American Lit Midterm

"The Private History of a Campaign That Failed" – Mark Twain

• Key Events: A satirical account of Twain's brief experience in a Confederate militia during the Civil War. The young, inexperienced soldiers engage in minor skirmishes but ultimately disband after killing a man.

• Characters: The unnamed narrator (based on Twain), his fellow inexperienced Confederate recruits.

• Themes: The absurdity of war, youthful romanticism vs. harsh reality, the moral consequences of violence.

"The War Prayer" – Mark Twain

• Key Events: A congregation prays for victory in war, but a mysterious stranger (an angel) reveals the brutal consequences of their prayers. The people reject him as a madman.

• Characters: The unnamed stranger (possibly an angel), the congregation, the preacher.

• Themes: The hypocrisy of patriotism, the moral blindness of war, the contrast between religious faith and real-world consequences.

"The Real Thing" – Henry James

• Key Events: An artist hires a wealthy, aristocratic couple as models, expecting their authenticity to enhance his work. Instead, he finds their stiffness unsuitable for his needs, while his lower-class models perform better.

• Characters: The artist (narrator), Major and Mrs. Monarch, Miss Churm, Oronte.

• Themes: Illusions vs. reality, class distinctions, the artistic process.

"The Goophered Grapevine" – Charles W. Chesnutt

• Key Events: A northern businessman visits a Southern plantation to buy land and hears a former slave, Uncle Julius, tell a supernatural tale about a cursed grapevine.

• Characters: Uncle Julius, the unnamed narrator, Annie (his wife), McAdoo (former plantation owner).

• Themes: Folklore and superstition, exploitation and resistance, post-slavery economic struggles.

"The Yellow Wallpaper" – Charlotte Perkins Gilman

• Key Events: A woman suffering from postpartum depression is confined to a room by her husband. She becomes obsessed with the wallpaper, believing a trapped woman is inside it, leading to a psychological breakdown.

• Characters: The unnamed narrator, John (her husband), Jennie (his sister).

• Themes: Gender roles, mental illness, oppression, freedom vs. confinement.

"The Open Boat" – Stephen Crane

• Key Events: Four men struggle to survive after their boat capsizes. They battle exhaustion and nature's indifference, with one ultimately drowning just before reaching shore.

• Characters: The correspondent (protagonist), the captain, the cook, the oiler (Billie, who dies).

• Themes: Man vs. nature, fate vs. free will, camaraderie and survival.

"The Dynamo and the Virgin" – Henry Adams

• Key Events: The narrator compares the power of medieval religious symbols (the Virgin Mary) with the modern technological force of the dynamo, highlighting the transition from faith to scientific progress.

• Characters: The narrator (Adams), modern technological advancements.

• Themes: The clash between science and religion, historical change, modernization.

"Mrs. Spring Fragrance" – Sui Sin Far

• Key Events: Mrs. Spring Fragrance, a Chinese immigrant, helps a young couple unite in love while navigating her own cultural identity in America.

• Characters: Mrs. Spring Fragrance, Mr. Spring Fragrance, Laura, Kai Tzu.

• Themes: Cultural assimilation, love vs. tradition, identity.

Life Among the Piutes – Sarah Winnemucca

• Key Events: Winnemucca recounts the history and struggles of the Northern Paiute people, including conflicts with settlers and U.S. government policies.

• Characters: Sarah Winnemucca, her father (Chief Winnemucca), U.S. government officials.

• Themes: Native American displacement, racial injustice, cultural survival.

"Impressions of an Indian Childhood" – Zitkala-Ša

• Key Events: A Native American girl recalls her childhood experiences, including her mother’s teachings and the loss of cultural identity when she is sent to a boarding school.

• Characters: The narrator (young Zitkala-Ša), her mother.

• Themes: Colonialism, loss of identity, cultural heritage.

"School Days of an Indian Girl" – Zitkala-Ša

• Key Events: The narrator describes her painful experiences at a boarding school where Native children are forced to assimilate, including having her hair cut.

• Characters: Zitkala-Ša, her teachers, fellow Native American students.

• Themes: Forced assimilation, loss of cultural identity, resilience.

