Letters from an American Farmer is increasingly recognized as one of the foundational texts in the study both of American literature and of American history. This compact edition combines a selection of the most important, accessible, and engaging sections of Crèvecoeur’s work with a focused selection of background contextual material. The result is an edition ideally suited for use in a wide range of undergraduate courses.

Published in London just as the idea of an “American” was becoming a reality, Letters introduced Europeans to America’s landscape, customs, and then-new people. Moore’s reader’s edition situates these twelve letters, which shift from hope to disillusion, in the context of thirteen other essays representative of Crèvecoeur’s writings in English.

First published in England in 1782, Crevecoeur's Letters from an American Farmer was one of the first works to describe the character of the average American at the close of the Revolutionary War. His famous question, 'ÄúWhat, then, is the American, this new man?'Äù, summarized the European's interest in and questioning of the new country of America at a time when centuries of tradition had just been overturned and post-colonial Americans were attempting to describe themselves in a new way. Through the character of James, the letters celebrate the land of America, its space and fertility, and the character of Americans themselves, their work ethic and spirit of personal determination. The Letters also look at the darker side of American life, particularly the issue of slavery. The discussions of American identity, participation in war (or not), and the perception of immigrants and their ethnicity make this book as relevant to our understanding of ourselves today as it was in 1782.

This vintage book contains a collection of letters written by an American farmer on Nantucket island, Massachusetts in the late eighteenth century. Within the letters, the author describes to a friend in England his life as a farmer, while also explaining the manners and customs of the local inhabitants. “Letters from an American Farmer” offers an authentic insight into colonial American life and is not to be missed by those with an interest in this fascinating chapter of history. Contents include: “Letter II – Introduction”, “Letter II – On the Situation, Feelings, and Pleasures, of an American Farmer”, “Letter III – What is an American”, “Letter IIII – Description of the Islands of Nantucket, with the Manners, Customs, and Policy, and Trade of the Inhabitants”, “Letter V – Customary Education and Employment of the Inhabitants of Nantucket”, etc. Many vintage books such as this are increasingly scarce and expensive. It is with this in mind that we are republishing this volume now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with a specially-commissioned new introduction on farming.

“The Contrast“, which premiered at New York City's John Street Theater in 1787, was the first American play performed in public by a professional theater company. The play, written by New England-born, Harvard-educated, Royall Tyler was timely, funny, and extremely popular. When the play appeared in print in 1790, George Washington himself appeared at the head of its list of hundreds of subscribers. Reprinted here with annotated footnotes by historian Cynthia A. Kierner, Tyler’s play explores the debate over manners, morals, and cultural authority in the decades following American Revolution. Did the American colonists' rejection of monarchy in 1776 mean they should abolish all European social traditions and hierarchies? What sorts of etiquette, amusements, and fashions were appropriate and beneficial? Most important, to be a nation, did Americans need to distinguish themselves from Europeans—and, if so, how? Tyler was not the only American pondering these questions, and Kierner situates the play in its broader historical and cultural contexts. An extensive introduction provides readers with a background on life and politics in the United States in 1787, when Americans were in the midst of nation-building. The book also features a section with selections from contemporary letters, essays, novels, conduct books, and public documents, which debate issues of the era.

Consummate narrative essays made Crevecoeur a celebrated writer in America. In the epistles he has rendered an ideal American society with egalitarianism and free-will. Remarkable for the beauty of style in depiction of American navet and simple standard of living, it shows the approval of the religious multiplicity created by ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Fascinating!

A collection of letters and articles written by Caroline Henderson between 1908 and 1966 which provide insight into her life in the Great Plains, featuring both published materials and private correspondence. Includes a biographical profile, chapter introductions, and annotations.

Michel-Guillaume Jean de Crèvecouer, long regarded as a chief figure in American letters of the Revolutionary period, is remembered as the author of Letters from an American Farmer and the posthumous Sketches of Eighteenth Century of America, but his last and most ambitious work has been almost entirely neglected. Published in France as Le Voyage dans la haute Pensylvanie et dans d'état de New York, Crèvecouer's last book was never popular and has not heretofore appeared in English. Yet the Voyage has much to add to Crèvecouer's picture of eighteenth-century America, and to our own picture of the American Farmer as a man and writer. The Voyage, written after Crèvecouer's sojourn in France and his return to America as French consul, records a new phase both in American history and in the author's life. Adams has arrived at a selection of extracts from Voyage which will be of interest to Crèvecouer's many admirers among students of American history and literature. The editor has translated, arranged, and annotated these selections to form a collection will be a fit companion for Crèvecouer's two volumes of English essays and will supplement the earlier books by recording Crèvecouer's final view of the American scene. In his introduction to this collection, Adams presents a thorough analysis of the content and significance of the Voyage and convincingly justifies his contention that, though the work contains much that is not worthy of translation or republication, the selection here published for the first time in English may be regarded as a significant addition to Crèvecouer's writings.