Mark Twain – "The Celebrated Jumping Frogs of Calaveras County"

This work is comical, just as a good deal of Mark Twain's works. It is complete fiction, but it is very interesting, and shows something different from the Realist period than most people are used to seeing. Mark Twain basically wrote two stories when he wrote "The Celebrated Jumping Frogs of Calaveras County" (Twain). First, he wrote a man that had been asked by his friend to talk to town citizens about a man named Leonidas W. Smiley (Twain). In this story, the author describes that he asked a bartender who got Mr. Smiley confused with a Mr. Jim Smiley (Twain). This begins the second story, which is all about Jim Smiley (Twain). The second story talks about the fact that Jim Smiley was willing to bet on anything, and even though he did not normally have any idea what the outcome would actually be, he often won because of pure luck (Twain). It talks of a few different animals that Jim Smiley had that, though seemingly tame and meek, always managed to win whatever bet Smiley had on them (Twain). This work is Realist, because it is really about two friends conversing about an old one, which makes it in the moment and realistic (Twain). It is realistic that one could ask about a person they used to know, and the person that they asked happens to like telling tall tales (Twain). That person could have made up a tale like this one, and that goes to show that this story is realistic (Twain). This story is not Naturalistic, because this work has nothing to do with science or studying the reactions of different people (Twain). It is also not Regionalistic, because it has nothing to do with different regions of the United States (Twain). This work reflects some of society somewhat well, because it shows that some of the more rural towns still were places where everyone knew everyone else (Twain). It shows that they were all still friendly with each other and were willing to lend a helping hand (Twain). It does not have anything about religion, government, or nature, but there is a little about human nature (Twain). This work shows that some people like to have a lot of attention and that they will do ridiculous things such as making up insane stories, just so they will get all of the attention that they want to get (Twain). There is nothing about the American Dream in this work, because it is more of a made up story than anything else (Twain). There is no moral to it, and it shows nothing of people moving up in society (Twain). This work has no figurative language, although it consists of dialect, so it can get mildly confusing at times (Twain). There is nothing about a Hero in here, because the Hero ties in pretty closely to the American Dream, which is also not in this work (Twain). Mark Twain was an incredible author that wrote many works that are still influential to a number of people even today. Many people look up to him, and it is right that they should do this because he was such a good author.

Twain, Mark. ""The Celebrated Jumping Frogs of Calaveras County"" American Literature. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Douglas Fisher, Beverly A. Chin, and Jacqueline J. Royster. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2009. 496-502. Print.

Stephen Crane – from The Red Badge of Courage

This work is a very emotional work that can leave the reader with mixed feelings. This work is about a man while he is at war and how he is feeling while he is under fire (Crane). It is about a man that is furious about his inadequacies and the things that he can not do against the other men (Crane). In this work it describes that the man is not furious about the fact that there at men rushing at him in the smoke, but that he is furious about the rage and the feelings that are suffocating him (Crane). This work can show many different things about people, and it is very enlightening for people that are not in the military. People can take this different ways, because it shows a different side to people that is not normally shown when one reads works. This work fits in the Realism period, because it is realistic and shows how the man is feeling in the moment (Crane). It shows what he is thinking right now, instead of in the past or in the future (Crane). This work is somewhat Naturalistic, because of how this man is compared to so many different things (Crane). He is compared to things like subjects of scientific studies are compared to things, so that one can understand the relation (Crane). It is almost studying his feelings and what he wants to do to kill all of the men around him (Crane). It is studying him in a certain setting to see how he reacts and to see if the researchers could find that all people react in the same way to certain situations (Crane). This work is not Regionalistic, becuase it has nothing about certain places or how they are better than others (Crane). It is not a promotional work for a certain region (Crane). This work reflects society at that time period not very well (Crane). It shows that they were beginning to have a greater interest in science and how the human brain works, but it does not show current events, political issues, or opinions on global issues (Crane). It does not show what people were thinking. There was nothing about religion, government, or nature, but there is some about human nature (Crane). This work shows how frustrated humans get about their inadequacies (Crane). It shows the human nature behind the desire to be happy and not worried (Crane). There is not really anything about the American Dream, because this man is not getting anywhere in the world, and there is also not figurative language (Crane). Lastly, while there is no mention of a Hero, this man's Hero would be the perfect person that would not have dark clouds hanging over him and would have a gun that could do more than just one shot at a time before reloading (Crane). Crane wrote an interesting piece when he wrote this work, and there were mixed feelings over it. People were not sure how they should take it, and Stephen Crane may have hoped for that when he was writing it. He could have wanted it to be a work that made people think, and could have provoked a wide variety of emotions from a number of people.

