American literature is literature written or produced in the United States and in the colonies that preceded it. The American literary tradition is part of the broader tradition of English-language literature but also includes literature produced in languages other than English.
Writer and critic John Neal in the early- to mid-nineteenth century helped advance America toward a unique literature and culture, by criticizing predecessors, such as Washington Irving , for imitating their British counterparts and by influencing writers such as Edgar Allan Poe. Ralph Waldo Emerson pioneered the influential Transcendentalism movement; Henry David Thoreau , author of Walden , was influenced by this movement.
The conflict surrounding abolitionism inspired writers, like Harriet Beecher Stowe , and authors of slave narratives, such as Frederick Douglass.
Mark Twain was the first major American writer to be born in the West. Henry James achieved international recognition with novels like The Portrait of a Lady Following World War I , modernist literature rejected nineteenth-century forms and values. American modernist poets included diverse figures such as Wallace Stevens , T. In the mid-twentieth century, drama was dominated by Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller. Musical theater was also prominent. In late 20th century and early 21st century, there has been increased popular and academic acceptance of literature written by immigrant, ethnic, and LGBT writers, and of writings in languages other than English.
Oral literature and storytelling has existed among the various Indigenous tribes , prior to the arrival of European colonists. The traditional territories of some tribes traverse national boundaries and such literature is not homogeneous but reflects the different cultures of these peoples.
