The wondrous narrative in seventeenth and eighteenth century American literature and culture

This study analyzes wondrous narratives, in which authors attempt to interpret the meaning of strange or unnatural phenomenon. Wondrous narratives constitute a separate and distinct genre that needs to be recognized for its influence on literature and society, especially in Puritan New England. I begin by tracing the origins of the genre from classical antiquity through the Middle Ages, where the interest in witchcraft developed the genre further. The Puritans brought the genre to New England in the sixteenth century, using it to interpret God's meaning in the problems and dangers they encountered. While various authors recognize that the Puritans used wonders in their literature and culture, wondrous phenomenon becomes marginalized after the Salem trials. However, I argue that the Puritans and others continued to use the genre of wondrous narratives and that the genre continued to develop into the eighteenth century, where the religious influence on the genre waned as the secular influence became more significant. Wondrous narratives were an important genre in the eighteenth century, where authors such as Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and Thomas Paine used wondrous narratives in their writing. The significance of the genre also extends into the nineteenth century and into modern times, making it a valuable source of study. Wondrous narratives need to be recognized as a genre that can be applied to a variety of texts, providing a new analytical approach for individual texts and a new comparative approach to disparate types of literature.