American Literature

What this page covers

This page collects study material on American literature, from early colonial writing to twentieth-century novels. Most of it is mind maps, with quizzes, flashcard decks, notes and slide sets alongside. Everything was made by GoConqr users, so styles and depth vary. That is useful: you can compare how different people organize the same author or period.

Where to start

If you want the big picture, begin with the mind maps on periods. American Romanticism, Puritan Authors and Early American Literature cover the early years. Chapter 5 The Rise of Realism 1860 - 1914 picks up after the Civil War. For the twentieth century, the mind map THE LOST GENERATION lists themes such as postwar disillusionment, American expatriates and changing moral codes.

Texts and authors

Several novels have their own sets of material:

• The Grapes of Wrath: a quiz, plot summary slide sets by chapter range, a themes flashcard deck and notes on chapters 10 to 16.
• The Old Man and The Sea: a plot slide set, a timeline mind map, quotes and a quiz.
• The Color Purple: mind maps on Celie and Nettie, and a deck of important quotes.
• Langston Hughes: notes, slides and several quizzes.

The mind map Comparing Gatsby and AOI is handy for comparison work, with branches on money, class, morality, narrator and marriage.

Using quizzes and maps together

Read a mind map first and note the branches you could not explain. Then take a related quiz, such as The Grapes of Wrath Quiz, and check what you missed against the map or a slide set. Flashcards suit authors, dates and quotations, and you can return to them in short sessions. Some resources mention A-level English Literature, and others look like university course quizzes, so choose what fits your level.

Where it fits

This unit sits in the Literary Periods and Traditions strand of the Literature subject. Choose one period or one novel, work through its resources, and then try making a mind map of your own.