Herman Melville Biography
In this brief Herman Melville Biography, you will learn about his first job at the age of 12 and how his sea adventures were transformed into literature.
Tagged: american lit
Henry James Biography
American author Henry James, a transitional figure between literary realism and modernism, is often numbered among the great English-language novelists.
Washington Irving: A Biography
American writer Washington Irving, best known for “Rip Van Winkle” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” was an essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat.
![Major Andres Tree by Arthur Rackham (1867-1939) (from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow) (New York Public Library Digital Collections) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons](https://i0.wp.com/www.excellence-in-literature.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Major_Andres_Tree_Rackham-sm-1.jpg?resize=256%2C245&ssl=1)
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow A short story by Washington Irving Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is the story of the ill-fated 1790 courtship of Katrina Van Tassel, daughter of a wealthy...
Anne Bradstreet Biography
Anne Bradstreet was the first American Puritan writer; the first writer published in America; the first female poet published in both England and America.
A Resign by Bill Nye
This tongue-in-cheek letter of resignation was written by humorist Edgar Wilson “Bill” Nye, and appeared in Bill Nye’s Red Book in 1906. A RESIGN. |Postoffice Divan, Laramie City, W. T., Oct. 1, 1883. To the...
Edgar Lee Masters Biography
What did contemporary scholars think of Edgar Lee Masters (1868-1950) during his lifetime? Here’s an interesting biography and analysis published in 1918, written by popular Yale professor William Lyon Phelps. Edgar Lee Masters was...
The Village Blacksmith by Longfellow
THE VILLAGE BLACKSMITH by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Under a spreading chestnut-tree The village smithy stands; The smith, a mighty man is he, With large and sinewy hands; And the muscles of his brawny arms...
Nathaniel Hawthorne Biography
Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) was an American author, best known for The Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables. Hawthorne resources for EIL 3.4.
Ralph Waldo Emerson Biography
Biography of Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) by Dr. Ann Woodlief Ralph Waldo Emerson is truly the center of the American transcendental movement, setting out most of its ideas and values in a little book, Nature,...
Henry David Thoreau Biography
Henry David Thoreau Biography by Dr. Ann Woodlief Henry David Thoreau was a complex man of many talents who worked hard to shape his craft and his life, seeing little difference between them. Born...
Mark Twain Resources Index
Resources for Mark Twain (1835-1910) Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835 – 1910), better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American writer, humorist, entrepreneur, publisher, and lecturer. His best-known novels include The Adventures...
Mark Twain Biography (1911)
American author Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens) is best known for his humorous stories, many taking place on or near the great Mississippi River.
Washington Irving Biography
Washington Irving Biography Irving’s family Boyhood European travels Rising fame Love and poverty Tragedy, memorialized Literature as a profession Home at Sunnyside Minister to Spain Personal appearance and character End of life Sources Other...
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Biography (1911)
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Biography Family and boyhood Early career and travels A Harvard professor Evangeline Other important works Struck by tragedy Writing until the end Description of the man Longfellow’s poetry His character Sources...
Benjamin Franklin Biography (1911)
Benjamin Franklin Biography Family history and education Writing and printing career Helping his fellow man Fight against the Stamp Act Continental Congress Colonial diplomacy in France Making peace Franklin in person Life philosophy Printing...
James Russell Lowell Biography (1911)
James Russell Lowell Biography Family history and childhood Early work and romance Literature, reform, and family life The Biglow Papers Family tragedies Teaching and traveling The Atlantic Monthly Work abroad End of life Overview...
Herman Melville Resources
Herman Melville (1819–1891) led a remarkably interesting life and his stories of the sea are colored by his personal experiences. He is most famous for his masterpiece, Moby Dick. Herman Melville biography You may...
Old Ironsides by Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr
OLD IRONSIDES by Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr This was the popular name by which the frigate Constitution was known. The poem was first printed in the Boston Daily Advertiser, at the time when it...
