THE FAMILY PHENOMENON IN SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY AMERICAN LITERAURE

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to analyze the phenomenon of the New English family of the 17th century, the first century of the existence of American national literature, presented in the works of early American authors - period insufficiently studied in literary criticism. Untranslated or incompletely translated into Russian works of such religious and public figures, writers as Richard Mather (Diary), Inkris Mather (The Life and Death of the Reverend Richard Mather), Edward Johnson (The Miraculous Providence of the Savior of Zion in New England) , Samuel Sewall (Diary), John Cotton (God’s Promise to His Plantation), Cotton Mather (Life of Mr. Johnatan Burr), are introduced into literary criticism. Being one of the key in the early history and literature of the United States, the theme of the family has the following aspects considered within the framework of the article: the move of families to a new continent, settling in a new place, the status of a father, mother, and child. The process of formation and existence in extreme conditions of a Protestant family is analyzed, the role of the family community in the fulfillment of the sacred mission - the creation of the kingdom of Christ on new lands - is determined. The conclusion is made about the uniqueness of the New English family of the 17th century, which combined the features of both the family structure that developed in European society and those born in the process of American experiments. The idea is emphasized that the disclosure of the family theme by early American authors clearly represents the features of American literature of the 17th century in general. The article uses biographical, structural, cultural and historical methods of literary analysis.