The history of English settlement in North America starts in 1607 when disregarding Indians and some earlier attempts of settlers which were abandoned or not documented further. Thus, American history and civilization started with English settlers. But were they still English when they arrived in the New World? Were they not Americans from the early colonization on? Did they not leave part of their Englishness in the mother country when they entered the ship to cross the Atlantic? And did they all have the same motivations and attitudes to leave England? In order to examine their culture and to highlight obvious implementations of an evolving American cultural pattern, this paper examines the settlers’ identities, thus what they identified with and what they disclaimed. It deals with the question whether one can speak of an American culture or national feeling before the American Revolution, i.e. before the United States had become a nation. It tries to conceive or grasp the sensations of the population, their attitudes and feelings about their cultural and national identity.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. English Immigration to North America
2.1. The First English Settlers
2.2. Divergence in Four Colonial Cultures
2.3. The Four Great Migrations
3. Englishness of the English Colonies
3.1. Cultural Identity and Difference
3.2. Americanization: The Development of an American Cultural Collective
3.3. American Identity
4. Conclusion
5. Sources
Objectives and Topics
This paper examines the evolution of cultural identity among early English settlers in North America, analyzing how they transitioned from a British self-concept toward an emergent American cultural identity prior to the American Revolution.
- Distinction between "settlers" and "immigrants" in the colonial context.
- Application of the "Four Great Migrations" model to colonial cultural development.
- Analysis of "Anglicization" and the imitation of metropolitan values.
- The process of "Americanization" and the construction of a collective American identity.
- Interplay between social convergence, territorial mobility, and the rise of individualism.
Excerpt from the Book
3.1 Cultural Identity and Difference
Throughout the colonies, and especially among the emergent elites, there was a self-conscious effort to anglicize colonial life through the deliberate imitation of metropolitan institutions, values, and culture. Thus, before the mid-1770s, British-Americans thought of themselves primarily as Britons, albeit Britons overseas. (Greene 1998: 174)
Hence, Greene agrees with Fischer in his observation, that the early modern English colonies were predominantly imitations of the English models. This viewpoint states that it is no wonder that the settlers who were Englishmen in the Diaspora, who did not know other versions of society than the English, who did not find ready-made structures and systems they could assimilate to, were aping English models. The gentry imported English culture in form of books, furniture and other artefacts. Their houses looked like English mansions. There were travelling theatres that came from the metropolis and English art and portraiture was being imitated. “Im Vordergrund steht für die gentry die Nobilitierung des eigenen Standes und das kann am besten mittels jener kulturellen Formen geschehen, die im Mutterland Anerkennung verbürgen” (Fluck 2004: 714). They preserved their English or British values because they were seen as superior to the wilderness, the raw nature and the primitiveness in the New World. The preservation served as a protecting shield towards those threats that were on the verge to overtake and affect the good old English lifestyle of the settlers or – Anerkennung being the keyword here – also as a means to gain recognition for being English and British respectively. Oftentimes even unconsciously, this fear of going native made settlers, being in constant search for identification, revert to their English cultural roots.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: Outlines the research focus on the settlers' self-conception, questioning their transition from English subjects to Americans.
2. English Immigration to North America: Defines the distinction between settlers and immigrants while categorizing the early waves of migration.
2.1. The First English Settlers: Details the establishment of key early colonies like Jamestown and Plymouth.
2.2. Divergence in Four Colonial Cultures: Introduces David Hackett Fischer’s thesis regarding distinct folkways within colonial societies.
2.3. The Four Great Migrations: Examines specific regional and religious groups that shaped the North American colonies.
3. Englishness of the English Colonies: Sets the stage for contrasting Anglicization with the emergence of a unique American identity.
3.1. Cultural Identity and Difference: Explores the settlers' efforts to imitate English models as a defense against cultural dissolution.
3.2. Americanization: The Development of an American Cultural Collective: Analyzes how adaptation to local conditions and the creation of new institutions led to a shared American self-concept.
3.3. American Identity: Discusses the complex, multi-layered identities held by colonists prior to the formation of a sovereign nation.
4. Conclusion: Synthesizes the arguments to conclude that a distinct American identity had formed through a subconscious evolution prior to political independence.
5. Sources: Provides the academic bibliography used throughout the paper.
Keywords
Englishness, Americanization, Colonial Identity, Settlers, Immigrants, Cultural Convergence, Anglicization, American Revolution, Diaspora, Folkways, Social Structure, National Identity, British Heritage, New World, Collective Consciousness
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this paper?
The paper investigates the development of cultural identity among the early English settlers in North America, specifically focusing on the transition from a traditional English self-concept to an emergent American identity.
What central themes are explored in this work?
The work centers on the tension between "Anglicization"—the imitation of English cultural models—and "Americanization," the gradual process of creating a new, distinct cultural collective.
What is the main research question?
The research asks whether one can speak of an American culture or national feeling before the American Revolution and how settlers negotiated their identity between their origins and their new environment.
Which scientific methodologies does the author employ?
The author utilizes a qualitative, literature-based approach, synthesizing historical and cultural theories from scholars like Samuel P. Huntington, David Hackett Fischer, and Jack P. Greene.
What topics are covered in the main section?
The main section covers the history of English migration, the typology of colonial cultures, the concept of "cultural convergence," and the literary and institutional indicators of a rising American consciousness.
Which keywords best characterize this research?
Key terms include Englishness, Americanization, colonial identity, settler societies, cultural convergence, and the formation of a national character.
How does the author distinguish between a "settler" and an "immigrant"?
Drawing on Samuel P. Huntington, the author defines settlers as groups who leave an existing society to build a new one, whereas immigrants enter an already established society and must assimilate to it.
How does the concept of "convergence" explain colonial development?
The convergence model suggests that despite their initial cultural and regional differences, the English colonies eventually developed a shared reality and common social patterns due to similar stresses, economic growth, and infrastructural development.
- Quote paper
- Noemi Donner (Author), 2008, Cultural Identity in the Early English Colonies in North America, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/120875
