I've learned a lot over the quarter on antebellum American Literature.

1. In particular, I will probably read more pre-1860 literature. I usually read post-1970 American literature, usually from the last decade or so. This class has definitely opened my eyes to the world of earlier literature, both regarding America and written in America.

The outcomes from American literature that are most likely to stick with me throughout life include outcomes number 3, 4 and 8.

As we reflect on this past quarters journals I have noticed one of many things that will stick with me in the future.

1.To increase your understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment of literature in general and early American Literature in particular

3 Develop an appreciation of the skill and creativity of diverse authors of early American literature;

My appreciation for these writers has grown immensely. I forget how privileged we are today, being taught how to read and write. Most of the people we read about had to fight for their education or they were born privileged by their families. I have learned to enjoy what these people were saying, especially after learning the historical context. My appreciation, especially for the poets has grown. I often forget that most of the poems today are written in the same way they were back then. It very nice to see the standards of writing being carried into today’s work.

My first outcome is number one. As we moved along this class offered opportunities to learn and grow in the study of literature; the example that comes to mind is "Bartleby, the Scrivener". As I read it I took cues from the notes of the publishers and followed their road of Christian morals in the modern world as a theme. It's not the publishers fault though, I was just wrong and I didn't work hard enough to involve myself in the story.

1.To increase your understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment of literature in general and early American Literature in particular;

These three learning outcomes are most likely to stick with me moving forward to future courses and in other aspects of my life:
1. Develop awareness of the implications of race and/or culture when looking at moral problems and societal conflicts between pre-Colombian and antebellum eras in American as projected through early American Literature.

1. Develop an appreciation of the skill and creativity of diverse authors of early American literature.

Each of the writers we had this quarter had differing levels of skill and creativity, but from these readings I have learned how to look for this skill in the writing, even if I do not like it. I do not know how to describe this, but I do have examples.

The writers of the past week (Melville, Davis, and Whitman) have all been thoroughly 'aesthetic' writers. I think that most people would consider them, and perhaps the writers of the past two or three weeks, the first authors of real literature that we have read in this course. I think that the story Bartleby, THe Scrivener, didn't necessarily have any underlying message that the Melville intended to convey to the audience. It is literature for entertainment, and that is OK. Davis' writing has a more definite purpose.