Literature of the Reconstruction

1865 - 1919

What was the "Reconstruction Era"?■Policies implemented regarding

the South between 1863 and 1877■Nation was focused on winning

the Civil War, abolishing slavery, defeating the Confederacy, reconstructing the nation and amending the US Constitution

■Abraham Lincoln was major policymaker until his assassination in 1863

■Reconstruction began in each state when federal troops controlled most of the state

Republican majority

■ In 1865 President Andrew Johnson broke decisively with the Radical Republican faction in Congress.

■He announced that Reconstruction had been accomplished as soon as the states repudiated slavery and secession

■Republicans disagreed, almost impeached him

■New legislation put army in charge held new elections allowing black men vote

Other Challenges to the Nation after the War:

■Increased number of religious denominations increased national tensions

■New scientific theories challenged previously held ideas about social order

■Many different social groups were intersecting: African Americans, slaves and free citizens, Euro-Americans, and indigenous people and their ways of life were changing

The Post Civil War Task

■Reconcile populations■Reaffirm the original vision of the

New World■Determine the societal role of freed

slaves, indigenous Americans, women and recent immigrants

■Produce a society faithful to the intent of the Constitution

Role of Women

■Established themselves as the backbone of anti-slavery movement

■Developed administrative and political skills

■Became accomplished speakers and writers

■Identified with the condition of blacks■Gained more independence and

experience through the demands of war ■Developed hospitals, schools, recreational

centers and other institutions

Changes in Economic Structure

■Industrial expansion changed plantation system from slavery to sharecropping and tenant farming.

■First transcontinental railroad 1869 built by exploited Asians and blacks

■Opened up the frontier and the availability of produce, raw materials and finished goods

■Changed nation from small towns to urban metropolises

A Decade of Reconstruction

■1867 to 1877■Reconstruction Act - struck

down codes that restricted blacks

■Freedmen's Bureau- northerners established schools to train freed slaves

■Constitutional Amendments■13th - outlawed slavery (1865)■14th - equal protection for African

Americans (1868)■15th - right to vote for black men (1870)

End of Reconstruction

■Vigilante groups such as Ku Klux Klan embarked on a wave of brutal suppression ignored by federal government

■1877 return of Democrats to power reversed previous gains made by blacks

■Withdrawal of federal troops in south reversed protective legislation for African Americans

Reasons for Downfall

■ After the war, abolitionists turned attention to women's rights, pacifism, temperance

■Suffragists angry that black men could vote and not women -- withdrew support

■Abolitionist leaders aged, died■Influx of European labor in

north took away jobs and hope for social mobility for blacks

"Writing Things Right"

■Throughout history Americans have used literature to represent the sentiment of the times both politically and socially

■Most popular literature in America taught and confirmed social values

■African American writers understood this and tried to produce work that both pleased and taught

The Role of African American Literature of the Reconstruction Period■Correct historical perceptions

that African Americans were not intellectually or creatively capable

■Confirm creative genius ■Document and shape social,

political and spiritual hopes for African Americans

Slave Narratives to Personal Testimony■After the war (postbellum)

narratives described rugged individualism and the" American Dream"

■Concentrated on the lessons learned from slavery

■Not all writers had been slaves - some literature instead reflected conditions of segregation and persecution

■Used as a model for overcoming past to arrive at a better future

"Progress Report" Autobiographies■Personal accounts by those who

were on their way to success but had not arrived

■Used to inspire and instruct others

■Used to quell fear of whites that blacks would seek revenge for wrongs

■Instructed blacks to buy into the American Dream

African American literature and literacy ■With more schools opening for

blacks need for relevant texts grew■Texts offered reading, writing,

arithmetic and vocational skills■Also needed texts to express

history, position and hopes of African Americans

■Biographies about notable blacks were used to show both blacks and whites what the African American was capable of

Popular African American Literature

■Did not limit readership to race, class or culture

■Wrote literature accessible to all

■Imitated and revised styles and themes of white writers

■Used the same styles and wrote in the same genres as white writers

Important Writers of this Period

■Booker T. Washington■Ida B. Wells-Barnett■W.E.B Du Bois■James Weldon Johnson■Paul Laurence Dunbar

Booker T. Washington

■Up From SlaveryEmbraced by blacks as a guide to a better future.He felt that the way to peace was for whites

to embrace the blacks' desire for economic opportunities, and for blacks to respect the whites' desire for social separation of the races.

Urged fellow African Americans to accept status quo, and work gradually to improve themselves and prove themselves valuable, productive members of society.

Ida B. Wells-Barnett 1862 - 1931Best known as an investigative journalist who reported on lynching in a factual, courageous,and consciousness- raising style. She was a literary activist who wrote stirring essays to inform and persuade people to demand equal rights. She wanted to write for people who had little or no school training to describe their problems in a simple, helpful way.

W.E.B. Du Bois 1868-1963

"Renaissance Man"Most multifaceted and influential writer thatblack America ever produced.Published sociology and history of African American people Believed that ideas not slogans were the way to get rid of bigotry. Believed in the "ideal of human brotherhood"Established the Niagara movement which became the NAACP.

James Weldon Johnson 1871 -1938Dedicated to helping black

people he became known as an author, politician, critic, journalist, poet, educator, lawyer, songwriter, and earlycivil rights activist. Johnson is remembered best for his writing, which includes novels, poems, and collections of folklore. In 1900, he wrote the "Negro National Anthem" - "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" with his brother.

Paul Laurence Dunbar 1872 - 1906■Known as black Poet Laureate■Lively and cheerful verse■Strong use of dialect and idiom■Described life of blacks ■Often criticized as a black artist

co-opted by white media hype, a poet who by singing "serenely sweet to whites" only postponed the realization in his words: "I know why the caged bird sings."