"The Atlanta Exposition Address" – Booker T. Washington

• Key Events: Washington delivers a speech urging Black Americans to focus on economic self-improvement rather than immediate social equality.

• Characters: Booker T. Washington, the Southern audience.

• Themes: Racial uplift through industry, accommodationism, Black economic independence.

Trifles – Susan Glaspell

• Key Events: While investigating a murder, two women uncover evidence of the wife’s motive (abuse), but the male authorities dismiss their observations as trivial.

• Characters: Mrs. Hale, Mrs. Peters, Mr. Hale, Sheriff Peters, John Wright (victim), Mrs. Wright (killer).

• Themes: Gender roles, justice, female solidarity.

"The Chrysanthemums" – John Steinbeck

• Key Events: Elisa, a neglected farm wife, briefly feels excitement when a traveler shows interest in her flowers, only to realize she has been manipulated.

• Characters: Elisa Allen, Henry Allen, the traveling tinker.

• Themes: Gender roles, loneliness, unfulfilled potential.

"Sweat" – Zora Neale Hurston

• Key Events: A hardworking Black woman, Delia, is tormented by her abusive husband, Sykes. He brings a rattlesnake to scare her, but it ends up killing him instead.

• Characters: Delia, Sykes.

• Themes: Domestic abuse, female empowerment, karma.

"Battle Royal" – Ralph Ellison

• Key Events: A young Black man is forced into a brutal boxing match for white entertainment before delivering a speech on racial progress.

• Characters: The unnamed narrator, white businessmen, fellow Black boxers.

• Themes: Racism, power, illusion of progress.

"A Good Man is Hard to Find" – Flannery O’Connor

• Key Events: A family road trip turns deadly when they encounter an escaped convict, the Misfit, who kills them.

• Characters: The grandmother, the Misfit, Bailey (her son), the children.

• Themes: Good vs. evil, grace, hypocrisy.

Death of a Salesman – Arthur Miller

• Key Events: Willy Loman, a struggling salesman, faces the collapse of his dreams and takes his own life.

• Characters: Willy Loman, Biff, Happy, Linda.

• Themes: The American Dream, disillusionment, identity.

"Babylon Revisited" – F. Scott Fitzgerald

• Key Events: A reformed alcoholic, Charlie, tries to regain custody of his daughter but is haunted by his past mistakes.

• Characters: Charlie Wales, Honoria, Marion.

• Themes: Regret, redemption, the past vs. present.

"Barn Burning" – William Faulkner

• Key Events: A young boy, Sarty, struggles with his loyalty to his arsonist father, Abner Snopes. When Abner tries to burn another barn, Sarty warns the owner and runs away.

• Characters: Sarty Snopes, Abner Snopes, Major de Spain.

• Themes: Loyalty vs. morality, class struggle, justice.

"Howl" – Allen Ginsberg

• Key Events: A long, free-form poem that critiques American society and celebrates counterculture, detailing the experiences of disillusioned youth and mental health struggles.

• Characters: "The best minds of my generation" (artists, misfits, rebels), Carl Solomon.

• Themes: Rebellion, madness, industrial dehumanization, sexuality, spirituality.

On the Road – Jack Kerouac

• Key Events: Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty travel across America, experiencing jazz, drugs, love, and self-discovery. Their journeys represent the Beat Generation’s search for meaning.

• Characters: Sal Paradise (narrator), Dean Moriarty, Marylou, Carlo Marx.

• Themes: Freedom, the American Dream, spontaneity, counterculture.

"Going to Meet the Man" – James Baldwin

• Key Events: A racist sheriff, Jesse, recalls witnessing a brutal lynching as a child, linking his racism and violent sexual desires to that formative event.

• Characters: Jesse, his wife, Black victims.

• Themes: Racism, power, sexual violence, childhood trauma.

"The Man Who Was Almost a Man" – Richard Wright

• Key Events: A 17-year-old boy, Dave, believes owning a gun will make him a man. He accidentally shoots a mule and, instead of facing consequences, runs away to prove his independence.

• Characters: Dave Saunders, his parents, Mr. Hawkins.

• Themes: Maturity, race and class struggles, illusion of power.