Day(s)
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Topic
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Pages
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Support Materials1
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Bible Integration
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Part 1: Early American Literature
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Unit 1: Literature of Settlement
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1
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Course Introduction
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iii
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Introduction: Approaching the culture from a Christian worldview
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2–4
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Part 1 Opener
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2–13
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Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C
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Part 1 Opener: The biblical source of many Puritan influences on American culture; the gradual change from a broadly biblical worldview to a deistic worldview
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5–6
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John Smith
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16–22
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7–8
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William Byrd II
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22–27
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Analysis: Separating faith and works, resulting in a merely surface form of religion
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9–10
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William Bradford
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28–35
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Appendix D
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Analysis: Christians as pilgrims (Heb. 11:13; 1 Pet. 2:11; etc.); God’s providence; receiving comfort from the Scriptures
Thought and Discussion: God’s care for the godly; relying on God’s grace and providence
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11–12
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John Winthrop
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36–41
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Analysis: The Bible on economic and political theory (liberty versus license in light of man’s sinful nature)
Application: A Christian approach to the current political and economic environment
Thought and Discussion: God’s goodness and providential care
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13
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Mary Rowlandson
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42–47
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Application: Responding to adverse circumstances in a Christlike way
Thought and Discussion: The sovereignty and grace of God
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14
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Samuel Sewall
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47–51
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Analysis: Spiritual growth through keeping a diary
Application: The problem of materialism and possible solutions
Thought and Discussion: Providing for those in our care (Deut. 22:8)
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15
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Unit 1 Review
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16
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Unit 1 Test
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Unit 2: Literature of Religious Experience
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17
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The Bay Psalm Book
Geneva Bible
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54–55
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Appendix E
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Application: Discussing Puritan hymns; Isaac Watt’s poetic versions of the Psalms
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18
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Roger Williams
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56–59
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Application: Examining the separation of church and state
Thought and Discussion: Christ as the only way to salvation and unity among mankind
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19–21
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Anne Bradstreet
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60–70
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Writing Rubric 2-1: Poem
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Introduction: The feminist view of Bradstreet; avoiding bias when interpreting literature; evaluating literature biblically
Analysis: Finding comfort from loss in the knowledge of God’s sovereignty; biblical versus modern meditation
Application: Christian resolutions to loss and to one’s purpose in life
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22–24
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Edward Taylor
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70–78
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Headnotes: God as one’s source of strength; spiritual highs and lows; being changed into Christ’s image; the creation, fall, and redemption of man
Analysis: The process of meditating
Application: The helpfulness of religious poetry that is both biblical and well written
Thought and Discussion: Money imagery in Scripture (Lam. 4:2; Mal. 3:3; etc.); the parable of the marriage guest (Matt. 22)
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25–26
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Jonathan Edwards
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78–91
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Writing Rubric 2-2: Autobiography
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Analysis: The worth of inner spiritual beauty being greater than mere outer beauty; real Christian dedication; acknowledging man’s utter sinfulness (1 Cor. 15:9; 2 Cor. 11:5; etc.) and God’s absolute sovereignty
Application: Writing spiritual autobiographies
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27
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Unit 2 Review
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Appendix F
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28
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Unit 2 Test
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Unit 3: Literature of Revolution
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29–31
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Benjamin Franklin
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94–109
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Biography: Franklin and the American shift toward materialism
Analysis: The main tenets of deists and their concern with earthly life at the expense of life hereafter
Analysis: Comparing Franklin’s list of virtues and his motivations to biblical expectations; the benefits of actively striving to be conformed to Christ’s image