Crane, Stephen. "From "The Red Badge of Courage"" American Literature. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Douglas Fisher, Beverly A. Chin, and Jacqueline J. Royster. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2009. 493. Print.

Kate Chopin — from The Awakening and "The Story of an Hour"

Kate Chopin was a radical author for her time, because she wrote of how women wished to be free (Chopin). She wrote of how women could do nothing except care for their husbands and children, and how often they wanted to just be free to live their own lives (Chopin). They did not want to have all of their decisions made for them, and they wanted to let their true emotions show (Chopin). Kate understood how those women felt, for she was a wife and a mother as well, although her time as a wife was cut short when her husband passed (Chopin). Her works were very controversial at the time, and often they went unpublished, because she could get no one to look at anything that radical and filthy (Chopin). After she had passed, when women were fighting for their rights to vote, someone found all of Chopin's works and published them, helping the women's cause (Chopin). This work definitely fits with the time period of Realism, because it is about the moment and what the women were feeling (Chopin). Her works showed a lot about women's true feelings, and that shows that her works were incredibly realistic (Chopin). These works were not Naturalistic, because they were not a calculated study of women and their feelings, it was just about letting the emotions run freely (Chopin). These works did not have any Regionalistic characteristics, because there was nothing about a certain place or how one region was any better than any other region (Chopin). These works show quite a lot about society at the time. They show that women of the time were often very unhappy with their lives, but that they could do nothing about it (Chopin). Even when Chopin wrote these works, no one took her seriously, and that shows that the men either did not care what the women were thinking, or they did not think that Chopin was right, so it was only her works that they did not care at all about (Chopin). There was nothing about religion, for a woman's feelings about her personal life do not necessarily always involve God (Chopin). There is nothing about government, because this problem did not stem from the government, it stemmed from stereotypes of the time (Chopin). There was nothing about nature, but human nature played a large role in these works (Chopin). These works showed that human nature is to let one's feelings out, but women of the time could only do that in private (Chopin). They show that when one is in a tough position, one will often bend to make everything work out well until they are bent so far they will break (Chopin). This shows the American Dream of women, to get their freedom from a life of boredom and pain (Chopin). There is no figurative language, and there is also nothing about a Hero (Chopin). Kate Chopin wrote radically for her time, but she was eventually recognized for her great talents. Many people look up to her, and she was an amazing and strong woman that deserves all of the credit that she gets. People really appreciate her straightforward style, and enjoy the fact that she was willing to speak her mind.

Chopin, Kate. ""The Awakening"/"The Story of an Hour"" American Literature. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Douglas Fisher, Beverly A. Chin, and Jacqueline J. Royster. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2009. 491+. Print.

Willa Cather – from O Pioneers! and "A Wagner Matinée"

Willa Cather often wrote about life on the prairie, for that is where she lived while she was young (Cather). In the beginning of her career, she wrote many works that portrayed the prairies as awful (Cather). She hated her prairie life and showed that all throughout her works (Cather). Later in her life, she changed her point of view and started portraying life on the prairie as a good thing (Cather). She realized that while life was hard on the prairie, it helped one become stronger (Cather). It called to ambitious people, and those people had to be extremely creative to survive (Cather). These works were definitely Realist, because they talked about things that happened in the past that were affecting the moment that they were in. The works were bursting with emotion, which makes them nothing like the Naturalist works of the time. There was no science involved, and science was almost irrelevant to them. This work was definitely Regionalist, because it was all about life on the prairies and how things were in the West (Cather). While in the beginning Cather wrote about the bad things on the prairie and the tragedies that befell many of the pioneers that traveled west, she eventually did write about the good things on the prairie (Cather). She began promoting it as a good thing, and that is characteristic of Regionalistic works of the time (Cather). This showed society of the time, because they had mixed feelings about the prairies. They did not know what to think, and often when something is not known, people automatically chalk it up as a bad thing. Some works of the time helped this opinion to grow, even when people did not really know what they were talking about. These works do not talk of religion or of the government, for the do not have necessarily as much importance when one is out on the prairie with no other human to be seen in the surrounding areas (Cather). Cather's works both talk about nature, and about how the prairie is a bleak landscape that is one color: brown (Cather). They talk of how life on the prairie is so hard because of the droughts or overwhelming rain (Cather)). Weather on the prairies were contradictions, and no one ever knew what they should expect when they were planting and cultivating their crops. There is a little about human nature, and how it is easily broken when one lives on the prairie (Cather). When one came from privilege but fell in love with a man that lived out on the prairie, it was often easier to fall apart, because on has to do everything for oneself, instead of having help (Cather). These works talk about the American Dream of expansion and having everything that one could ever want (Cather). There was no figurative language in the works, because they were both straightforward (Cather). There was also not a Hero in either of these works, for there was really not position for a Hero to come in (Cather). Willa Cather was an influential author about the prairie, and many people listened to what she wrote in her works.

