FRtR Outlines American Literature Democratic Origins and Revolutionary Writers, 1776-1820 > Neoclassism: epic, mock epic and satire An Outline of American Literature by Kathryn VanSpanckeren Democratic Origins and Revolutionary Writers, 1776-1820: Neoclassism: epic, mock epic and satire Index Previous Chapter Next Chapter Unfortunately, "literary" writing was not as simple and direct as political writing. When trying to write poetry, most educated authors stumbled into the pitfall of elegant neoclassicism. The epic, in particular, exercised a fatal attraction. American literary patriots felt sure that the great American Revolution naturally would find expression in the epic a long, dramatic narrative poem in elevated language, celebrating the feats of a legendary hero. Many writers tried but none succeeded. Timothy Dwight (1752- 1817), one of the group of writers known as the Hartford Wits, is an example. Dwight, who eventually became the president of Yale University, based his epic, The Conquest of Canaan (1785), on the Biblical story of Joshua's struggle to enter the Promised Land. Dwight cast | |
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