Analysis: Franklin’s sayings and biblical proverbs (Prov. 1:5; 9:9; 17:10)
Application: Comparing Franklin and Edwards
Thought and Discussion: Biblically evaluating Franklin’s general worldview as well as his morality, methods, and definition of success
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32–34
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Thomas Paine
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110–19
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Potential Problems: Paine’s disingenuous orthodox appeals
Analysis: Valuing Paine’s contributions while rejecting his rationalism, deism, and propagandistic devices; evaluating Paine’s arguments against the divinity of Christ
Application: Evaluating modern views similar to Paine’s
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35
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William Bartram
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120–25
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Biography and Introduction: Bartram’s view of God and nature, from Puritanism to Romanticism
Thought and Discussion: Comparing Bartram to Sewall on nature and God
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36–37
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Philip Freneau
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126–32
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Analysis: The rise of deism and a biblical evaluation of its view of God, the Bible, man, and man’s reason; parallels to 1 Peter 1:24
Application: The effects of shifting moral absolutes
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38
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Phillis Wheatley
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132–35
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Analysis: Freedom in Christ
Application: Balancing knowledge with wisdom (Daniel); responding to life’s difficulties (Rom. 8:28)
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39
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Unit 3 Review
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40
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Unit 3 Test
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41–45
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Midterm Review and Midterm Examination
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Part 2: American Romanticism
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Unit 4: Knickerbockers
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46–47
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Part 2 Opener
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138–45
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Appendix C
Appendix G
Appendix H
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Part 2 Opener: Biblically evaluating key Romantic tenets about man, nature, and the source of truth; biblically evaluating unitarianism and transcendentalism; the failure of Romanticism as an opening for Darwinism
Analysis: “Young Goodman Brown” and Hawthorne’s theme of man’s flawed nature compared to Scripture (Rom. 7-8; Heb. 3-5; etc.)
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48–49
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Washington Irving
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148–61
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Writing Rubric 4-1: Historical Sketch
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50–51
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James Fenimore Cooper
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162–70
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Writing Rubric 2-2: Autobiography
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Analysis: Christianity as the basis for Cooper’s moral vision
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52–53
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William Cullen Bryant
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171–75
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Analysis: Contrasting Bryant’s rationalistic view of death with a Christian perspective; avoiding hasty generalizations when biblically evaluating an author’s work
Application: Nature in support of a Christian view of death
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54
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Unit 4 Review
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55
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Unit 4 Test
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Unit 5: New England School
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56
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Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
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178–80
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Potential Problems: Distinguishing Longfellow’s humanism from any Christian values present in the poems
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57
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John Greenleaf Whittier
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181–84
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58
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James Russell Lowell
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184–89
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Appendix G
Writing Rubric 2-1: Poem
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Analysis: Man’s attempts to lower God to his level (Rom. 1:21)
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59
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Oliver Wendell Holmes
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190–93
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Thought and Discussion: Biblically evaluating Holmes’s theme of self-improvement (2 Cor. 4:17–5:9)
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60
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Unit 5 Review
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61
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Unit 5 Test
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Unit 6: Transcendental Optimists
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62–64
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Transcendentalism
Ralph Waldo Emerson
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196–207
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Transcendentalism: Transcendentalism versus a biblical worldview
Biography and Analysis: Emerson’s ideas of man, nature, the Bible and the perfectibility of society
Analysis: Comparing views of God and man (Edward Taylor, Benjamin Franklin, and Emerson)
Thought and Discussion: Biblically evaluating individual statements from Emerson’s work
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65–67
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Henry David Thoreau
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208–21
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Headnotes: Christians and government (Rom. 13:1–7; 1 Pet. 2:13–14; etc.); a Christian view of self-reliance (Col. 1:17; Acts 17:28), asceticism (Col. 2:20–23; 1 Tim. 4:1–3), man, and nature
Application: A biblical view of conscience (1 Cor. 8:7, 12; 1 Tim. 4:2; etc.)
