Americanisamulti-nationalcountry.Justlikeabigcontainer,whichputinvariouskindsofelements.Differentcultures,thatcannotonlybeco-existedbutalsoformasharpcontrast,mixedtogether,ItmakesAmericanliteraturestylehasaflavorofdistinctandvariousaestheticfeeling.Manywriterscomefromlowerlevel,whichmakesAmericanliteraturehastherichflavoroflifeandlocalcolor.Furthermore,manynewstylesofliteratureintheworldareorientedinAmericasince20thcentury.

　　TheprocessofAmericanliteraturecanbedividedintofollowingmainperiods:ColonyandPuritanliterature;earlynationalliterature;latternationalliteratureandModernliterature.

　　America'shistoryofliteraturebeganwiththeswarminginofimmigrantswithdifferentbackgroundandcultures.Afterthat,AmericanliteraturehadbeengreatlyinfluencedbytheEuropeancultureforalongperiod.ItwasnotuntilAmerica'sindependence,didAmericansrealizethattheyneednationalliteraturestrongly,andAmericanliteraturebegantodevelop.TheCivilWarwasawatershedinthehistory,afterwhichAmericanliteratureenteredaperiodoffullblooming.Romantics,whichemphasizedindividualismandintuition,andTnscendentalismrepresentedbyEmersoncameoutintobeing.ThiswasanexcitingperiodinthehistoryofAmericanliterature.Liketheflowersofspring,thereweresuddenlymanydifferentkindsofwritingatthesametime.TheyhavegivendepthandstrengthtoAmericanliterature,andacceleratedtheformingofHighRomantics.ButduetotheinfluenceifCivilWar,theAmericansocietywasinaturbulentsituation.Thewritingsaboutlocallife,criticalrealismandunveilingthedarksideofthesocietywereincreased.AfterTheFirstWorldWar,Americanswereatalosspostwar,andtheModernAmericanliteraturebegan.

　　ColonialandearlyAmericanliterature

　　(1).TravelersandExplorers

　　WhentheEuropeanexplorersfirstcametothisnewcontinent,thenativeIndianswhoprobablygotherefromAsiaaboutfifteenthousandyearsagowerestillinorigin,andtheyevenhadnowrittenlanguage,鈥淭hetraditionalliteraturewasoriginallytransmittedalmostentirelybywordofmouth,andthereforebelongstothecategoryoforalliterature,鈥(WuDingbo,1)Astimepast,moreandmoretravelersandexplorersswarmedin.Theywrotealotofdiaries銆乴etters,andtravelaccountstodescribethenewlandassecondEden.NowandersomebodysaidthattheearliestAmericanliteraturewerethetravelaccountswrittenbyEuropeanadventurers.AmongthemostremainedwereCaptainJohnSmith'sTrueRelationofVirginia(1608),andDescriptionofNewEngland(1616).

　　AlthoughmostoftheIndianhistorywaspreservedintalesandsongs,theyhadthoughtsaboutlifeandnature.Theylovedthenaturalworldaroundthemdeeply,andtheybelievedthatwhenapersonwasdead,hewouldgivebackwhathadborrowedwhilehewasalivetonature.ThiskindofphilosophyhadinfluencedlaterorevenmodernAmericanwriters.It'sinterestingthatwhenwelookattheliteratureofthePuritans,theTranscendentalists,theNaturalists,andeventheModerns,whenwereadAnneBradstreet,EmilyDickinson,StephenCrane,andErnestHemingway,wecanfindsimilarthemes.

　　(2)Pilgrimsettlements

　　Severalyearslater,anothergroupofsettlersalsoarrivedintheNewWorld.Thisgroupwaslookingforth