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 76
... fire . In two cases , as I now remember , colonels led their regiments from the 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 ...
... fire . In two cases , as I now remember , colonels led their regiments from the 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 ...
Page 133
... . His novel of the murderous dentist , McTeague ( 1899 ) , vividly portrays the San Francisco that existed before the great earthquake and fire of 1906 . FROM AMERICAN NOTES Charles Dickens BOSTON To return to Boston THE GREAT CITIES.
... . His novel of the murderous dentist , McTeague ( 1899 ) , vividly portrays the San Francisco that existed before the great earthquake and fire of 1906 . FROM AMERICAN NOTES Charles Dickens BOSTON To return to Boston THE GREAT CITIES.
Page 173
... fire again some one asked whether the Mound - Builders were older than the Aztecs . When we once got upon the Mound - Builders we never willingly got away from them , and we were still conjecturing when we heard a loud splash in the ...
... fire again some one asked whether the Mound - Builders were older than the Aztecs . When we once got upon the Mound - Builders we never willingly got away from them , and we were still conjecturing when we heard a loud splash in the ...
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