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68–70
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Walt Whitman
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222–37
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Biography and Analysis: Biblical evaluation of Whitman’s ideas (divinity of man, freedom from restraints) and influence
Potential Problems: Rejecting man’s sinfulness
Analysis: A Christian view of death
Application: Whitman reflecting 2 Tim. 3:2
Thought and Discussion: Whitman’s pantheistic symbol compared to Scripture
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71
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Unit 6 Review
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Appendix I
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72
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Unit 6 Test
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Unit 7: Transcendental Pessimists
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73–76
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Edgar Allan Poe
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240–62
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Writing Rubric 2-1: Poem
Writing Rubric 4-1: Historical Sketch
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Biography: Biblical assessment of Poe’s pessimistic portrayal of life and man’s nature
Application: Using biblical allusions to reinforce tone
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77–--80
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Nathaniel Hawthorne
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262–306
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Biography and Analysis: Hawthorne’s biblical view of man and man’s state in the world
Analysis: Hawthorne’s condemnation of transcendentalism and Unitarianism
Application: Evaluating modern views of man and God and tracing the desires that motivate these views based on history and the Bible
Thought and Discussion: The sinfulness of man (1 John 1:8–10) and the hope of Christ
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81–83
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Herman Melville
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307–32
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Biography and Analysis: Melville’s view of man and God as well as his resulting pessimism
Application: Comparing Melville’s view of God to Scripture; a biblical view of God’s love
Thought and Discussion: Evaluating Melville’s theme in light of Scripture
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84
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Unit 7 Review
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Appendix J
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85
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Unit 7 Test
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86–90
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Final Review and Final Examination
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Part 3: American Realism and Naturalism
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Unit 8: Regionalists
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91–93
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Part 3 Opener
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336–47
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Appendix C
Appendix K
Appendix L
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Part 3 Opener: The effects of Darwinism and religious modernism on American thought and culture; an evaluation of realism and naturalism as seen in American literature; why read literature written from a false worldview
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94–95
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Bret Harte
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350–62
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Writing Rubric 8-1: Local Color
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Biography and Introduction: Evaluating Harte’s moral framework from a biblical perspective
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96–97
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Ambrose Bierce
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363–72
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Biography: The spiritual source of Bierce’s bitterness and pessimism
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98
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Sidney Lanier
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372–81
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Analysis: Evaluating characters’ actions by the Bible; the Bible and vengeance (Deut. 32:35; Rom. 12:19; etc.)
Analysis: Comparing Lanier’s poem on Gethsemane and Calvary to the biblical account (Matt. 26:36–46; Mark 14:32–42; etc.)
Thought and Discussion: Romans 12:19 and revenge
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99–100
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Hamlin Garland
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381–90
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101
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James Whitcomb Riley
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391–93
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Writing Rubric 2-1: Poem
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102–3
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Sarah Orne Jewett
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393–403
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Biography: Biblical assessment of Jewett’s worldview
Application: Finding guidance from God’s Word and the Holy Spirit
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104–6
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Emily Dickinson
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403–17
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Appendix M
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Biography: A biblical perspective on Dickinson’s influence
Analysis: The importance of words to Christians in light of God’s Word (Matt. 4:4)
Application: Scriptural perspective on Dickinson’s themes (majority opinion, aspirations, and hope) as well as her reclusive living
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107
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Unit 8 Review
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Appendix N
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108
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Unit 8 Test
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Unit 9: Masters of Realism
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109–10
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William Dean Howells
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420–31
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Application: Being swayed from a proper view of reality by others’ opinions
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111–13
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Henry James
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432–51
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Application: Why wicked men seem to go unpunished (Ps. 73)
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114–16
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Samuel Langhorne Clemens
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452–75
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Appendix O
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Biography and Potential Problems: Assessment of Clemens’s view of God and life
Introduction: Tracing the evolution of Clemens’ worldview and contrasting it with a biblical worldview (Job 13:15; 23:10).
