Neoclassicism Review

I thought that it might be a good idea to create an overview of some of the neoclassicism notes from class:

Neoclassicism was an urban movement that looked back at the classical world (Greeks/Romans). This "age of reason" marked a huge shift because the world became understandable. Characteristics of neoclassicism include simplicity, balance, moderation, clarity, order, logic, and wit. Deism was an intellectual movement of the time; the tenets of Deism were:

1. Presence of the universe itself proves the existence of God
2. Man is not perfect, but perfectible
3. Nature- value increases (human nature)
4. Truth/Virtue
5. Evil is that which destroys happiness
6. Duty to God
7. Education and Science are essential
8. Civil/Religious Liberty
9. No human authority

Many of the pieces that we read in class were propagandistic, emphasizing that revolution was the only available option. The four major audiences for this propaganda were nationals, allies, neutrals, and enemies.

The first work was London Correspondence 1757-1775 by Benjamin Franklin. The format of this piece was a numbered list (order) of rules to turn a great empire to a small one. Franklin understood his audience which was reflected in his cake analogy and his statement that he was a "modern simpleton." Franklin uses wit when describing how England treats the colonies. He wants this letter to be used to evoke political change- the two intended audiences were the neutrals and the enemies. Franklin uses logic to sway the neutrals and demoralizes the enemy by describing the ways in which Britain has failed to take care of the colonies, although this information is very slanted. It should also be noted that Ben Franklin was a deist and several tenets can also be found in this letter.

Next we read the speech "Give me Liberty or Give me Death." This speech was very emotional, however, it is disguised as logic. Henry uses rhetorical questions throughout the speech and improves clarity through the use of short bursts rather than long drags. One major argument that Patrick Henry makes is that we must follow the divine order which is a nonsense argument because it cannot be proven wither way. He creates an "either-or" situation involving too much absolutism to be a logical argument. We discussed in class today that the intended audience was the neutrals while the nationals and allies were more minor audiences.  

Characteristics of the Declaration of Independence (Thomas Jefferson) include: clarity, order, and logic. The declaration creates order with a bulleted list with repetition of length and form. The audience also leaves with the feeling that the result (revolution) will be inevitable. The audience in this case would be primarily the enemy which is demoralized by the list of complaints. It begins to raise the questions of whether they are responsible or not. The piece also has a nationalistic view.

In Thomas Paine's American Crisis there is a major focus on the allies and the enemies. He frowns upon the "summer soldier" and the "sunshine patriot" (consonance) who shrink from service to the country. He tries to convey to the allies that America will be the winning side come spring. In "The American Crisis," Paine is able to make a retreat sound glorious which demoralizes the enemy.  

Next, we discussed three poems by Phyllis Wheatley. "On being brought from Africa to America" says that she is glad that she was taken to America. A theme of the poem is the deistic tenet that man is not perfect but perfectible. "On Imagination" is a pre-romantic poem uses a progression of mood to finally build up to her sabotaging her poem in the end. (not perfect) 

Letters from an American Farmer by J. Hector St. John Crevecoeur is a nationalistic attempt to define the nature of America. America is seen as the "land of opportunities" because it does not have the same rigid class restrictions as do European countries.  

The final writer who's works we have read was Philip Freneau. As with the works of Phyllis Wheatley, Freneau's poems could be considered pre-romantic. He describes more of nature, written in response to beauty. The poem "The Republic Genius of Europe" reinforced the idea of the inheritance of the classic model. 

I think that this is a pretty good outline of what we have covered, but please comment if I missed anything.

-Kelsey