Dalle origini al XVII secolo: storia e letteratura americana

Dalle origini al XVII secolo

The discovery of America took place by chance in 1492 by an expedition financed by the Spanish sovereigns and led by the Italian Christopher Columbus, who actually intended to sail around the world to reach the Indies by heading west, encouraged by recent theories on the roundness of the planet Earth.After new expeditions and explorations inland, the first groups of European colonists began to settle in North America. They are mainly English Puritans who are looking for a promised land where they can profess what they believe to be the true faith. The Puritans come into conflict with the native populations of America who do not have the means to oppose them and are gradually driven from their lands and exterminated. The American Indians have a predominantly oral culture and so with the arrival of the colonists American literature obviously finds its origins in the language of the European colonizers.

Il Nuovo Mondo: Contesto Storico

By the end of the 15th century, when the American continent was first discovered by Europeans, North America was inhabited by approximately 1 million people. The natives called American Indians by the European colonizers are distributed throughout the territory and divided into approximately 500 tribes with different customs and habits that are often in conflict with each other.Although they have a common origin, they presumably arrived from Asia when the Bearing Strait did not yet divide the two continents, over the centuries, they have adopted different languages and habits. October 12, 1492 is the turning point date for the American continent, the landing of Christopher Columbus in the Caribbean islands marks the beginning of a new era. The impact between the two civilizations, European and Native American, is detrimental to the indigenous people. Over time, the tribes will be decimated by the violence of the conquerors charged with creating colonies on which to extend the power of their European homelands, but also by the diseases brought by the invaders and by the slavery to which they are reduced.

In 1620 a group of Puritans called the Pilgrim Fathers landed on the inhospitable coasts of Massachusetts with the famous Mayflower ship. They dreamed of founding a community based on their religious principles so much so that in 1681 Charles II ceded a vast territory to the Quaker William Penn. During the century the kingdom of England established colonies along a small coastal fringe to the east from the Abermale Strait to the mouth of the Maine inhabited by isolated communities. The colonies did not follow the features of the mother country, unlike what happened in the Spanish-Portuguese ones. Land ownership spread massively and this formed the democratic character of the government structures, creating a strong link between the principle of economic autonomy and political freedom, characteristic of the American mentality.Since the natives could not stand the harsh conditions of slavery, the European colonizers decided to use Africans, which was the beginning of a systematic trade from Africa to the entire American continent that would last for decades.

Contesto Culturale

The first English settlers in America are therefore Puritan groups who base their faith on the reading and direct interpretation of the Bible and want to move away from the rites and hierarchies of the old world. Of course they have guides among which Cotton and Hooker stand out who disagree on the granting of conversion, for Cotton it is a sudden event, while Hooker considers it a slow process which later favors the development of memorialism or the narration in diaries of daily episodes in order to search in the events the signs of the election. To be welcomed into the religious community, the faithful must demonstrate their devotion at the time of settling in the new continent. It is quite simple, as the mere fact of 12 having left for America demonstrates great motivation and faith. The doubts and torments will strike future generations.

I Memorialisti

America is a new territory to be discovered and the first settlers who go there are pioneers. They are therefore eager to tell what they see and how they must adapt their lifestyle to the new conditions. On the one hand, the explorers would like to make known the new world and tell of their adventurous lives, on the other hand, the Puritans intend to demonstrate that God supports their choices after having subjected them to hard tests by giving them a land that with commitment they can transform into the promised land. The same episodes are transcribed by several authors, it is worth noting however the different accounts on the management of the Merry Mount colony, evaluated positively in Morton's account and negatively in the chronicles of Bradford and Winthrop.

John Smith (1580-1631)

One of the first to tell about America, especially New England and Virginia, was the adventurer John Smith.After a youth lived among many adventures, Smith emigrated to America where he founded the colony of James Town in 1607 and successfully devoted himself to trade, becoming rich thanks to his ability to deal with the Indians. His writings have a documentary and practical character.Smith intended to encourage immigration through positive and vigorous descriptions of the New World (A true relation 1608, A map of Virginia 1612, etc.).Some episodes in which he is the protagonist are perhaps not entirely true. In General Histoire of Virginia of 1624, for example, he tells of his meeting with the legendary Pocahontas but the authenticity of the story is doubtful although the author chooses to write in the third person in order to give truthfulness to his words and celebrate his own deeds as if he were a hero.

