Essay Undergraduate 1,862 words

American vs. European Literature: History, Identity, and Canon

~10 min read 6 sections Literature · American Literature

Abstract

This essay examines the fundamental differences between American and European literary traditions by analyzing the historical, political, and cultural forces that shaped each canon. Drawing on John Guillory's theory of literary canon formation and Joseph Kronick's work on American literary identity, the paper argues that American literature is rooted not in a genuine prehistory but in a manufactured cultural identity created after the break from European roots. The essay uses Mark Twain and Oscar Wilde as contemporary exemplars of their respective traditions, with particular attention to Wilde's "The Canterville Ghost" as a text that dramatizes the contrast between Old World cultural heritage and the New World's pragmatic, constructed identity.

Key Takeaways

Introduction: The Question of Literary Difference: Frames the claim of a distinct American-European literary divide
Canon Formation and Historical Context: Guillory's theory links canon to national political identity
The Erasure of Indigenous Culture and the Construction of American Identity: Genocide and cultural erasure enabled a manufactured American identity
Mark Twain and the Manufactured American Folk Tradition: Twain embodies a prefabricated American folk mythology
Oscar Wilde's 'The Canterville Ghost' and Transatlantic Contrast: Wilde dramatizes Old World heritage versus New World pragmatism
Conclusion: Manufactured Identity and the Two Canons: Differences between canons trace back to constructed American identity

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What makes this paper effective

The paper grounds an abstract comparative claim in concrete textual evidence, using direct quotations from Wilde's "The Canterville Ghost" to illustrate the ideological contrast between American and European identity.
It draws on scholarly sources (Guillory, Kronick, Messent and Budd) to support claims about canon formation rather than relying solely on the author's own assertions.
The choice of Twain and Wilde as contemporaries is analytically precise — it isolates cultural difference from temporal difference, strengthening the comparative argument.

Key academic technique demonstrated

The paper demonstrates effective use of close reading in service of a broader cultural argument. Rather than simply summarizing Wilde's story, the author selects two specific passages — Otis's reaction to learning of the ghost and his response when he encounters it — and unpacks each as evidence of a manufactured American identity confronting deep-rooted European tradition. This technique of anchoring macro-level cultural claims in micro-level textual details is a hallmark of strong literary analysis.

Structure breakdown

The essay opens with a theoretical framing of the problem, moves into historical context (canon formation, indigenous erasure, American Revolution), then applies the framework to two literary case studies (Twain and Wilde). The conclusion loops back to the opening thesis, synthesizing the textual analysis with the historical argument. This "claim → context → evidence → synthesis" arc is well-executed and appropriate for a comparative literature essay at the undergraduate level.

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Essay 1,862 words

Introduction: The Question of Literary Difference

Suggesting that there is a fundamental difference between American and European literature means much more than acknowledging that the culture produced by geographically distinct regions is similarly distinct. It suggests that there are much deeper underlying symbols and tropes which mark these cultural productions as distinctly American or distinctly European, regardless of the wide variety of genres and themes present in the literature of either region. While the claim of an identifiable distinction between American and European literature feels accurate given the clear differences between the two cultures, it requires critical examination because of the potential for stereotype and condescension inherent in it. Examining some of the more important factors which might produce a recognizable difference between these two canons — as well as the processes responsible for the formation of literary canons in the first place — reveals that the differences between American and European literature are inextricable from the historical and cultural forces which shaped the development of either region's political and societal organizations.

Canon Formation and Historical Context

The first step in identifying the differences between American and European literature is a recognition of the clear differences in the historical development of cultural production in either region. One cannot attempt to describe any national or transnational literature without considering the political and historical forces which shaped these nations. In short, Europe has had a largely contiguous history, and as such, the production of literature and culture in Europe has steadily built upon everything that came before it. Any literature produced in Europe cannot be considered outside of the context of the continent's long, recorded history. In contrast, the canon of American literature has, for the most part, included only those texts produced since the first white settlers arrived on the continent.

This is because, as John Guillory notes in his book Cultural Capital: The Problem of Literary Canon Formation:

"In order to answer the question of what 'representation in the canon' means within the larger context of […] political culture, we must acknowledge at the outset that our concept of 'social identity' is a product of that culture, and that only within that culture can the category of an author's racial, ethnic, or gender identity found a politics of curricular revision." (Guillory 5)

Guillory recognizes that the defining features of a national literature are inextricable from the political and cultural forces of that nation, because the idea of a distinct national literature is dependent upon the distinct nature of any given nation. Briefly noting the political and cultural forces which went into the creation of America will serve to highlight this fact and help explain how America developed a distinct literary tradition, even though it has been predominantly populated and ruled by people of European descent.

4 Sections Hidden · 1,025 words

The Erasure of Indigenous Culture and the Construction of American Identity210 words

The arrival of European settlers over the course of the last six centuries precipitated a massive genocide of the indigenous population, such that the robust cultural productions of Native American peoples were largely lost to history, surviving only in fragments that endured despite various genocides, forced relocations, and intentional cultural destruction. Recognizing this fact reveals one of the more important factors which…

Mark Twain and the Manufactured American Folk Tradition280 words

These two authors present an ideal means of evaluating the difference between American and European literature, because they each embody their respective regions' literary traits while uncovering some of the ideological assumptions which underlie those traits. For instance, Mark Twain's work — and even his public persona…

Oscar Wilde's 'The Canterville Ghost' and Transatlantic Contrast340 words

Oscar Wilde's short story "The Canterville Ghost" follows an American family that moves to England as a result of the father's appointment as the American minister to the British court. Wilde's representation of the American family in contrast to the traditional…

Conclusion: Manufactured Identity and the Two Canons195 words

Attempting to identify the differences between American and European literature is actually more difficult than it may appear at first, because while there are distinct differences between American and European culture in general, one must first confront the fact that nearly all American culture can trace its roots back to Europe and the first white settlers who came to the region. Any indigenous culture is generally not regarded as part of the…

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Works Cited

Guillory, John. Cultural Capital: The Problem of Literary Canon Formation. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993.

Kronick, Joseph. "Writing American: Between Canon and Literature." CR: The New Centennial Review 1.3 (2001): 37–66. Print.

Messent, Peter, and Louis Budd. A Companion to Mark Twain. Malden: Blackwell, 2005.

Wilde, Oscar. The Canterville Ghost. London: John W. Luce and Company, 1906.

Key Concepts in This Paper

Literary Canon American Identity Canon Formation Folk Tradition Cultural Erasure Transatlantic Literature The Canterville Ghost Mark Twain Oscar Wilde European Heritage