Cather, Willa. ""O Pioneers!"/ "A Wagner Matinée"" American Literature. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Douglas Fisher, Beverly A. Chin, and Jacqueline J. Royster. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2009. 489+. Print.

Robert E. Lee – from "Letter to his Family"

Robert E. Lee was very important to the Civil War, and even before that, he did a great deal for the United States army. He was a very intelligent man that came from a prestigious family. When the Civil War was beginning, Lee was heartbroken (Lee). Lee did not want the United States to fall apart into a country that needed force to uphold its laws and its idea of brotherly love (Lee). Originally, President Lincoln requested that he be the general for the troops that were in the Union, but when Lee's home state of Virginia seceded, he decided that he could not fight against his home state (Lee). Lee decided to go fight for the South, because he could not handle fighting against his home state and his family that was there (Lee). He quickly moved to the top of the ranks, and he became general of the Confederate army (Lee). He did well for a while, but he eventually lost too much and had to surrender to the North (Lee). We have letters that he wrote to his family before the war, and in the letter to his son, he talks about the heartbreak that he was experiencing over the breaking up of the United States (Lee). This work is Realistic, because it talks about his feelings at that moment in time (Lee). It is not Naturalistic, because it does not evaluate or study humans or what was happening (Lee). It is not really Regionalistic, even though it discusses different regions of the United States, because it is not trying to promote a certain place over others (Lee). This reflects society at that period, because while many people may have thought a war was inevitable, they did not want one (Lee). While many people were upset about the treatment between the North and the South, they wanted a war even less. This work has nothing about religion, and not really much about the government (Lee). It has a little, because Lee talks about the fact that if they had a war, their government would dissolve into nothing (Lee). There is nothing about nature, and the only human nature was about a work that Lee had just read because his son had sent it to him (Lee). The American Dream is not really in this work, but Lee's American Dream could have been that the Union would not break up, which did not end up happening (Lee). There was no figurative language in Lee's letter to his son, and there was also nothing about a Hero (Lee). This work was a lot about Lee's feelings about the politics going on at the moment and what was going to happen to the Union more than anything else, and while he wished for there to not be a war, his wishes did not come true (Lee). He was a very honorable man that wanted the best for his country and the people in it, rather than wanting the best for himself or for personal gain (Lee). Lee was an incredible general and man, who did his best to preserve the country.

Lee, Robert E. "Letter to His Family." American Literature. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Douglas Fisher, Beverly A. Chin, and Jacqueline J. Royster. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2009. 382-85. Print.

Sojourner Truth – "And Ain‘t I a Woman?"

