America: Classics that Help Define the NationThe Modern Library presents America, the fifth in its series of anthologies, following Christmas Classics, Mothers, The Raven and the Monkey's Paw, and Love. This original collection features classic songs, poems, stories, speeches, and extracts from works that have helped define America--the nation and the people--and establish its national character. America begins with the Compact the Mayflower pilgrims made before landing at Plymouth Rock, then sets out across the succeeding centuries to present a few of the great moments in American history as captured in words. From the thrill of "Paul Revere's Ride" to the wonders described in the journals of Lewis and Clark, from the political fire of Thoreau's Civil Disobedience and the drama of Frederick Douglass's narrative of slavery to the lyricism and power of the "Battle-Hymn of the Republic," this is a collection that reaches deep into the history of America and the fabric of the country. Ulysses S. Grant describes the battle of Shiloh; contemporary chroniclers paint portraits of legendary figures like Jesse James, Wild Bill Hickok, and Billy the Kid. Great novelists like Dickens, Dreiser, Melville, James, Sinclair, and Cather describe their Americas. Five famous speeches represent the powerful oratorical tradition of American public life, and songs and anthems like "Yankee Doodle" and "America the Beautiful" round out the collection. This anthology attempts to portray America's past and what made the country what it is today, drawing on some of the great writers whose words have inspired and moved millions. |
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Page 50
... field hand , and a whipping is the penalty of not being in the field at sunrise , unless a slave has special permission from his or her master to the contrary - a permission which they seldom get , and one that gives to him that gives ...
... field hand , and a whipping is the penalty of not being in the field at sunrise , unless a slave has special permission from his or her master to the contrary - a permission which they seldom get , and one that gives to him that gives ...
Page 76
... field on first hearing the whistle of the enemy's bullets . In these cases the colonels were constitutional cowards , unfit for any military posi- tion ; but not so the officers and men led out of danger by them . Better troops never ...
... field on first hearing the whistle of the enemy's bullets . In these cases the colonels were constitutional cowards , unfit for any military posi- tion ; but not so the officers and men led out of danger by them . Better troops never ...
Page 98
... fields were deserted . The men had flocked to a neighboring village to do their week's trading , and the women were ... field with his gleaming little new rifle on his shoulder , she called out gayly to him , " Chéri ! Chéri ! " But ...
... fields were deserted . The men had flocked to a neighboring village to do their week's trading , and the women were ... field with his gleaming little new rifle on his shoulder , she called out gayly to him , " Chéri ! Chéri ! " But ...
Contents
Preface | 3 |
The Character of George Washington by Thomas Jefferson | 21 |
From The Oregon Trail The Frontier by Francis Parkman | 33 |
Copyright | |
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Common terms and phrases
American arms army battle bayou beautiful Bill Billy the Kid Blue Bluff boys Bret Harte brown Buell cabin called camp Captain Chéri Civil command Creek dark dead death door enemy eyes face feet feller fire Folle forest Fort Sumner freedmen frog front Garrett give grave Gray hand Harlem houses hundred hunters Hurrah Hurstwood Indian Jesse James John Burns judgment day Julia Ward Jurgis knew land lived look marching McClernand meat miles Mississippi morning Mountains nation Negro never night officers once Pat Garrett Pete Maxwell prairie river Sandtown Shelby Foote Sherman Shiloh side singing slaves Smiley star-spangled banner stood story street Tennessee Tennessee's Partner thing thought took town trees troops W.E.B. Du Bois Waiting the judgment Washington wilderness window women