What is the first literary period studied in American literature?

Answer 1

The English language is derived from the Anglo-Saxon languages, a kind of early German, brought to England in the 5th century. Our earliest example of written Anglo-Saxon (or Old English) is the 9th century poem Beowulf. Perhaps there were literary efforts before that but if so, all traces are gone.

Answer 2

The first literary period studied in American literature is often referred to as the Colonial Period, which covers literature produced in the early American colonies from the early 1600s to the late 1700s. This period includes works such as early colonial narratives, sermons, journals, and exploration narratives that reflect the experiences of the settlers in the New World.

Answer 3

This is a tough question for several reasons. For one, by "literature" is the questioner including all written narratives or does he have something more specific in mind like the novel. I'll presume the former.

The primary reason I find the question difficult is that some of the earliest writings of a civilization are often recordings of pre-existing stories handed down orally. These writings could be considered the "beginning" of literature. Some of these have survived, but there are probably writings that have not survived. How would we know if there are earlier lost examples of literature? With this uncertainty it's difficult to know exactly when literature began in the western tradition.

With all that in mind, I think that Homer, the ancient greek poet to whom the Illiad and the Oddessy are attributed to, is a good candidate for the beginning of western lit. The wikipedia article on Homer is well referenced and gives dates for him (or the work attrubuted to him) ranging from late 9th century BCE to 6th century BCE. I suggest looking up the sources.

However, I emphasize again that there is a difference between the oldest known written work and the beginning of literature. Even if the Homeric poems are not truly the beginning they are without a doubt a major root of western literature and deserve attention.

Answer 4

Traditionally the inventors of the short story are Edgar Allan Poe in America and Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol in Europe. Really however the short story has been around since the beginning of writing and these authors merely started a fad.

Answer 5

it begin in 9158 when World War 1 started!

Answer 6

The historical novel was further popularized in the 19th century by writers classified as Romantics.

By. Austin Maharath.