Whittier-Land

Pickard, Samuel T. (Samuel Thomas), 1828-1915Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.8

Word count: 232K words
Chapters: 24

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Whittier-land by Samuel T. PickardAuthor: Pickard, Samuel T. (Samuel Thomas), 1828-1915,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Aug 22, 2009

Editor's review

This is Samuel T. Pickard's biographical work on the American poet John Greenleaf Whittier, centering on the people and places of Whittier's hometown and living environment, with a strong biographical and local-history character. Pickard knew Whittier personally, and the book preserves many firsthand observations and primary materials, making it useful for understanding the literary atmosphere of nineteenth-century New England and the poet's image against the background of the abolitionist movement. The style belongs to late-nineteenth-century biographical writing: slow-paced and rich in detail, valued less for sharp argument than for intimate material. It serves well as a supplementary resource for Whittier studies or as leisurely reading for those interested in nineteenth-century American literary history and local scenery. As a public-domain e-book, it is best read alongside a selection of Whittier's poems.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars and students of nineteenth-century American literature seeking biographical background
Poetry readers interested in Whittier's life and work
Leisurely readers who enjoy New England local scenery and old-style biographical writing
Historians of literary circles during the abolitionist era

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking systematic literary criticism and theoretical analysis
Readers who prefer fast-paced narrative or modern biographical approaches
Beginners entirely unfamiliar with Whittier and his era

Reading tips

Read a few of Whittier's representative poems first, so the people and places do not remain abstract.
Make a simple index of the place names and people mentioned, for easy cross-reference.
There is no need to read it straight through; select chapters corresponding to Whittier's creative periods.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this a complete biography of Whittier?

It is more a biographical account of Whittier's hometown and living environment, written by Pickard, who knew him personally. The material is intimate but not a complete critical biography in the modern sense. Readers seeking a systematic life story should consult it alongside other biographies.

Is the original English edition difficult to read?

The language is late-nineteenth-century English, with longer sentences and older vocabulary, but it is generally plain rather than abstruse. Readers with ordinary English reading ability can get through it, looking up names and places as needed.

Do I need to know about Whittier first?

It is best to know that he was a nineteenth-century New England poet involved in the abolitionist movement and to have read a few of his poems. Otherwise, the many personal details will seem trivial and the reading less rewarding.

Comments

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About the author

Pickard, Samuel T. (Samuel Thomas), 1828-1915 Author · American · 1828–1915

Samuel T. Pickard (1828–1915) was an American editor and writer, known for collecting and preserving materials relating to the American poet John Greenleaf Whittier. A friend of Whittier, he compiled a biography of the poet and editions of his letters, leaving later scholars reliable primary sources. His representative work, Whittier-land, deals with the poet's life and surroundings and has the character of local history and literary reportage, focusing on the ties between the poet and his native region. Pickard's writing is not notable for theoretical argument but for the careful arrangement of historical materials and the testimony of firsthand acquaintance; his prose is plain and attentive to factual detail. As far as the available information goes, his output was small and public information about him is limited. His significance lies chiefly in the arrangement and dissemination of Whittier materials, which offer useful supporting references for the study of nineteenth-century American literature.