American Literature Post Civil War

Having seen the horrors of the Civil War firsthand as a Union camp hospital volunteer, Walt Whitman --

• kept his optimistic attitude about the American character

• became a bitter old man

• was crushed by the death of his brother

• decided to enlist in the army himself

Tags

CCSS.RI.11-12.10

CCSS.RI.6.10

CCSS.RI.7.10

CCSS.RI.8.10

CCSS.RI.9-10.10

In response to the Civil War, Melville did not --

• believe the fighting was both heroic and useless

• write a great novel about the Civil War

• write war poems that reveal his belief that humanity was basically evil

• write war poems that show a respect for the soldiers on both sides

Tags

CCSS.RI.11-12.9

CCSS.RI.9-10.9

CCSS.RL.11-12.9

CCSS.RL.9-10.9

CCSS.RL.K.6

Because few major American writers fought in the war, --

• most people thought they were cowards and unpatriotic

• they did not pay attention to the war

• there were no realistic accounts of the war

• very little important poetry and fiction emerged directly from this war

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.1

A great novel of the Civil War was not written until long after the war had ended because --

• the form of the realistic novel had not yet been fully developed

• no one wanted to read a novel about the Civil War

• none of the American writers were willing to go to the battlefields

• the writers who saw the fighting firsthand were not willing to write about it

Tags

CCSS.RI.8.1

CCSS.RI.8.8

CCSS.RL.11-12.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

CCSS.RL.9-10.1

The naturalistic novel has all the following characteristics except --

• ordinary, everyday people as characters

• a belief that human behavior was determined by biology and environment

• the view that life was a grim, losing battle

• larger-than-life, idealistic heroes

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.3

CCSS.RL.5.7

CCSS.RL.6.3

CCSS.RL.6.9

After the Civil War, realistic writers sought to --

• use romance to entertain readers and reveal truth

• accurately portray real life without filtering it through Romanticism

• heal the wounds of the war

• soften the harsh edges of reality

Although regional writers realistically described the speech patterns and mannerisms of a relatively small geographical area, these writers --

• were even more realistic in showing life as a losing battle

• were most interested in the impact of social forces on people

• were often unrealistic in depicting character and social environment

• mocked the people they described

Naturalistic writers often showed human life as --

• crude and subject to the natural laws of the universe

• all working out for the best in the end

• an unlimited journey of body and spirit

• determined by a person's own choice

The psychological novels of Henry James might best be described as --

• showing people driven by animal instrincts

• showing the characters' inner lives

• tending to describe innocent Europeans

• all taking place in the United States

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.3

CCSS.RL.5.7

CCSS.RL.6.3

CCSS.RL.6.9

The writings of an ironist may typically --

• describe the war and its outcome

• tell stories with happy endings

• show the indifference of the universe

• show how the universe helps people achieve their goals

Tags

CCSS.RL.11-12.4

CCSS.RL.6.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4