Crevecoeur- Letters of an American Farmer

Crevecoeur states that an American is their own person, one that frees themselves, they control their own fate and don't need to rely on the oppressing force. Americans should look out for themselfs and be self-interested, because it is self-interest that governs nature. To do this they have to cut off attachment to mother county. For they are from all different backgrounds but to become American they must sever those ties and become self-interested.

These views of detachment from old beliefs is common in the enlightenment. Paine and Kant also saw this detachment liberating and necessary for freedom. Whether it is religion, government or their origin, one must leave it behind to become free American.

Wouldn't self-interest hinder the unity of America?

Thomas Paine- Common Sense

Paine Americans represent the cause of freedom and therefore should be free. England was the mother country to America and it was abusing it and being a bad mother but that is the whole reason that pilgrims left England. Therefore America should seperate themselves from England's rule. He is not personally attacking the king of England, just his role, for this problem is bigger then just one person. He uses this universal problem to unite Americans and to persuade them that this is 'common sense.'

Paine represents Enlightenment ideals by stating that it is the Americans natural right to freedom and self government. Kant also represents these ideals by stating other bondages that people should free themselves from like religion and government. These ideals stress that it is ones own responsibilty to become free.

Why would Americans need to be convinced to seperate themselves from England when they left to get rid of the abuse and it still had not gone away?

Pratt- Arts of the Contact Zone

Pratt defines a contact zone as “social spaces where cultures meet, clash, and grapple with each other." There are different cultures affecting ones around them and they find perspective from each other. They can learn about others as well as others opinions about themselves which is necessary to build and grow as a people. Autoethnographic text is where the cultures collaborate on art and transculturation is were cultures select a dominant form of art. She says communities don't all share language and such; there are dominating cultures and marginalized ones.


Pratt believes that the dominate cultures art is adopted to marginalized ones. Aristotle speaks of the ultimate form of poetry and has the outline for it. Pratt would agree with this because it is the adopted art form.


Did Pratt make up the term autoethnographic? If not, where/how else is it used