philip freneau

All though Freneau’s poetic works displayed the obvious imitative tendency in form as well as content (for example, the famous English poets in 18th century were all in some way modeled by him), but some of his most anthologized works had rich American distinguishing features. He provided American poetry with new subject matter—sea, the culture of native Indian, the scenery of the New world. In his generation, only he himself broke away the bondage of tradition to treat the life around him from a new angle, to sing the praises of the nature and the primitive life of native Indian to his heart’s content, to understand it with rich imagination, to express it with the special sensitiveness that poets possessed. All these features became the basic characteristics of the 19th century romantic literature, so Freneau was regarded as the forefather of Emerson, Poe, and Longfellow and so on and so forth. It is generally held that American national poetry began with Freneau, thus he has been entitled the “Father of American Poetry.”

• Later
he attended
the
War
of
Independence, and he was captured by British army in 1780. • After being released, he published “The British Prison Ship” in 1781. • In the same year, he published “To the Memory of the Brave Americans”
Main Works
• “The Rising Glory of America” (1772) 《美洲光辉 的兴起》 • “The House of Night” (1779, 1786) 《夜之屋》 • “The British Prison Ship” (1781) 《英国囚船》 • “To the Memory of the Brave Americans” (1781) 《纪念美国勇士》 • “The Wild Honey Suckle” (1786) 《野金银花》 • “The Indian Burying Ground” (1788)
《印第安人墓地》
• “The Dying Indian: Tomo Chequi” 《奄奄一息的印第安人：托姆· 柴吉》
Contribution and Asessment
• "Poet of the American Revolution" "Father of American Poetry" • The most significant poet of 18th century America. • Some of his themes and images anticipated the works of such 19th century American Romantic writers as Cooper, Emerson, Poe and Melville.

Stranger, their humble graves adorn; You too may fall, and ask a tear; 'Tis not the beauty of the morn That proves the evening shall be clear.—
纪念美国勇士

works

The Rising Glory of America 1772 《美洲光辉的兴起》 The House of Night 1776 《夜之屋》


The British Prison Ship 1781 《英国囚船》
To the Memory of the Brave Americans 1781 《纪念美国勇士》 The Wild Honey Suckle 1786 《野忍冬花》

Philip Morin Freneau
(1752-1832)
life

Birth date : January 2,1752 Birth place : New York


Stock : Scottish stock
Religion : French Huguenot(雨格诺教派) Education : the college of New Jersey (now is Princeton university)


1776，he left America for the west Indies(西印度群岛).
1778，he returned to America and rejoined the patriotic cause. 1780,when he was a crew member on the revolutionary privateer , he was taken prisoner for 6 weeks. 1790,he married Eleanor Forman , and he support Jefferson who hire him to edit the partisan newspaper(党派报纸).”The National Gazette”. 1793,he resigned and his paper failed. 1832,he died poorly and nearly forgotten.

Part 2
(stanza3-4): expression of emotion - lamentation over the “future’s doom” of the
flower, and the fate of man
Conclusion
What ideas can we draw from the poem?
Unlike the white man's tradition, in the Indian's, the dead Indian is dressed in special clothes as though celebrating a happy event.
Death in the Indian tradition has a different meaning. It is no longer that sad and dreadful event that everyone is afraid of.
﹀ \﹀ \ ﹀ \ ﹀ \
No busy hand provoke a tear.
﹀ \﹀ \ ﹀ \ ﹀ \
Appreciation of the poem
Rhyme and Form
• Rhyme: ababcc
• Form: four six-line stanzas
Questions
funeralriteschinareadyourselvesaccordingtranslation不管学者们说过什么我依然坚持我的老观点我们给死者安排的姿势表明了灵魂的永远安眠这地方的古人并不如此印第安人一朝离开世人就再次同亲友坐在一起重新把欢乐的宴席分享鸟儿的装饰带彩绘的碗为路上食用备好的鹿肉说明那灵魂具有的特点它的活动可没有个尽头他的弓随时可以引满而发这只能说明生命离开他但原来的想法没有改变陌生的人啊你该来这里但是可不要把死者冤枉把这隆起的草冢看仔细并说他们是坐而不是躺这还剩一块高高的岩石虽给雨侵蚀的斑驳无状精细的眼睛能由此分辨那原始民族的种种想象还有一颗高耸的老榆树在它伸得远远的影子下牧羊人对此喜爱如初林中的孩子们游戏玩耍常有不眠的印第安女王这是梳辫的浅肤色的示巴女王和许多野蛮的形象出场把逗留在那里的人责骂只见他全身行猎的装束在月明露重的午夜时分这猎手仍在把鹿儿追可这猎手和鹿都是幽灵纹身的酋长锋利的矛尖畏怯的想象将久久看见而理智本身会对之屈膝在这种种的幽灵幻象前cultureintroductionunlikewhiteman?straditiondeadindianspecialclothesthoughcelebratinghappyevent