Analysis: Explaining Clemens’s false moral dilemma in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Application: The blessing of the Holy Spirit’s guidance; the danger of making decisions based on feelings
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117
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Unit 9 Review
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118
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Unit 9 Test
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Unit 10: Naturalists
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119–20
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Stephen Crane
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478–92
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Biography: Biblical analysis of Crane’s major themes
Analysis: The painful reality of hell (Matt. 13:42; 25:41; etc.)
Application: The tragedy that results from rejecting God
Thought and Discussion: Determining the biblical truths Crane rejects in his poetry
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121–22
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Jack London
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493–501
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Biography: The moral effects of London’s naturalism and Darwinism in his writing and life
Potential Problems and Analysis: Contrasting London’s view of old age, death, and the soul with a biblical view
Application: Contrasting London’s worldview with a biblical perspective on what is truly lasting and important in earthly life, particularly in light of death
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123–24
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Frank Norris
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501–11
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Appendix R
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Application: Contrasting the naturalist and Christian worldviews in the context of power struggles in modern society
Thought and Discussion: Naturalism’s lack of moral basis on which to form moral judgments
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Unit 11: Anti-Naturalists
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125
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Edwin Markham
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514–17
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Analysis: Markham’s position that man has no need for God
Thought and Discussion: A biblical balance of work
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126
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William Sidney Porter
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517–23
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Writing Rubric 2-2: Autobiography
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Thought and Discussion: Naturalistic authors’ refutations of God’s providence; love in Matthew 26:6–13 and Luke 7:36–50
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127
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Fanny Crosby
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523–29
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Introduction: Crosby’s joyful and hopeful worldview compared to the naturalist worldview
Analysis: Three types of songs for believers; desiring God’s favor, drawing near to God, and becoming inwardly righteous; God as the eternal King and our faithful leader
Application: Applying Crosby’s themes to personal issues
Thought and Discussion: Soul healing (Heb. 4:16; Mark 9:24; etc.); preformed prayers (1 Sam. 2:1–10; Hos. 14:2; etc.)
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128–29
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Units 10 and 11 Review
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Appendix Q
Appendix R
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130
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Units 10 and 11 Test
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131–34
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Midterm Review
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Appendix P
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135
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Midterm Examination
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Part 4: Modern American Literature
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Unit 12: Modern American Poetry
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136–38
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Part 4 Opener
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532–47
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Appendix C
Appendix S
Appendix T
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Part 4 Opener: The response of American writers to the decline of traditional values and the profound effects of Darwinism, Freudianism, Marxism, and secular humanism on American culture
Overview: The liberalization of traditional Christianity in America
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139–40
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Edwin Arlington Robinson
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550–59
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Analysis: A Christian response to life’s difficulties (Job 23:10; Luke 6:21–23; etc.); Robinson’s view of Christ (Isa. 59:9–10)
Application: The Bible and happiness (Pss. 1; 32; 41:1–4; 46; etc.); avoiding materialism (Josh. 1:8–9; Prov. 3:5–6; etc.)
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141–43
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Robert Frost
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559–75
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Appendix U
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Biography: Frost’s skeptical humanism compared to Scripture
Analysis: Comparison with Paul’s consideration of death (Phil. 1:21–25); finding rest in the midst of life (Exod. 23:12; 33:14; etc.); the cure for spiritual loneliness (Pss. 34:4; 46; Prov. 1:33; etc.)
