Historical Review (1704)

American cultural history can be divided into three broad stages.

The first stage stretches from colonial times until about the Civil War. In this period American art, architecture, music, literature and fashion were strongly influenced by European ideas, traditions and trends. This did not mean, of course, that America only imported its art or artists. The American painter Benjamin West, who was called the "American Raphael" in England, was a founder of the Royal Academy in London, and beginning in 1792, was its president for 26 years. The art of other American painters, among them John Singleton Copley, Gilbert Stuart, also found favour and fame in Europe.

Soon American writers such as James Fennimore Cooper or Edgar Allan Poe became widely read and praised throughout Europe.

The second stage, from the Civil War era until around World War I or so, is marked by tension. Writers, architects and painters of the 19^th century still considered themselves largely part of the European tradition. Yet, by this second stage, America had developed a cultural style of her own. One feels clear American accents in the voices of the 19^th century writers such as Cooper, Whitman, or Twain. Obviously a strong national culture had been established. European influences were still strong but no longer dominant.

The third and present stage is marked by a tremendous surge of American creativity in all areas, by a growing international influence, and by a steady self-confidence.

Although this vitality and creative experimentation can be seen in art, architecture, music, dance, film and fashion, it is most clearly apparent in literature. The first American to be honoured by a Nobel Prize in literature was Sinclair Lewis, in 1930. He was then followed by Eugene O'Neill, T. S. Eliot, William Faulkner, Ernest Hemingway, John Steinbeck, Joseph Brodsky, Toni Morrison and others. A large number of names of American writers, such as Anderson, Asimov, Walker, Williams, Wright, etc., are read in most corners of the globe today.

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