Authors struggled intensely to write poetry. "The Hartford Wits," Dwight,
Barlow, and Trumbull, wrote a vast quantity of verse. The most of this is
artificial, and reveals the influence of the classical school of Alexander
Pope. Freneau wrote a few short lyrics which suggest the romantic school of
Wordsworth.
The American literature of this period shows in the main the influence of
the older English classical school. America produced no authors who can
rank with the contemporary school of English writers, such as Burns,
Wordsworth, and Coleridge. Of all the writers of this age, Franklin alone
shows an undiminished popularity with readers of the twentieth century.
Three events in the history of the period are epoch-making in the world's
history; (_a_) the securing of independence through the Revolutionary War,
(_b_) the adoption of a constitution and the formation of a republic, and
(_c_) the magnitude of the work of the pioneer settlers, who advanced
steadily west from the coast, and founded commonwealths beyond the
Alleghanies.
REFERENCES FOR FURTHER STUDY
HISTORICAL
The course of English events (reign of George III.) may be traced in any of
the English histories mentioned on p.
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