Main Currents in American Thought: An Interpretation of American Literature from the Beginnings to 1920

1927. Part Three of Three. The Beginnings of Critical Realism in America covers the period from 1860 to 1920. Introduces The Great Revolution: A New America in the Making: Rise of capitalistic industrialism submerging the older agrarianism, the Enlightenment, the Jacksonian frontier; Aristocracy Dead: The principle of democracy accepted, yet driving toward a plutocracy. A middle-class, urban civilization; Cleavages: Western agrarianism; Eastern capitalism. The South confused, bitter, hesitant. Expansion of the frontier and the cities. The swift extension of the psychology of the city; Changing Patterns of Thought: From the frontier came the doctrine of preemption, exploitation, progress; From the impact of science came the dissipation of the Enlightenment and a spirit of realism; From European proletarian philosophies came a new social theory; and Certain Drifts: to unity, to realism, to criticism. A wonderful account of the genesis and development in American letters of certain germinal ideas that have come to be reckoned traditionally American-how they came into being here, how they were opposed, and what influence they have exerted in determining the form and scope of our ideals and institutions. See other titles by this author available from Kessinger Publishing. Other volumes in this set are ISBN(s): Part 1, 1417908157; Part 2, 1417908165.