Application: Choices in the Christian life (Pss. 32:8; 37:23; 48:14; Isa. 30:21; etc.); individuality (Ps. 139; Isa. 45:4; etc.) and conformity (Ps. 133:1; Gal. 5:14–15; etc.) in the Bible
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144
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John Crowe Ransom
Theodore Roethke
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575–77
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145
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Edna St. Vincent Millay
W. H. Auden
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578–82
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146
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Ezra Pound
William Carlos Williams
Archibald MacLeish
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582–87
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Thought and Discussion: The Scriptures and aesthetic values; aestheticism and didacticism from a biblical perspective
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147–48
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Carl Sandburg
E. E. Cummings
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588–99
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Appendix V
Writing Rubric 2-1: Poem
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Biography, Thought and Discussion: Biblical evaluation of Sandburg’s propagandistic tendencies and prominent themes
Biography: Biblical assessment of Cummings’s emphasis on individuality and the sensual
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149
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Wallace Stevens
James Weldon Johnson
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600–610
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Biography and Introduction: Stevens’s neo-paganism (rejection of Christ’s atonement in favor of nature as God)
Analysis: Biblically evaluating Stevens‘s arguments for primitivism and the rejection of God (Phil. 3:20–21; Rev. 21:1–22:5)
Application, Thought and Discussion: Worship of nature in today’s society; question of whether rejecting man’s immortality shows strength or gives comfort (John 14:1–3; 1 Cor. 15); living for earthly pleasure alone; developing compassion and praying for people living without hope
Application: Anthropomorphism in Scripture
Thought and Discussion: Anthropomorphizing God while retaining reverence for Him; the biblical acceptability of the poem’s style and narrative
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150
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T. S. Eliot
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611–13
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Introduction: Eliot’s prescription for the problems of twentieth century man
Analysis: Portraying the total change that the new birth in Christ brings
Application: Combating the idea that education is incompatible with faith in Christ’s divinity or the inspiration of Scripture
Thought and Discussion: Evaluating Eliot’s indirectness in proclaiming the truth; obstacles in the path to conversion; the spiritual paradox symbolized by birth and death
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151
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Unit 12 Review
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152
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Unit 12 Test
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Unit 13: Modern American Prose
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153–54
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Shirley Jackson
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616–20
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Appendix W
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Thought and Discussion: Evaluating tone from a biblical perspective
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155–56
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Richard Connell
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620–35
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Analysis: Biblically evaluating Connell’s moral tone and his conception of goodness in the story
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157–58
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James Thurber
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636–43
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Potential Problems, Introduction, Thought and Discussion: Thurber’s lack of moral foundation in the story and pessimistic outlook on life
Application: The antihero and the hero
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159–60
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Archibald Rutledge
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643–50
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Writing Rubric 13-1: Character Sketch
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Analysis, Thought and Discussion: Trusting in the providential workings of God
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161–62
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Eudora Welty
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651–58
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163–64
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Ernest Hemingway
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658–68
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Biography: Evaluating Hemingway’s view of morality
Application: Finding healing from the wounds of life (2 Kings 20:5; Ps. 30:2; etc.)
Thought and Discussion: Nature as a healer
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165
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Ray Bradbury
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668–73
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Introduction: Bradbury’s pessimistic worldview compared to the Bible
Application: Understanding God’s plan for the world and communicating that plan to others
Thought and Discussion: Biblically evaluating Bradbury’s vision of the future (1 Thess. 4:15–17; Matt. 24:3–31; etc.)
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166
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Review
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167
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Test
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168–69
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Thornton Wilder
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674–89
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Biography and Discussion: A biblical assessment of Wilder’s worldview and its lack of modern pessimism
Application: A Christian description of “the good life” (Ps. 1)
Thought and Discussion: Evaluating Wilder’s worldview toward God, death, life, family, and materialism
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170
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Jesse Stuart
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690–95
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Writing Rubric 2-2: Autobiography
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Introduction and Analysis: Biblically assessing Stuart’s vision of what both teachers and students should be
Analysis: A Christian attitude toward personal victories
Thought and Discussion: A biblical view of the importance of teachers
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171
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James Saxon Childers
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695–99
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Writing Rubric 13-1: Character Sketch
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172
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Bruce Catton
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699–705
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173
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James B. Stockdale
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706–9
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Writing Rubric 13-2: Freedom
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Thought and Discussion: Freedom—a gift from God
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174
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Unit 13 Review
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Appendix W
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175
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Unit 13 Test
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176–80
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Final Review and Final Examination
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