"American Literary Masters" by Leon H. Vincent is a collection of literary essays written in the early 20th century. This work examines the contributions of several significant American authors to the literary landscape over a transformative fifty-year period, focusing on figures like Washington Irving, William Cullen Bryant, Edgar Allan Poe, and Nathaniel Hawthorne. The essays provide insights into the lives, characters, and literary styles of these masters, reflecting on how their works
shaped American literature. The opening of the book presents a comprehensive preface that sets the stage for the ensuing studies of prominent American authors, beginning with Washington Irving. Vincent notes the importance of these authors in defining an important half-century of American literary life, starting with Irving's "A History of New York" published in 1809. He acknowledges influences from modern French criticism in his writing approach. The text introduces Irving's biographical details, his early struggles, his literary ambitions, and the critical reception of his works, painting a portrait of a figure who significantly contributed to American letters while navigating the complexities of his time. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
Washington Irving -- William Cullen Bryant -- James Fenimore Cooper -- George Bancroft -- William Hickling Prescott -- Ralph Waldo Emerson -- Edgar Allan Poe -- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow -- John Greenleaf Whittier -- Nathaniel Hawthorne -- Henry David Thoreau -- Oliver Wendell Holmes -- John Lothrop Motley -- Francis Parkman -- Bayard Taylor -- George William Curtis -- Donald Grant Mitchell -- James Russell Lowell -- Walt Whitman.
Credits
Charlene Taylor, Charlie Howard, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
Reading Level
Reading ease score: 60.8 (8th & 9th grade). Neither easy nor difficult to read.
