Men of Letters in the Early Republic: Cultivating Forums of Citizenship (Published by the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture and the University of North Carolina Press) - Softcover

Kaplan, Catherine O'Donnell

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0807858536 ISBN 13: 9780807858530

Publisher: Omohundro Institute and UNC Press, 2008

Synopsis

In the aftermath of the Revolutionary War, after decades of intense upheaval and debate, the role of the citizen was seen as largely political. But as Catherine O'Donnell Kaplan reveals, some Americans saw a need for a realm of public men outside politics. They believed that neither the nation nor they themselves could achieve virtue and happiness through politics alone. Imagining a different kind of citizenship, they founded periodicals, circulated manuscripts, and conversed about poetry, art, and the nature of man. They pondered William Godwin and Edmund Burke more carefully than they did candidates for local elections and insisted other Americans should do so as well.

Kaplan looks at three groups in particular: the Friendly Club in New York City, which revolved around Elihu Hubbard Smith, with collaborators such as William Dunlap and Charles Brockden Brown; the circle around Joseph Dennie, editor of two highly successful periodicals; and the Anthologists of the Boston Athenaeum. Through these groups, Kaplan demonstrates, an enduring and influential model of the man of letters emerged in the first decade of the nineteenth century.

About this title

Book Description:

"Catherine O'Donnell Kaplan brings into focus the social and literary worlds of the American Republic's first generation of intellectuals. Her lively portraits of Elihu Hubbard Smith, Joseph Dennie, and the Boston Anthologists depict how their elite cultural aspirations at once complemented and conflicted with their varied commitments to the public good. Anyone interested in the birth of American national literature should read (and enjoy) this excellent book."--Ruth Bloch, University of California, Los Angeles

About the Author:

Catherine O'Donnell Kaplan is assistant professor of history at Arizona State University.

About this edition

• Publisher: Omohundro Institute and UNC Press
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 0807858536
• ISBN 13: 9780807858530
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 256