William Bradford (1590-1657)

Bradford is an extremely religious man who, after trying to settle in Holland, goes to America aboard the Mayflower to better profess his faith.He became governor of Plymouth Colony and distinguished himself for his devotion to the Puritan cause.His prose is majestic and engaging, aimed at exalting the greatness of the divine plan, rich in parallels with the sacred scriptures that Bradford knows thoroughly despite being self-taught.His main work is Of Plymouth plantation of 1647 where he narrates the life of a united community projected towards an optimistic future. This is a chronicle that covers a period of almost twenty years, a sort of diary in which the object is the difficulties encountered especially in the face of a hostile nature and the victories of the colony.In fact, in the novel, a group of enlightened people find themselves having to spend a harsh winter without the necessary equipment in a land populated by hostile tribes. The only strength that supports them is faith. To give itself some order, the new community makes a pact and elects a governor. The first year is very hard, almost half of the people die of starvation.During the following years, amidst various vicissitudes such as the community's conflicts with Thomas Morton, prosperity began to spread and life in the new colony stabilized.

Thomas Morton (1588-1649)

Morton moves to America probably to escape some scandal.He founds a settlement called Merry Mount, but because of his licentious lifestyle and his dealings in arms with the Indians, he comes into conflict with Bradford and Winthorp.Despite being sent back to England twice, Morton managed to return and continue his work as an opponent of Puritan thought.In 1644 he was imprisoned in Boston, released and moved to Maine where he died.Following these contrasts, Morton wrote New English Canaan in 1637, a satire of the Pilgrim Fathers that 23 offers a biting view of New England and the Puritans.In contrast to Bradford, Morton presents a positive view of nature and enjoyment.

John Winthorp (1588-1649)

After studying at Cambridge, Winthorp became a reverend and worked to eliminate all papist influence from the Church of England.In 1629 he emigrated to America where he became governor of Massachusetts.In his sermon A Model of Christian Charity from 1630, Winthorp explains what a harmonious community should be like through a series of questions and answers full of biblical quotations and examples and the use of archaic language.In this work Winthorp defines his community as a group of people devoted to Christ and bound by bonds of love whose aim is to find a place where they can process the true faith in order to better serve the Lord.From 1630 Winthorp kept a diary "Journals" which was published in 1790 where he intended to trace the signs of divine will in daily events.

Roger Williams (1603-1683)

Williams arrived in Massachusetts in 1631 after studying at Cambridge.However, his tolerant and egalitarian ideas make him unpopular in the eyes of Winthorp and he is forced to flee to Rhode Island where he founds his own community. Democrat and anti-imperialist Williams believes that the lands of the Native Americans should not be touched, has great respect for their culture and establishes friendly relations with them by learning their language.In this regard he wrote a treatise A key into the language of America, in 1634.The work provides descriptions of the Indians' way of life based on Williams' direct experience, who spent several months with them before founding his community. They are lively descriptions full of anecdotes and comments.

Mary Rowlandson (1636-1711)

A pastor's wife was kidnapped by Indians in 1676 during King Philip's War, the nickname of an Indian chief fighting to recover lands taken from his people, and freed after 11 weeks thanks to the payment of a ransom.Mary Rowlandson recounts this experience in A Narrative of the captivity and restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson of 1682, the narrative is full of edifying ideas as the author recognizes in the events the will of God.The autobiography was successful because it combined adventurous episodes with the description of historical behavior and a firm faith, elements that fascinated the Puritan public. The prose is realistic and precise, rich in biblical quotations. The prison is very hard for the woman also because of the thought that some of her relatives are in the same conditions as her.

Cotton Mather (1663-1728)

Mather is part of a dynasty of reverends and is related to John Cotton.After studying medicine, he began his career as a preacher and did so with a certain intransigence, also dedicating himself to practical works.He is a historian and author of Magnalia Christi Americana of 1702, where he intends to demonstrate the active presence of God in America.He astutely captures the spirit of Puritan events and is also the author of a treatise against witchcraft, The Wonders of the Invisible World, written in 1693.According to Mather, the Puritans would have occupied the lands where the devil reigned, who would like to take revenge. The author narrates the witchcraft trials that were held in Salem, he did not participate directly so he is not involved, and he specifies to approach the subject from the objective point of view of the historian.

Altri Generi Letterari

Still in the religious field, other authors choose to communicate their observations using two other literary genres: diaries and poetry.

Diari