Writing and Postcolonialism in the Early RepublicThe author identifies six texts that particularly exhibit postcolonial qualities: Irving's Knickerbocker's History of New York, Brown's Arthur Mervyn, Murray's The Gleaner, Brackenridge's Modern Chivalry, Tyler's The Algerine Captive, and Watterston's The Lawyer. In each of these books a fictional protagonist attempts to write about the American experience using the language and genres left over from the colonial period. As the fictional authors fail, Watts suggests, we see the real authors challenging and subverting the lingering colonial culture and its centrality to republican versions of the new nation. In the terms of contemporary postcolonial scholarship from Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, these early American authors worked to decolonize American writing by freeing it from vestigial British conventions. |
Contents
Royall Tylers The Algerine Captive | 73 |
FOUR | 95 |
George Watterstons The Lawyer | 122 |
EPILOGUE | 165 |
Notes | 181 |
Works Consulted | 203 |
Common terms and phrases
Algerine Captive American writing author-narrator author-narrator's Brackenridge BRACKENRIDGE'S MODERN CHIVALRY British culture Brown Brown's Arthur Mervyn challenge chapter character Charles Brockden Charles Brockden Brown claims COLONIAL DISCOURSE complex conventional corrupt critique decolonization democratic demonstrates didactic discussion early republic eighteenth-century elite empire essay European explore Farrago Federalist fiction of authorship fictional author Fisher Ames gender genres Gleaner historians historiography Homi K identity ideology imperial inherited Irving Irving's John Underhill Knickerbocker Knickerbocker's language lawyer literary Looby means MENTAL COMMONWEALTH metafiction models Modern Chivalry modes monovocal Morcell Morcell's Murray Murray's narrative narrator nation nature nial NOTES TO PAGES novel political polyphony post-Revolutionary postcolonial public sphere reader readership reading recognizes represents republic of letters republican REPUTATION OF LITERATURE reveals Revolution revolutionary rhetoric satire Second World social Stevens story suggests SYLLOGISTICALLY FATAL WORLD Teague textuality tion Tyler Updike Updike's Vigillius voice volume Washington Irving Watterston women WORTHY FEDERAL CITIZEN