* The Coquette - Hannah Webster Foster
* Thomas Jefferson
* Washington Irving - Rip Van Winkle
*Iroquois and Navajo Creation Stories
*Letter of Discovery - Christopher Columbus
*Bartolomé de Las Casas
*General History of Virginia & Description of New England - John Smith
*Of Plymouth Plantation - William Bradford
*A Model of Christian Charity - John Winthrop
*A Key into the Language of America - Roger Williams
*Anne Bradstreet
*A Narrative of Captivity and Restoration - Mary Rowlandson
*The Diary - Samuel Sewall
*The Wonders of the Invisible World - Cotton Mather
*Personal Narratives & Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God - Johnathan Edwards
*Benjamin Franklin - The Autobiography
* Samuel Occom - A Short Narrative of My Life
*Olaudah Equiano - The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavas Vaasa the African
* Judith Sargent Murray - On Equality of the Sexes
*Phillis Wheatley - Poetry
* The Coquette - Hannah Webster Foster
* Thomas Jefferson
* Washington Irving - Rip Van Winkle
December 17, 2017
This book covers the highlights of the start of American Literature. My favorite authors in this collection are Anne Bradstreet, Mary Rowlandson, Samson Occom, Olaudah Equiano, and Phillis Wheatley.
October 24, 2021
Bought and read for ENG 3271-01 American Literature I Fa21, but will always be on my shelf :,)
December 9, 2022
It was fun to read genres and authors I typically wouldn’t!
February 7, 2023
prüfungsstress lässt mich nicht meine books lesen also muss man wohl uni bücher eintragen
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews