Shannon Beiser Lit 331-w2012 Professor John Gosney 11 January 2012

What is an American?

What is the most amazing thing about this question is that the answer is never the same. What government, society, or personal beliefs describe as an American is dynamic based on when an individual was born, what the cultural backgrounds of that individual are, and a hundred different other factors. Discussing what it means to be American at the dawn of American culture is the definition at its most basic, most pure from the perspective of the Europeans. It would take a lot more research for this author to understand what life was like for Native Americans at that time, that was not covered in American history in high school or college. Being American is more or less than living within the boarders and, at times, less than having legal citizenship, being an American is more about belief of an ideal. According to both authors being discussed hard work and faith are the epitome of the American spirit. In some cases it leads to success and in others, failure. In either case the ideals and goals were the same. Survive. They wanted to succeed, to create a life based on freedom, hard work, determination , and faith. The authors describe horrific conditions that are wild in the most extreme sense of the world. Although Creveceur's piece was written later than Bradford's they both maintain the wild beauty of the American landscape. Imagine being blind folded and dropped into an inhabited place where the natives are unable to communicate with you and all you have, all you know about survival is useless. You are with 100 people that share a basic ideological link with you but you are all diverse in your intelligence, strength, skills, and abilities. This is the situation that the pioneers in

Bradford's letters were in. How beautifully terrifying. Bradford's tale was one of woe with a hint of hope at the end. The travelers were sick, cold, hungry, alone, and afraid. They came to America with the promise of freedom. To the persecuted this promise, this gift of hope, would be like a drug that caused the user to be blinded to the full consequences of their move. Being thus passed the vast ocean, and a sea of troubles before in their preparation (as may be remembered by that which went before), they had now no friends to welcome them, nor inns to entertain or refresh their weatherbeaten bodies, no houses or much less towns to repair to, to seek for succor. (Baym p 61) This quote demonstrates what most of would expect when going someplace new, there would be expectations of some sort of familiarness. Not having that would be such a shock. The fact that these pioneers didn't step off the boat, look around, and then walk back on and sail home is a credit to their embracing the American spirit. These pioneers struggled and worked and eventually, after losing nearly half of their numbers, were helped by the natives that once attempted to shoot them. No matter what the cause, they survived, they made a change in their lives in hopes of gaining freedom and some of the succeeded. In contrast with Bradford, Crevecoeur's writings on what it meant to be American and his view of America was more romantic. He becomes an American by being received in the broad lap of our great Alma Mater. Here individuals of all nations are melted into a new race of men, whose labors and posterity will one day cause great changes in the world. (Baym p 313) He boasted of a low crime rate, and a high sense of community. Crevecoeur could have been writing a brochure encouraging others to come to America. He discussed the plentiful food, the beautiful landscape. Crevecoeur described the Native Americans as mongrels whose wives and children live in sloth. He writes encouraging people to live near other people so as not to become like the natives of the land. Because the land is more settled and there is some semblance of 'towns' the people that live there are at an advantage. Life is still

hard and he emphasizes that hard work and faith are necessary to survive. He mentions how different life is from anything experienced in Europe. Both men mention faith and hard work as the keys to survival in America. During this era, being an American has to include those ideals. In their minds Americans were European pioneers that came to the New World in search of freedom or some life style that was persecuted in England.