Sojourner Truth was a good orator as well as Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, but what gave her more of an impact was the fact that she was an African American, and a woman as well. Sojourner Truth fought very hard for rights for African Americans and for women, and she wanted to show the world that there was nothing different between them all (Truth). In her speech, she showed the world that many men were saying that women were delicate and needed help getting into carriages and getting over mud puddles, she was a woman and no one had ever helped her with any of that (Truth). She showed the world that as an African American slave, she had never gotten the benefits that the rest of women got (Truth). She showed that since she had to work as a slave, she had done hard work that many men in the North could not do, because she had no choice and had to do it (Truth). This work fits in the Realism period because it is in the moment and not about the past. It looks forward to the future and concentrates on what could happen (Truth). It is realistic, and she made realistic demands and proved her point based on things that she had gone through (Truth). It does not fit in the Naturalism period, because the speech was given with feeling and it showed the feelings of everyone (Truth). It was not scientific and did not study humans, so the Naturalists would not claim it as theirs (Truth). It is also not in the Regionalism period, because it is not based on a certain region of the United States that wants more attention (Truth). While this work does not really have anything to do with religion, it has a lot to do with government and different issues of the time period (Truth). This speech, while it does not outright attack the government, it is fighting to go against what the government had been saying (Truth). She wanted to get rights for African Americans and women alike, and to do that, she needed to go against the government. She wanted to be able to do everything that men could, because that is what she had been doing her entire life (Truth). This speech does not talk about nature, unless her working in the fields would count, and there is not much about human nature (Truth). One could say that it was about human nature, because she is trying to change ideas that had come to pass because of some original human nature (Truth). This also talks about the American Dream, because one of the most basic American Dreams is equal rights (Truth). She really wanted equal rights, not just for her, but for many other people as well. She was a minority, but she did not want to be treated as such (Truth). There was not any figurative language, and there is not much talk about the Hero, but the Hero would be the one to give them their rights (Truth). Sojourner Truth was an important orator who wanted equal rights for everyone and thought they were very important.

Truth, Sojourner. "And Ain't I a Woman?". Glencoe Literature. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Douglas Fisher, Beverly A. Chin, and Jacqueline J. Royster. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2009. 368-70. Print.

Anonymous – "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot," "Go Down, Moses," "Keep Your Hand on the Plow"

African Americans really wanted their freedom, and there are many ways that they would find to talk about it (Wilhelm). They made up many different songs that would discreetly talk about it (Wilhelm). They often did not come right out and say it, but the majority of their songs are completely about their freedom or their slavery. Their songs definitely belong in the Realism period. Their songs, while not necessarily realistic in all aspects, are Biblical and do tell stories of Biblical events that are real and true (Wilhelm). Their songs are in the moment, and do not concentrate much on the past (Wilhelm). A few songs tell of how they came over from Africa, but most of their songs talked about the slavery that they were in at that moment or the hope for a better future (Wilhelm). Their songs do not belong in the Naturalism period, because while they may involve nature, they do not talk about human beings as something else to study or about the decisions that humans make and why they do them. These songs could possibly fit into the Regionalism period, because they may have talked about features that are unique to that area, but I do not think the African Americans were concerned about getting their area of dwelling more attention. These literary works are very good about showing us things from that time period. They show us how awful slavery was, and they show us how desperate the African Americans were to get their freedom (Wilhelm). The works show us that the African Americans never lost hope or gave up, even though they were in horrible circumstances where they could not do anything wrong or they would get hurt, beaten, or even killed (Wilhelm). It reflects society in that time period because it shows that no one in the North completely knew what the slaves were going through, but the South did know and they turned a blind eye. Religion is definitely involved in these songs, because some of them are concentrated on events that happened in the Bible (Wilhelm). They wove religion in because they thought that they were like the Jews that had been trapped in slavery in Egypt for an extremely long amount of time (Wilhelm). The African Americans thought God would save them like he did the Jews, and that is why they chose some of the stories that fit their same situation (Wilhelm). There is nothing about government in these songs, and not really anything about nature (Wilhelm). There could be a little bit about human nature, because they show how much the African Americans hoped for their freedom and how desperate they were to get it (Wilhelm). The American Dream for them was almost the same, because they wanted their freedom more than anything (Wilhelm). There was also a lot of figurative language, because they called the South "Egypt", and the North was often either "heaven" or the "promised land" (Wilhelm). This was also about the stories of the Jews, because that was their situation as well (Wilhelm). The Hero was probably anyone that would save them, but there was nothing about the Hero in these songs. African Americans had a hard life as slaves, but they found ways to talk about their freedom and entertain themselves at the same time.

Anonymous. ""Swing Low, Sweet Chariot"/"Go Down, Moses"/"Keep Your Hand on the Plow"" American Literature. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Douglas Fisher, Beverly A. Chin, and Jacqueline J. Royster. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2009. 344-48. Print.